§ 1203-F — Handicapped parking enforcement

§ 1203-f. Handicapped parking enforcement. 1. A county, city, town\nor village may, by adoption of a local law or ordinance, establish a\nhandicapped parking violation unit to assist in the enforcement of\nhandicapped parking laws or ordinances. Persons appointed to such unit\nshall be volunteers, shall serve without compensation, and shall be\nauthorized to provide evidence of violations of handicapped parking laws\nor ordinances to the appropriate local enforcement authority. Such\nevidence may include photographing a violation, provided that such\nphotograph is taken and handled in compliance with the requirements of\nthis section.\n 2. A local law or ordinance enacted in accordance with the provisions\nof this section shall:\n (a) establish a training program of no less than two hours in length\nand require each volunteer to participate in and complete such training\nprogram;\n (b) provide for the assignment of an identification number to each\nvolunteer, and provide official identification and equipment to assist\nvolunteer personnel in the conduct of their duties;\n (c) establish uniform procedures for volunteers to follow in\ndetermining whether a violation has occurred;\n (d) establish procedures for the uniform reporting of violations,\nwhich reporting shall include the identification number of the volunteer\nmaking the report;\n (e) if such local law or ordinance provides for the taking of\nphotographs of violations, (i) grant only the enforcement agency the\nauthority to process or to contract for the processing of all film\nsubmitted by volunteers; (ii) require any photographs evidencing a\nviolation to be available for inspection in any proceeding to adjudicate\nthe liability for such violation; (iii) provide that a certificate,\nsworn to or affirmed by a technician employed by the locality in which\nthe charged violation occurred, or a facsimile thereof, based upon\ninspection of photographs produced from film submitted by volunteers,\nshall be prima facie evidence of the facts contained therein; and (iv)\nprohibit the use of such a photograph for any purpose other than as\nevidence of a handicapped parking violation; and\n (f) provide the following with respect to notices of violation: (i) a\nnotice of violation shall be sent by first class mail to each person\nalleged to be liable as an owner for a violation of a handicapped\nparking law or ordinance. A manual or automatic record of mailing\nprepared in the ordinary course of business shall be prima facie\nevidence of the facts contained therein; (ii) a notice of violation\nshall reference the law which was allegedly violated, and shall contain\nthe name and address of the person alleged to be liable as an owner for\na violation of a handicapped parking law or ordinance, the registration\nnumber of the vehicle involved in such violation, the location where\nsuch violation took place, the date and time of such violation, and the\nidentification number of the volunteer who recorded the violation; (iii)\na notice of violation shall contain information advising the person\ncharged of the manner and the time in which he or she may contest the\nviolation alleged in the notice, and shall also contain a warning to\nadvise the persons charged that failure to contest in the manner and\ntime provided shall be deemed an admission of liability and that a\ndefault judgment may be entered thereon.\n