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a. No vehicle licensed pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall carry any advertising on the exterior of such vehicle, including its roof and trunk, unless the owner thereof shall first have obtained from the commission a permit to carry such exterior advertising.
b. Such permits shall be issued as of September first, and shall expire on August thirty-first next succeeding unless sooner surrendered, suspended, revoked or terminated.
c. The fee for the issuance of such permit shall not exceed fifty dollars annually. If the permit so issued is surrendered to the commission by the permittee within six months of its date of issuance, one-half of the fee paid shall be refunded to the permittee.
d. Applications for such permits shall be filed with the commission upon forms which shall be provided by the commission.
e. The commission shall promulgate such rules and regulations as are necessary to carry out the provisions of this section, including but not limited to the type and size of any advertising matter.
f. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the commission may revoke any individual permit or the permits of any one medallion ownership corporation, issued pursuant to this section for exterior advertising, if advertising showed in the exterior display is offensive to public morals, and is not removed from public display within a period of fifteen days upon specific request for such action from the taxi and limousine commission.
g. No permit issued under this section shall be transferred or assigned.
Editor's note: For related unconsolidated provisions, see Appendix A at L.L. 1992/083.
a. Definitions. For purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings:
Approved electronic tablet. The term “approved electronic tablet” means a third-party device, including an electronic display, touchscreen, or similar device, that is approved by the commission, attached to the interior of a for-hire vehicle, capable of broadcasting electronic media to a passenger of such for-hire vehicle, and capable of being turned on and off, muted, or having its volume adjusted by such passenger, that meets the specifications set out in the rules and regulations promulgated by the commission under this section.
Approved software. The term “approved software” means any software running on an approved electronic tablet, approved by the commission, for the purpose of broadcasting electronic media to a passenger of a for-hire vehicle, that meets the specifications set out in the rules and regulations promulgated by the commission under this section.
Discriminate. The term “discriminate” means imposing any negative consequences on a driver, including but not limited to deactivating the driver, refusing to lease a for-hire vehicle to a driver, imposing an additional charge for leasing a vehicle without an approved electronic tablet, reducing the compensation provided to the driver, either directly or indirectly through manipulating the number or type of rides assigned to the driver, or disciplinary action.
Electronic media. The term “electronic media” means audio-visual content, including but not limited to advertising, interactive content, informative graphics, music, and videos.
b. Optional use of an approved electronic tablet. A for-hire vehicle may have an approved electronic tablet running approved software in such vehicle, provided that such vehicle does not have more than 1 such tablet operating in the vehicle at the same time. No driver shall be required to install or pay for the installation of an approved electronic tablet in such driver’s vehicle, or be required to operate a vehicle with an approved electronic tablet. No high-volume for-hire service or other service regulated by the commission may discriminate against a driver based on whether the driver chooses to operate a vehicle with an approved electronic tablet, or based on the brand or affiliation of the approved electronic tablet if a driver chooses to use an approved electronic tablet, or based on the approved software running on such approved electronic tablet, except that it shall not be discrimination for such a service to pay for the installation of an approved electronic tablet; to provide a driver of a vehicle in which an approved electronic tablet is installed a portion of the proceeds it receives from broadcasting electronic media on an approved electronic tablet, as determined pursuant to subdivision d of this section; or to facilitate the payment of a gratuity from a passenger to a driver through such approved electronic tablet.
c. Interior advertising company license required. It shall be unlawful for any person to provide or supply an approved electronic tablet for use in a for-hire vehicle unless such person secures a license therefor from the commission. The fee for the issuance of such license shall be $500 a year. Any person licensed under this section shall provide the commission with any and all information required by the rules and regulations promulgated pursuant to this section, including but not limited to the information required under section 19-546.
d. Driver compensation. Any interior advertising company licensed pursuant to subdivision c of this section shall compensate drivers of a for-hire vehicle with an approved electronic tablet with a minimum of 25 percent of the gross revenue generated by such tablet in their vehicle. One year after the implementation of this local law, the commission shall provide the speaker of the council and the mayor a report examining the compensation received by drivers from approved tablets and may adjust the minimum compensation standards if the commission deems necessary. In the case of a for-hire vehicle with more than 1 driver, each driver operating such vehicle shall receive a pro rata share of such revenue, based on the share of hours the driver operated the vehicle.
e. Application to all drivers irrespective of vehicle ownership. The commission shall promulgate such rules and regulations as are necessary to carry out the provisions of this section, provided that such rules apply equally to drivers whether they rent, lease, or own the for-hire vehicle in which the approved electronic tablet is installed.
