Council overrides mayoral veto; parking sticker ban to become law

The New York City Council held a rare vote today to override Mayor Mike Bloomberg’s veto of a bill spearheaded by Councilmember David G. Greenfield that bans the city’s use of impossible-to-remove stickers to punish drivers who allegedly violate alternate-side parking regulations.

The bill was unanimously approved by the council in January and vetoed by the mayor last month. At today’s meeting, the council voted unanimously in favor of overriding the Mayor’s veto. As a result, Greenfield’s bill is now law, and the city is no longer allowed to plaster these garish neon stickers on car windows for violations of alternate-side parking regulations.

“I became a City Councilman to solve my constituents’ complaints and today we did just that. I thank my colleagues for standing their ground and abolishing this unnecessary punitive punishment. I am pleased that these impossible-to-remove stickers will soon be relegated to the history books. New York City does not use public humiliation and shame to punish those who violate serious crimes, and should not do so for minor parking violations. This is another step in our efforts to improve the quality of life for all New Yorkers,” said Greenfield.

The law keeps in place the existing $45 to $65 fines for alternate-side parking violations, but ends the use of these neon stickers to punish alleged offenders. The city Sanitation Department has issued about 400 stickers each day alternate-side parking regulations are in effect since 1988, yet offered no recourse for drivers who beat the ticket in court and still have to contend with a vandalized vehicle.

The City’s own data shows that implementation of this punishment had no impact on clean streets ratings, which only improved following decades of other factors including a substantial increase in funding for street cleaning and waste collection.

As a result of today’s vote, Sanitation workers are no longer judge, jury and punisher when it comes to drivers who allegedly violate parking violations. This bill aims to make life a little less frustrating for city drivers, who have enough to deal with on a daily basis without having to worry about the government defacing their private property,” concluded Greenfield.