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City of Amsterdam, NY
Montgomery County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Code
New Laws (2) Index
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Common Council of the City of Amsterdam 5-15-2001 by L.L. No. 2-2001.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
[1]
Editor's Note: This local law also repealed former Ch. 217, Taxicabs, adopted 10-3-1972, as amended.
[Amended 4-21-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-2]
A. 
No person or company shall dispatch a taxicab for the purpose of picking up a passenger within the City of Amsterdam without having a current taxicab operator's permit pursuant to this chapter. Each taxicab company or independent operator shall be required to obtain one taxicab operator's permit for the dispatch of taxicabs for the purpose of picking up a passenger within the City of Amsterdam.
B. 
No person shall drive or operate a taxicab in the City of Amsterdam without having a current taxicab driver's permit pursuant to this chapter. A taxicab driver transporting a passenger from outside the City of Amsterdam to or through the City of Amsterdam does not require a permit.
C. 
No person shall operate a vehicle providing taxicab services unless the owner of that vehicle possesses a taxicab vehicle permit for that specific vehicle.
[Amended 11-18-2014 by Ord. No. 2014-12; 4-21-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-2; 1-15-2019 by Ord. No. 1-2019]
Taxicab vehicle permits, operator's permits and taxicab drivers' permits shall be issued by the City Clerk upon receipt of the permit fee as provided by this chapter, upon written application on a form approved by the Chief of Police. The application shall have attached to it two copies of a recent photograph of the head and shoulders and fingerprints of the applicant. Fingerprints and the applicable fees shall be submitted to the Division of Criminal Justice Services in the form and manner prescribed by the Division. Each applicant for a taxicab permit or a taxicab driver's permit shall have attached to the application a certification by the Police Chief of the City of Amsterdam that the applicant has not been convicted of one alcohol- or drug-related offense in the past five years or two alcohol- or drug-related offenses in the past ten years. The look-back period of five and ten years begins on the date of application. The Chief of Police shall review the criminal history of all applicants and determine if the applicant's criminal history indicates that they may pose a risk to the public. The Chief of Police shall notify the City Clerk of this review and the Clerk shall not issue a permit to any individual determined by the Chief of Police to pose a risk to the public. A decision regarding the applicant's fitness for a permit shall be made upon a consideration of the provisions of Sections 701-703b and 751-753 of the New York State Corrections Law.
[Amended 4-21-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-2]
The fee schedule for a taxicab vehicle permit, operator's permit and a driver's permit shall be established and amended from time to time by a resolution of the Common Council.
[Amended 4-21-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-2]
Any permit issued shall expire one year from the date it is issued and shall be renewable by the City Clerk.
Every taxicab shall be maintained in a clean, safe condition.
[Amended 4-21-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-2]
A. 
No taxicab owner or driver, while awaiting hire by passengers, shall cruise or solicit while driving upon or parked upon public streets.
B. 
No taxicab owner or driver shall solicit business, for the pickup of passengers within the City of Amsterdam, without having a current taxicab operator's permit pursuant to this chapter. Soliciting business shall include but not be limited to the posting of notices in the City of Amsterdam.
A. 
A sign shall be placed on each taxicab to designate that the vehicle is a taxicab; provided, however, that such window or door sign does not violate any rule, regulation or statute.
B. 
Each taxicab shall have a photograph of the driver's head and shoulders and a duplicate of his or her license prominently displayed inside each taxicab and clearly visible to passengers, and the name of the taxi company, if there be one, who employs the driver.
C. 
A set of regulations dealing with the essentials of the operation of each taxicab shall be permanently displayed in each taxicab, which regulations the Common Council may, by resolution, promulgate from time to time.
[Amended 4-21-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-2]
The Common Council may, by resolution, limit the number of taxicab vehicle permits to be issued by the City Clerk.
[Amended 11-18-2014 by Ord. No. 2014-12]
A. 
Any taxicab driver's permit shall be immediately suspended for a period of 60 days if a driver has had convictions for two moving violations within a twelve-month period.
B. 
If a taxicab driver is convicted of more than two moving violations within any eighteen-month period, the Chief of Police may revoke a taxicab driver's permit or impose a suspension of up to six months.
C. 
A taxicab driver's permit may be revoked upon the conviction of the driver of a felony and shall be revoked upon the conviction of driving while intoxicated or driving while ability is impaired. The Chief of Police will review all situations in which drivers have felony convictions and shall permanently revoke the permit if the conviction shows that the taxicab driver would pose a risk to the public.
D. 
The Chief of Police may revoke a taxicab permit or a taxicab driver's permit or suspend same for a period of 60 days if the person operating pursuant to the permit is guilty of violating the provisions of this chapter.
E. 
No taxicab driver's permit or taxicab permit shall be suspended or revoked pursuant to Subsection B or D hereof, except upon a hearing before the Chief of Police at which the permit holder may be represented by counsel. The permit holder shall be given at least 10 days' notice of the hearing.
[Amended 4-21-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-2]
No taxicab operator's permit or driver's permit may be transferred.
A. 
Each and every violation of any of the provisions of this chapter of the City of Amsterdam Code shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed $1,000 or by imprisonment for not more than 15 days, or both such fine and imprisonment.
[Amended 4-21-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-2]
B. 
In the case of continuing violation of this chapter of the City of Amsterdam Code, each day that such violation exists shall constitute a separate and distinct violation.
All laws or parts of laws inconsistent with this chapter are hereby repealed, except that such repeal shall not affect the validity of any criminal prosecution or civil action commenced or pending.
If any section, paragraph, subdivision or provision of this chapter shall be invalid, such invalidity shall apply only to the section, paragraph, subdivision or provision adjudged invalid and the rest of this chapter shall remain valid and effective.
This chapter shall become effective June 1, 2001.