(L.L. 2024/033, 1/20/2024, eff. 4/19/2024; Am. L.L. 2024/056, 4/6/2024, eff. 4/19/2024)
a. For purposes of this section "taxicab broker" means a person, partnership or corporation who, for another and whether or not acting for a fee, commission or other valuable consideration, acts as an agent or intermediary in negotiating the purchase or sale of a taxicab or of stock of or in a corporation which is an owner as defined in subdivision i of section 19-501 of this chapter, or in negotiating a loan secured or to be secured by an encumbrance upon or transfer of a medallion, vehicle license or licensed vehicle. A purchase or sale under this subdivision shall include a purchase or sale of or under a reserve title contract, conditional sales agreement or vendor lien agreement.
b. On and after the first day of January nineteen hundred eighty-five, no person shall engage in the business or occupation of, or hold himself, herself or itself out or act temporarily or otherwise as a taxicab broker without first obtaining a license therefor from the commission. Such licenses shall be issued as of January first and shall expire on December thirty-first next succeeding, unless sooner suspended or revoked by the commission.
c. The license fee shall be five hundred dollars for a license and five hundred dollars for each subsequent renewal thereof. If a license is granted for a period of six months or less the fee shall be one-half of the annual fee.
d. Applications for taxicab broker licenses and for the renewal thereof shall be filed with the commission in such form and containing such detail as the commission shall prescribe. Each application and renewal application shall be subscribed by the applicant; or if made by a partnership it shall be subscribed by a member thereof; or if made by a corporation it shall be subscribed by an officer thereof. Each application and renewal application shall contain an affirmation by the person so subscribing that the statements therein are true under the penalties of perjury.
1. In addition to any other information required by the commission, each applicant and renewal applicant shall provide:
(a) Fingerprints, unless the applicant has previously submitted fingerprints to the commission;
(b) Proof of payment of all penalties, fines, and fees owed to the commission, department of finance, or department of motor vehicles;
(c) The applicant's current mailing address, business address where applicable, and an email address for the applicant and for each officer if the applicant is a partnership or corporation; and
(d) The applicant's social security number.
2. In addition to other information required by this section, each applicant that is a business entity shall provide proof of active status with the department of state and the following information:
(a) An applicant that is a sole proprietor shall provide a copy of the certificate required to be filed with the clerk of the county in which such sole proprietor conducts or transacts business pursuant to section 130 of the general business law.
(b) An applicant that is a partnership shall provide a copy of the certificate required to be filed with the clerk of the county in which such partnership conducts or transacts business pursuant to section 130 of the general business law.
(c) An applicant that is a corporation shall provide a certified copy of its certificate of incorporation, a list of all officers and shareholders and a certified copy of the minutes of the meeting at which the current officers were elected.
(d) An applicant that is a limited liability company shall provide a copy of its articles of organization and a list containing the names of each member and the percentage of such company owned by each such member.
3. Before issuing a taxicab broker license or the renewal thereof, the commission shall investigate and assess the good character, honesty, and integrity of each applicant. The commission may refuse to issue or renew such a license upon finding that an applicant lacks good character, honesty, and integrity. As part of such assessment, the commission shall consider:
(a) Failure by such applicant to provide truthful information in connection with the application;
(b) A conviction of such applicant or any officer thereof for a crime which, considering the factors set forth in section 753 of the correction law, would provide a basis for the refusal of such license;
(c) A finding of liability in a civil or administrative action that bears a direct relationship to the fitness of the applicant or an officer thereof to conduct the business for which such license is sought;
(d) Whether the applicant or an officer thereof is or has been a principal or officer of a business entity conducting business as a taxicab broker where the commission would be authorized to deny a license to such business entity pursuant to this paragraph;
(e) Failure to pay any tax, fine, penalty, or fee related to the applicant's business for which judgment has been entered by a court or administrative tribunal of competent jurisdiction; and
(f) Any other relevant information.
