Section 19-171. Helmet requirement for persons under the age of fourteen operating scooters

a. Definitions. For the purposes of this section:    (1) The  term  "public  highway"  means  any  highway,  road,  street,
  roadway,  sidewalk,  avenue, alley, public place, public driveway or any
  other public way.
    (2) The term "scooter" means a device  propelled  by  muscular  power,
  consisting  of  a  footboard  between  end  wheels and an upright handle
  attached to a front wheel or to the footboard.
    (3) The term "wearing a helmet" means having  a  helmet  of  good  fit
  fastened securely upon the head with the helmet straps.
    b.  This  section is applicable to the operation of a scooter upon any
  public highway or any private road open to public motor vehicle traffic,
  and  within  a  park  or  other  area  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the
  commissioner of parks and recreation.
    c.  No  person less than fourteen years of age shall operate a scooter
  unless such person is wearing a helmet  meeting  the  standards  of  the
  American  National  Standards  Institute  (ANSI  Z  90.4  bicycle helmet
  standards), the Snell Memorial  Foundation's  standards  for  protective
  headgear  for  use  in  bicycling,  the  American Society of Testing and
  Materials (ASTM) standards for bicycle  helmets,  the  Safety  Equipment
  Institute  standards  for bicycle helmets, or the United States Consumer
  Product Safety Commission standards for bicycle helmets.
    d. It is a traffic  infraction  to  violate  the  provisions  of  this
  section punishable, upon conviction, by a civil penalty of not more than
  fifty dollars. Such traffic infractions shall be heard and determined in
  accordance  with  article  2-A of the vehicle and traffic law. A hearing
  officer shall waive the civil penalty for which the parent  or  guardian
  of  a person who violates the provisions of this section would be liable
  if such parent or guardian supplies  proof  that  between  the  date  of
  violation  and  the  appearance  date  for such violation such parent or
  guardian purchased or rented a helmet that  meets  the  requirements  of
  this  section.  A  hearing officer may waive the civil penalty for which
  the parent or guardian of a person who violates the provisions  of  this
  section  would  be  liable  if  he  or  she finds that due to reasons of
  economic hardship such parent or guardian was unable to purchase or rent
  a helmet. A waiver of the civil penalty shall not apply to a  second  or
  subsequent conviction under this section.
    e.  The parent or guardian of a person less than fourteen years of age
  shall be liable for a violation of this section by such person less than
  fourteen years of age. A summons for a violation of this  section  by  a
  person  less  than  fourteen  years  of  age shall only be issued to the
  parent or guardian of  such  person  if  the  violation  occurs  in  the
  presence of such parent or guardian and where such parent or guardian is
  eighteen years of age or more. Such summons shall only be issued to such
  parent  or  guardian  and  shall  not  be issued to the person less than
  fourteen years of age.
    f. The failure of any person to comply with  the  provisions  of  this
  section  shall  not  constitute contributory negligence or assumption of
  risk, and shall not in any way bar, preclude or foreclose an action  for
  personal injury or wrongful death by or on behalf of such person, nor in
  any way diminish or reduce the damages recoverable in any such action.
    g.  The  department  of  health  and  mental  hygiene shall distribute
  informational materials through the department's school health  program,
  which  shall  include  information  explaining  the hazards of operating
  scooters without  protective  headgear.  These  informational  materials
  shall  be  printed  in multiple languages and shall be made available to
  any member of the public upon request.

    h. The police department and the department of  parks  and  recreation
  shall enforce the provisions of this section.