S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  5980

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                            February 23, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  ZEBROWSKI, BENEDETTO, CASTRO, FIELDS, GALEF,
  GOTTFRIED, JAFFEE, KOON, LANCMAN, REILLY, SPANO, TITONE -- Multi-Spon-
  sored by -- M. of A. DelMONTE, DINOWITZ, GREENE, HEVESI, MAISEL, McEN-
  ENY, PHEFFER, SCHIMEL, WEISENBERG -- read once  and  referred  to  the
  Committee on Transportation

AN  ACT  to  amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to providing
  penalties for the  operation  of  a  motor  vehicle  without  required
  muffler and exhaust system equipment

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1.  Subdivisions 31, 31-a and 31-b of section 375 of the vehi-
cle and traffic law, subdivision 31 as amended by  chapter  337  of  the
laws  of  1971,  subdivision 31-a as added by chapter 434 of the laws of
1979 and subdivision 31-b as added by chapter 612 of the laws  of  1986,
are amended to read as follows:
  31.  Mufflers and exhaust systems[.  Prevention]; PREVENTION of noise.
(A) Every motor vehicle, operated or driven upon  the  highways  of  the
state,  shall  at  all  times  be  equipped with an adequate muffler and
exhaust system in constant operation and properly maintained to  prevent
any  excessive  or  unusual  noise and no such muffler or exhaust system
shall be equipped with a cut-out, bypass, or similar device.  No  person
shall  modify  the  muffler  or  exhaust  system of a motor vehicle in a
manner which will amplify or increase the noise emitted by the motor  or
exhaust  system  of  such  vehicle  above that emitted by the muffler or
exhaust system originally installed on the  vehicle  and  such  original
muffler  and  exhaust  system  shall comply with all the requirements of
this section.
  [A muffler is] AS USED IN THIS SUBDIVISION, A "MUFFLER" MEANS a device
consisting of a series of chambers or baffle plates, or other mechanical
design for the  purpose  of  receiving  exhaust  gas  from  an  internal
combustion engine, and effective in reducing noise.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD01518-05-9
              

A. 5980                             2

  [An  exhaust  system  is]  AS  USED  IN  THIS SUBDIVISION, AN "EXHAUST
SYSTEM" MEANS a series of mechanical devices for the purpose of  receiv-
ing exhaust gas from an internal combustion engine and expelling it into
the atmosphere.
  [31-a.]  (B)  No  person  shall,  in the state, sell, install or use a
motorcycle exhaust device without internal baffles, known  as  "straight
pipes".
  [31-b.]  (C)  No  person  shall,  in the state, sell, install or use a
motorcycle exhaust device that is intentionally designed  to  allow  for
the  internal baffling to be fully or partially removed or interchangea-
ble. This subdivision shall not apply to a  motorcycle  manufactured  or
assembled  prior to nineteen hundred seventy-nine or a motorcycle regis-
tered as a limited use vehicle or an all  terrain  vehicle  pursuant  to
article forty-eight-A or forty-eight-B of this chapter.
  (D)  A VIOLATION OF ANY OF THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL BE
PUNISHABLE BY A FINE OF NOT MORE THAN ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS AND/OR REMOVAL
OF THE MUFFLER AND EXHAUST SYSTEM THAT IS THE SUBJECT OF  THE  VIOLATION
FOR A FIRST OFFENSE. A VIOLATION OF ANY OF THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SUBDI-
VISION  SHALL  BE  PUNISHABLE  BY  A  FINE OF NOT MORE THAN FIVE HUNDRED
DOLLARS AND/OR REMOVAL OF THE MUFFLER AND EXHAUST  SYSTEM  THAT  IS  THE
SUBJECT OF THE VIOLATION FOR A SECOND OFFENSE. A VIOLATION OF ANY OF THE
PROVISIONS OF THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL BE PUNISHABLE BY A FINE OF NOT MORE
THAN  ONE  THOUSAND  DOLLARS  AND/OR  REMOVAL OF THE MUFFLER AND EXHAUST
SYSTEM THAT IS THE SUBJECT OF THE VIOLATION FOR A THIRD  OFFENSE  AND/OR
THE IMPOSITION OF TWO POINTS ON THE VIOLATOR'S RECORD.
  S  2. Subdivision 13 of section 381 of the vehicle and traffic law, as
added by chapter 61 of the laws of 1989, is amended to read as follows:
  13.  [A] (A) EXCEPT AS IS PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH (B) OF  THIS  SUBDIVI-
SION,  A  violation  of  any  of the provisions of this section shall be
punishable by a fine not exceeding one hundred dollars or  by  imprison-
ment  for  not exceeding thirty days, or by both such fine and imprison-
ment.
  (B) A VIOLATION OF ANY OF THE PROVISIONS OF  SUBDIVISIONS  ELEVEN  AND
TWELVE  OF  THIS  SECTION SHALL BE PUNISHABLE BY A FINE OF NOT MORE THAN
ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS AND/OR REMOVAL OF THE  MUFFLER  AND  EXHAUST  SYSTEM
THAT IS THE SUBJECT OF THE VIOLATION FOR A FIRST OFFENSE. A VIOLATION OF
ANY  OF THE PROVISIONS OF SUBDIVISIONS ELEVEN AND TWELVE OF THIS SECTION
SHALL BE PUNISHABLE BY A FINE OF NOT  MORE  THAN  FIVE  HUNDRED  DOLLARS
AND/OR  REMOVAL OF THE MUFFLER AND EXHAUST SYSTEM THAT IS THE SUBJECT OF
THE VIOLATION FOR A SECOND OFFENSE. A VIOLATION OF ANY OF THE PROVISIONS
OF SUBDIVISIONS ELEVEN AND TWELVE OF THIS SECTION SHALL BE PUNISHABLE BY
A FINE OF NOT MORE THAN ONE  THOUSAND  DOLLARS  AND/OR  REMOVAL  OF  THE
MUFFLER  AND  EXHAUST  SYSTEM THAT IS THE SUBJECT OF THE VIOLATION FOR A
THIRD OFFENSE AND/OR THE IMPOSITION OF  TWO  POINTS  ON  THE  VIOLATOR'S
RECORD.
  S 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
it shall have become a law.