4. A taxicab broker license shall be valid for a period of one year, upon the expiration of which a taxicab broker may submit an application for renewal. Where a renewal application has been submitted prior to the expiration date, a license shall remain in full force and effect until a determination to approve or deny such renewal application has been made.
e. Before such license is issued, an applicant shall deposit with the commission, a bond in the penal sum of fifty thousand dollars containing one or more sureties to be approved by the commission. Such bond shall be payable to the city and shall be conditioned that the person applying for the license will comply with the provisions of this section and any rules or regulations of the commission; and shall pay all fines imposed by the commission pursuant to subdivision f hereof and all judgements awarding from damages occasioned to any person by reason of any misrepresentation, fraud or deceit, or any unlawful act or omission of such licensee, his or her agents or employees, while acting within the scope of their employment, made, committed or omitted in the business conducted under such license, or caused by any other violation of this section in carrying on the business for which such license is granted.
f. The commission may revoke or suspend a taxicab broker license; impose a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars on a licensee; or deny an application for a taxicab broker license if after notice and hearing it finds that a licensee or applicant has:
(1) made a material misstatement or misrepresentation on an application for a taxicab broker license or the renewal thereof;
(2) made a material misrepresentation or committed a fraudulent, deceitful or unlawful act or omission while engaged in the business or occupation of or holding himself, herself or itself out or acting temporarily or otherwise as a taxicab broker;
(3) violated any provision of this section or any rule or regulation of the commission.
g. The commission shall establish the fee and/or commission rates to be charged by any taxicab broker.
h. Any person who violates the provisions of subdivision b of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than one hundred dollars nor more than five hundred dollars and shall also be liable for a civil penalty of not less than one hundred dollars nor more than five hundred dollars.
(Am. L.L. 2020/110, 11/15/2020, eff. 5/14/2021)
Editor's note: For related unconsolidated provisions, see Appendix A at L.L. 2020/110.
a. It shall be unlawful for any person required to be licensed pursuant to the provisions of this chapter to engage in any trade, business or activity for which a license is required without such license.
b. In addition to the enforcement procedures set forth in section 19-506 of this chapter, the commission, after notice and a hearing, shall be authorized:
1. to impose fines upon any person in violation of subdivision a of this section of one hundred dollars per violation per day for each and every day during which such person violates such subdivision.
2. to order any person in violation of subdivision a of this section immediately to discontinue such activity at the premises from which such activity is occurring.
3. to order that such premises from which such activity is occurring be sealed, provided that such premises are primarily used for such activity.
c. Orders of the commission issued pursuant to this subdivision shall be posted at the premises from which unlicensed activity occurs in violation of this section.
d. Orders of the commission issued pursuant to paragraphs two or three of subdivision b of this section shall be stayed with respect to any person who, prior to service of the notice provided in subdivision b of this section, had submitted a full and complete application in proper form and accompanied by the requisite fee for a license or the renewal of a license while such application is pending.
e. Ten days after the posting of an order issued pursuant to paragraphs two or three of subdivision b of this section and upon the written directive of the commission, officers and employees of the commission and officers of the New York city police department are authorized to act upon and enforce such orders.
f. The commission shall order that any premises which are sealed pursuant to this section shall be unsealed upon:
1. payment of all outstanding fines; and
2. presentation of proof that a license has been obtained for such activity or, if such person or premises are for any reason ineligible to obtain a license, proof satisfactory to the commission that such premises will not be used in violation of this section.
g. It shall be a misdemeanor for any person to remove the seal on any premises sealed in accordance with an order of the commission.
h. The owner or other person lawfully entitled to reclaim the contents of the premises sealed pursuant to this section shall reclaim such contents. If such owner or such other person does not reclaim such contents within ninety days of the premises having been sealed, such contents shall be subject to forfeiture upon notice and judicial determination in accordance with provisions of law. Upon forfeiture the commission shall, upon a public notice of at least five days, sell such forfeited contents at public sale. The net proceeds of such sale, after deduction of the lawful expenses incurred, shall be paid into the general fund of the city.
Editor's note: For related unconsolidated provisions, see Appendix A at L.L. 1992/013.
a. Beginning with the 1991 model year, for each seating position, every taxicab and for-hire vehicle shall be equipped with seat belts and, for every outside passenger position, shall be equipped with shoulder belts.
b. All seat and shoulder belts required by this section or by any provision of state or federal law shall be clearly visible, accessible and shall be maintained in good working order. No safety belt installed in a motor vehicle in accordance with the provisions of this section or in accordance with the provisions of state or federal law or the rules or regulations issued by the New York State Department of Transportation or the United States Department of Transportation, shall be removed from said motor vehicle.
c. The owner of any licensed vehicle found to be in violation of subdivision a or b hereof shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than two hundred fifty dollars.
d. At each inspection of a licensed taxicab or for-hire vehicle made pursuant to subdivision f of section 19-504 of this chapter, failure to comply with subdivision a or b hereof shall be evidence that such vehicle fails to meet reasonable standards for safe operation and shall constitute cause for the suspension of said vehicle license by the commission.
