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Council Member Yusef Salaam's opening remarks on NYPD parking and traffic enforcement hearing
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4 min
Council Member Yusef Salaam, chair of the committee on public safety, opens the hearing on NYPD's parking and traffic enforcement efforts and related legislation. He outlines the key issues to be discussed, including traffic safety, racial disparities in enforcement, ghost cars, and proposed bills to address various concerns.
- Highlights the importance of fair and consistent enforcement of parking and traffic laws
- Mentions specific legislative items to be considered, including Intro 179, Intro 1252, Resolution 853, and Resolution 854
- Emphasizes the need to address racial disparities in enforcement, citing statistics on vehicle searches involving Black and Hispanic individuals
Yusef Salaam
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Good morning.
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I'm council member Youssef Salaam, chair of the committee on public safety.
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I want to welcome everyone to today's hearing on the NYPD's parking and traffic enforcement efforts and related legislation.
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I'm joined today by members of the committee Marte councilmember Marte, councilmember Holden, councilmember Joseph, councilmember Caban, and councilmember Osei on Zoom.
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Today we will examine how the NYPD is enforcing parking and traffic laws and addressing public concerns about safety fairness and accountability.
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From reckless driving, driving while intoxicated and impaired, accidents involving serious and fatal injury to the proliferation of ghost cars.
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This hearing comes as many New Yorkers question both the effectiveness and fairness of the NYPD's enforcement efforts.
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In 2024, we saw two hundred seventy four traffic related deaths including one hundred eighteen pedestrian fatalities and nearly one hundred involving e bikes, mopeds, and other micro mobility devices serving as a stark reminders serving as stark reminders of the seriousness of ensuring proper traffic enforcement to maintain safety on city streets for all New Yorkers and to minimize the occurrence of serious and deadly traffic accidents.
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I think we all agree that the that we want the NYPD to enforce our parking and traffic laws in a fair and consistent manner And we look forward to examining relevant statistics to see whether department is succeeding or falling short.
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We intend to explore what we can what can be done to address racial disparities in enforcement.
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According to the NYPD's vehicle stop report, in 02/2004 over 85% of vehicle searches conducted by NYPD involved black and Hispanic individuals.
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These disparities have continued even as enforcement has declined in various categories.
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So while some call for more traffic enforcement in this in the interest of safety, others ask whether the enforcement that remains is being applied equitably.
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We also expect to hear how the NYPD is addressing challenges relating to ghost cars, illegal plates, and enforcement of laws related to micro mobility devices, issues that are increasingly shaping the flow of traffic in New York City.
0:02:56
In addition to today's oversight discussion, we are also considering a number of legislative items.
0:03:03
Introduction number one seventy nine sponsored by council member Felice would require the NYPD to maintain adequate tow pound capacity to meet enforcement needs and publish annual reports on towing activity.
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And publish annual reports on towing activity disaggregated by precinct.
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Introduction number one two five two, also sponsored by council member Feliz, which would mandate NYPD verification of license plates and vehicle identification numbers for vehicles with temporary or suspicious plates alongside quarterly public reporting on violations, immobilizations, and tolls.
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Resolution number eight five three, which I've sponsored calling on the state to amend the vehicle and traffic law to allow vehicle identification numbers to be listed on notice of violation when license plates are missing, obscured, or tampered with.
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Resolution number eight five four, sponsored by myself in support of senate bill seven seven six two one and Assembly bill seven nine seven nine which will require intelligent speed assistant technology in vehicles driven by repeat traffic violators.
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This hearing is an opportunity to examine how enforcement prioritizes traffic and parking enforcement, how priorities have changed in recent years, and the department's vision is for safer, more just traffic enforcement system going forward.
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I thank everyone here today for participating in this important conversation and I look forward to a thoughtful and robust discussion.
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I now turn to counsel to administer the oath.