§ 303 — Official inspection stations

New York § 303

• Jurisdiction: New York
• Law VAT: Vehicle & Traffic
• Title 3: Safety Responsibility; Financial Security; Equipment; Inspection; Size and Weight; and Other Provisions
• Art. 5: Periodic Inspection of Motor Vehicles

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§ 303. Official inspection stations. (a) The commissioner is\nauthorized to operate, enter into contracts with any person to operate,\nand license official inspection stations for the purpose of making the\ninspection prescribed by this article and for the purpose of issuing\ncertificates of inspection.\n (1) A license to operate an official inspection station shall be\nissued only upon written application which shall set forth such facts\nand evidence as may be required to ascertain the identity,\nqualifications and character of the applicant. An original application\nfor a license for an official inspection station shall be accompanied by\nan application fee of twenty-five dollars, which shall in no event be\nrefunded. The commissioner shall issue a license, after appropriate\ninquiry and investigation, only when satisfied that the station is\nproperly equipped and has competent personnel to make such inspections\nand that such inspections will be properly conducted, and that the\napplicant complies with the provisions of this article and the rules and\nregulations promulgated thereunder. If an application is approved by the\ncommissioner, a license shall be issued to the applicant. The annual fee\nfor a license or license renewal shall be fifty dollars. The\ncommissioner may issue such licenses on a staggered expiration basis, in\nwhich event the fees for such licenses shall be prorated on a monthly\nbasis. In no event shall the fee exceed one hundred dollars for two\nyears. The commissioner shall have discretion to issue a license or\nlicense renewal which shall be valid for a period of not more than two\nyears. The fee for any such renewal shall be not more than one hundred\ndollars.\n (2) The commissioner may issue a temporary permit to any applicant for\na license under the provisions of this article pending final action on\nan application made for such a license, and the computation of the\nlicense fee, if a license is issued, shall be computed from the date of\nissuance of the temporary permit. Any such permit shall be valid for a\nperiod not in excess of sixty days. The provisions of this paragraph\nrelating to fees, shall not apply to the state, a city, county, village,\ntown or school district, or any of the departments thereof.\n (3) A contract to operate an emission inspection facility shall\ninclude the following conditions:\n (i) emission inspection facilities must be geographically dispersed\nthroughout each region in numbers sufficient to allow motorists\nreasonable access to such facilities;\n (ii) maximum daily average waiting times for motorists at emission\ninspection facilities shall not exceed fifteen minutes for more than\nfive days each calendar month; and\n (iii) no emission inspection facility authorized by a chapter of the\nlaws of nineteen hundred ninety-three shall begin to operate\ncommercially, except for a limited test period not to exceed thirty-one\ndays as approved by the department, prior to January first, nineteen\nhundred ninety-six, in any area of the state which has an emission\ninspection program in operation at the time of the enactment of such\nchapter. The commissioner shall approve any proposed fee schedule to the\nextent that it will allow an official inspection station operating such\na pre-existing program to recover any additional fee imposed by such\nchapter.\n (b) Each official inspection station shall keep a record of\ninspections, re-inspections, and the results thereof, and a record of\ncertificates of inspection issued.\n (c) Each official inspection station shall prominently display in an\narea of the station where the orderly transaction of business of such\nstation occurs a sign provided or approved by the department and, after\na motor vehicle fails to pass inspection at such station, provide\nwritten notice on forms provided or approved by the department to the\nowner or person in charge of said vehicle that the necessary repairs\nmust be made to the vehicle within thirty days from the date of\ninspection and that such repairs need not necessarily be made at that\nstation and shall be made in a manner consistent with federal law and\nregulations. The period allowed for repair shall not extend the\nexpiration date of either the inspection sticker or registration\ncertificate.\n (d) 1. The commissioner shall supervise and cause inspections to be\nmade of such official inspection stations. It shall be the duty of the\nsuperintendent of state police and of the police forces of all\nmunicipalities of the state to assist the commissioner in assuring\ncompliance by all official inspection stations with the provisions of\nthis article and with all rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.\nAn official inspection station and the records thereof shall be open for\ninspection at reasonable times by any police officer or any person\ndesignated by the commissioner to inspect such official inspection\nstations or any person designated by the commissioner of environmental\nconservation to inspect such official inspection stations with respect\nto emission inspections.\n 2. The commissioner shall have the right to inspect motor vehicles\nlocated on the premises of any person, association, corporation,\nsubsidiary corporation or municipality having obtained permission to\nconduct self-inspection of motor vehicles pursuant to subdivision (c) or\n(f) of section three hundred two of this chapter and which have been\nissued a certificate of inspection within the previous fifteen days.\n (e) 1. A license to operate an official inspection station or a\ncertificate to inspect vehicles may be suspended or revoked or renewal\nthereof may be refused by the commissioner or any person duly deputized\nfor one or more of the following causes:\n (i) Failure to conduct inspections in conformance with the provisions\nof this article and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder or\nimproper issuance of certificates of inspections.\n (ii) Conviction of a crime involving fraud, theft, perjury or bribery\nor other cause which would permit disqualification from receiving a\nlicense or a certificate to inspect vehicles upon the original\napplication.\n (iii) Fraud, deceit or misrepresentation in securing the license or a\ncertificate to inspect vehicles or in the conduct of licensed or\ncertified activity.\n (iv) Excessive charges for conducting inspections and for making\nadjustments, corrections or repairs required by such inspections.\n (v) Violation of any provision of this article or any rule or\nregulation promulgated thereunder.