a. No commuter van service and no person who owns, operates or drives a commuter van shall solicit, pick up or discharge passengers, or permit or authorize the solicitation, pick up or discharge of passengers:
(1) outside of the geographical area set forth in the authorization to operate a commuter van service issued pursuant to section 19-504.2 of this chapter; or
(2) at stops of, or along a route which is traveled upon by a bus line which is operated by the New York city transit authority or the city or a private bus company which has been granted a franchise by the city. The prohibition contained in this paragraph shall not apply to the pick up or discharge of passengers in the borough of Manhattan south of Chambers Street by commuter van services who on July first, nineteen hundred ninety-two had authority from the state department of transportation to pick up or discharge passengers along bus routes in such area, provided that the scope of operations by such commuter van services along bus routes in such area shall not exceed the scope of such operations prior to July first, nineteen hundred ninety-two.
b. Where a violation of subdivision a of this section has been committed by a driver of a commuter van, the commuter van service and the owner of such vehicle shall also be liable for a violation of subdivision a of this section.
Editor's note: For related unconsolidated provisions, see Appendix A at L.L. 1993/115.
a. A police officer or agent of the commission may, upon service of a notice of violation upon the owner or operator of a commuter van, seize a vehicle which such police officer or agent of the commission has reasonable cause to believe is being operated as a commuter van service by or on behalf of a person who is not operating pursuant to a current, valid authorization or operating as a commuter van without a commuter van license as required by this chapter. All passengers in any seized vehicle shall be left in or transported to a location which is readily accessible to other means of public transportation. Any vehicle seized pursuant to this section shall be delivered into the custody of the city.
b. Within one business day after the seizure of a vehicle pursuant to this section, notice of such seizure and a copy of the notice of violation shall be mailed to the owner of such vehicle at the address for such owner set forth in the records maintained by the New York state department of motor vehicles, or, for vehicles not registered in New York state, such equivalent record in such state of registration.
c. A hearing to adjudicate the violation underlying the seizure shall be held before the commission or an administrative tribunal thereof within five business days after the date of the seizure. The commission or an administrative tribunal thereof shall, within one business day of the conclusion of the hearing, render a determination as to whether the vehicle has been operated by or on behalf of a person who is not the holder of a current, valid authorization or has been operated without a commuter van vehicle license required by this chapter.
d. An owner shall be eligible to obtain release of the vehicle prior to such hearing if such owner has not previously been found liable in an administrative or judicial proceeding for operating a vehicle as a commuter van service without a current, valid authorization or operating a commuter van without a commuter van license as required by this chapter, which violation was committed within a five year period prior to the violation resulting in the seizure. The vehicle shall be released to an eligible owner upon the posting of a bond in a form satisfactory to the commission in an amount that shall not exceed the maximum civil penalties which may be imposed for the violation underlying the seizure and all reasonable costs for removal and storage of such vehicle.
e. Where the commission or an administrative tribunal thereof, after adjudication of the violation underlying the seizure, shall find that the vehicle has been operated as a commuter van by or on behalf of a person who is not the holder of a current, valid authorization or operated as a commuter van without a commuter van license:
(1) if the vehicle is not subject to forfeiture pursuant to section 19-529.3 of this chapter, the commission shall release such vehicle to an owner upon payment of the applicable civil penalties and all reasonable removal and storage costs; or
(2) if the vehicle is subject to forfeiture pursuant to section 19-529.3 of this chapter, the commission may release such vehicle to an owner upon payment of the applicable civil penalties and all reasonable removal and storage costs, or may commence a forfeiture action pursuant to section 19-529.3 of this chapter within ten days after the owner's written demand for such vehicle.
f. Where the commission or an administrative tribunal thereof, after adjudication of the violation underlying the seizure, finds that the charge of operating without an authorization or commuter van license has not been sustained, the vehicle shall be released to the owner. If an owner or representative of such owner has not sought to reclaim a seized vehicle within thirty days after mailing of notice of such owner of the final adjudication by the commission or such administrative tribunal of the violation underlying the seizure, such vehicle shall be deemed by the commission to be abandoned. Such vehicle shall be disposed of by the city pursuant to section twelve hundred twenty-four of the vehicle and traffic law; provided, however, that notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of section twelve hundred twenty-four of such law, if an owner seeks to reclaim such vehicle pursuant to section twelve hundred twenty-four of such law, such owner shall be deemed to have made a written demand for such vehicle and the commission shall take such action as may be authorized by subdivision e or f of this section.
Editor's note: For related unconsolidated provisions, see Appendix A at L.L. 1993/115.
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