\n 2. Provided, however a license to operate an official inspection\nstation or a certificate to inspect vehicles shall be suspended or\nrevoked or renewal thereof shall be refused by the commissioner or any\nperson duly deputized, upon a third or subsequent violation committed\nwithin a period of eighteen months of any rule or regulation of the\ncommissioner requiring an inspection station to refuse to perform an\ninspection as set forth in paragraph two of subdivision (f) of section\n79.20 of title fifteen of the codes, rules and regulations of the state\nof New York. If the commissioner or any person duly deputized orders\npenalties to be paid pursuant to subdivision (h) of this section, such\npenalties shall be in addition to, but not in lieu of, a suspension,\nrevocation, or renewal thereof imposed pursuant to this paragraph.\n 3. Provided, however, a license to operate an official inspection\nstation or a certificate to inspect vehicles shall be suspended or\nrevoked or renewal thereof shall be refused by the commissioner or any\nperson duly deputized, upon a third or subsequent willful violation, all\nwithin a period of eighteen months, of any rule or regulation of the\ncommissioner requiring an inspection station to inspect the muffler or\nexhaust system of a motorcycle as set forth in subdivision (c) of\nsection 79.28 of title 15 of the codes, rules and regulations of the\nstate of New York. If the commissioner or any person duly deputized\norders penalties to be paid pursuant to subdivision (h) of this section,\nsuch penalties shall be in addition to, but not in lieu of, a\nsuspension, revocation, or renewal thereof imposed pursuant to this\nparagraph.\n (f) No license or certificate shall be revoked or suspended, or\nrenewal refused, except upon notice to the licensee or certified\ninspector and after an opportunity to be heard. A license or\ncertificate, however, may be temporarily suspended upon a written notice\nof temporary suspension delivered by certified mail to the licensee or\ncertified inspector pending any prosecution, investigation or hearing.\nThe written notice of temporary suspension shall provide that the\ntemporary suspension is effective seventy-two hours after delivery of\nsuch notice. Whenever any license to operate an official inspection\nstation or certificate to inspect vehicles is revoked, no license or\ncertificate shall be reissued to an applicant until after the expiration\nof a period of one year from the date of such revocation.\n (g) Upon the revocation or suspension of an inspection station license\nor certificate to inspect vehicles, the holder thereof shall deliver\nsuch license or certificate to the revoking or suspending officer,\ntogether with all inspection and inspection extension certificates, all\ninspection record forms, and any and all other items in the possession\nof the license or certificate holder which theretofore had been issued\nby the commissioner for use in connection with the inspection station or\nthe inspection of vehicles. The failure of the holder thereof to deliver\nany of the aforesaid items to the revoking or suspending officer, or to\nany peace officer, acting pursuant to his special duties, or police\nofficer directed by the commissioner or agent of the commissioner,\ndisplaying authorization to act in such capacity along with a certified\ncopy of the order revoking or suspending such inspection station\nlicense, to secure possession thereof, shall constitute a misdemeanor.\n (h) The commissioner, or any person duly deputized, in addition to or\nin lieu of revoking or suspending a license to operate an official\ninspection station or a certificate to inspect vehicles, may by order\nrequire the licensee or certified inspector to pay to the people of this\nstate a penalty for a first violation a sum not exceeding one thousand\ndollars for each violation found to have been committed; and for a\nsecond or subsequent violation not arising out of the same incident both\nof which were committed within a period of thirty months, a sum of not\nmore than one thousand five hundred dollars for each violation found to\nhave been committed; provided, however, the penalty for each and any\nviolation of subparagraph (iii) of paragraph one of subdivision (e) of\nthis section found to have been committed shall be no less than five\nhundred dollars and no more than one thousand five hundred dollars, and\nprovided further, however, the penalty for a violation found to have\nbeen committed of any rule or regulation of the commissioner requiring\nan inspection station to refuse to perform an inspection as set forth in\nparagraph two of subdivision (f) of section 79.20 of title fifteen of\nthe codes, rules and regulations of the state of New York shall be a\nfine of not less than two hundred fifty dollars nor more than one\nthousand dollars for a first violation, and a fine of not less than five\nhundred dollars nor more than one thousand five hundred dollars for a\nsecond or subsequent such violation not arising out of the same incident\nboth of which were committed within a period of eighteen months, and\nupon the failure of such licensee to pay such penalty within twenty days\nafter the mailing of such order, postage prepaid, registered or\ncertified, and addressed to the last known place of business of such\nlicensee or certified inspector, unless such order is stayed by a court\nof competent jurisdiction or in accordance with the provisions of\narticle three-A of this chapter, the commissioner may revoke the license\nof such licensee or the certificate of such certified inspector or may\nsuspend the same for such period as may be determined. Civil penalties\nassessed under this subdivision shall be paid to the commissioner for\ndeposit into the state treasury, and unpaid civil penalties may be\nrecovered by the commissioner in a civil action in the name of the\ncommissioner. In addition, as an alternative to such civil action and\nprovided that no proceeding for judicial review shall then be pending\nand the time for initiation of such proceeding shall have expired, the\ncommissioner may file with the county clerk of the county in which the\nregistrant is located or the certified inspector resides a final order\nof the commissioner containing the amount of the penalty assessed. The\nfiling of such final order shall have the full force and effect of a\njudgment duly docketed in the office of such clerk and may be enforced\nin the same manner and with the same effect as that provided by law in\nrespect to executions issued against property upon judgments of a court\nof record.\n (i) The holder of an inspection station license shall remove or cause\nto be removed any sign which contains the license number of the station\nwhich is visible to the public and which is required to be displayed by\nthis article or regulations promulgated thereunder if the license is\nrevoked or suspended or the inspection station is out of business. If\nthe license is only suspended, the holder may cover up the sign instead\nof removing it.\n (j) No person shall permit the display of any sign required to be\ndisplayed by this article or regulations promulgated thereunder\nindicating to the public that an official inspection station is\noperating unless an inspection station license has been issued to that\nperson and is currently valid.\n