Section 6802. Professional bondsmen; licensing

(a)  No person, firm or
  corporation or any officer or employee thereof shall act in  this  state
  as  an  agent  or  solicitor of an insurer doing a bail bond business in
  soliciting, negotiating or effectuating any such deposit or bail bond by
  such insurer unless licensed by the superintendent as an agent  pursuant
  to  the  provisions  of this section. Any person, firm or corporation so
  acting without being duly licensed shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
    (b) Every corporation engaging as an insurer in the business of giving
  bail shall procure a license pursuant to the provisions of this  section
  for  each  of  its  employees,  officers  and  agents  acting  for it in
  soliciting, negotiating or effectuating any such deposit or bail bond.
    (c) The superintendent may, in his discretion, issue  to  any  person,
  firm  or  corporation  a  license  to  act  as an agent of an authorized
  insurer, in soliciting, negotiating or effectuating any such deposit  or
  bail bond by such insurer.
    (d)  Any  such license issued to a firm or corporation shall authorize
  only  the  members  named  in  such  license  as  sublicensees,  to  act
  individually   as   agents   thereunder.  Any  sublicense  issued  to  a
  corporation shall authorize only the officers  and  directors  named  in
  such  license as sublicensees, to act individually as agents thereunder.
  Every sublicensee, acting as  insurance  agent  pursuant  to  a  license
  issued  to a firm or corporation, shall be authorized to act only in the
  name of such firm or corporation.
    (e) Before the issuance of a license every applicant shall satisfy the
  superintendent as to his trustworthiness and  competence  and  otherwise
  comply with the conditions set forth in this section. The superintendent
  may  refuse  to  issue  any such license if in his judgment such refusal
  will best promote the interests of the people of this state.
    (f) At the time of the application for  every  license  a  twenty-five
  dollar fee shall be paid to the superintendent for each year or fraction
  of  a  year  in  which  a  license  shall  be  valid for each individual
  applicant and for each proposed sublicensee.
    (g) Every applicant for  a  license  hereunder  shall  file  with  the
  superintendent  written  evidence  by  those  who know his character and
  reputation and by such other proof as the  superintendent  may  require,
  including  his  fingerprints,  that he is a person of good character and
  reputation and has never been convicted of any offense  involving  moral
  turpitude  or  of  any crime. If such applicant is a firm or corporation
  such proof must be made  with  respect  to  every  member,  shareholder,
  officer  and  director  of  such  firm or corporation. Such fingerprints
  shall be submitted to the division of criminal justice  services  for  a
  state  criminal  history  record check, as defined in subdivision one of
  section three thousand thirty-five of the  education  law,  and  may  be
  submitted to the federal bureau of investigation for a national criminal
  history record check.
    (h)  In  order  to  determine  the  competence of each applicant for a
  license  or  a  sublicense,  the  superintendent  shall  require   every
  applicant  to  pass  to the satisfaction of the superintendent a written
  examination to be prepared by the superintendent and appropriate to  the
  doing  of  a  bail  bond  business.  If  the  applicant  or any proposed
  sublicensee  intends  to  maintain  an  office  or  solicit,  negotiate,
  effectuate or deposit bail on behalf of another in any city containing a
  population  of more than one hundred seventy-five thousand, such written
  examination may inquire into the applicant's knowledge of the  pertinent
  provisions  of  the  criminal  procedure law and the pertinent rules and
  practices of the courts and district attorneys' offices within the  area
  of  the  applicant's proposed operations. Such examination shall be held
  at such times and places as the superintendent shall determine.

    (i) Every individual applying to take any written examination shall at
  the time of applying pay to the superintendent, or at the discretion  of
  the  superintendent, directly to any organization that is under contract
  to provide examination services, an examination fee of an  amount  which
  is   the   actual  documented  administrative  cost  of  conducting  the
  examination as certified by the superintendent from  time  to  time.  An
  examination   fee  represents  an  administrative  expense  and  is  not
  refundable.
    (j)  Every  applicant  for  any  such  license  shall  file  with  the
  superintendent a qualifying bond, approved by the attorney general as to
  form  and  by the superintendent as to sufficiency, in a penalty of five
  thousand dollars, conditioned  upon  the  faithful  performance  of  the
  duties  of  such  licensee.  No such qualifying bond shall be subject to
  termination or cancellation by either party  in  less  than  sixty  days
  after  the  giving  of  written  notice  to  the  other party and to the
  superintendent. A termination  or  cancellation  shall  not  affect  the
  liability  of  the surety or sureties on such bond incurred prior to the
  effective date of such termination or cancellation. If during  the  term
  of  such  bond  such licensee shall be guilty of fraudulent or dishonest
  conduct or other misconduct or malfeasance  in  his  dealings  with  any
  court or magistrate or with any person or corporation in connection with
  any deposit or bail bond, the attorney general may maintain an action on
  such  qualifying bond in the name of the people of this state and either
  recover the full amount of the  penalty  or  recover  for  the  use  and
  benefit of the person or persons aggrieved, the amount of loss or injury
  sustained  by  such  person  or persons by reason of such misconduct. No
  such recovery or recoveries shall exceed in the aggregate five  thousand
  dollars, exclusive of interest and costs.
    (k) The superintendent may, upon notice and after a hearing, revoke or
  suspend,  for  such  period  as  he  may  determine, any such license or
  sublicense issued pursuant to the provisions of this section  if,  after
  notice  and hearing as specified in this chapter, he determines that the
  licensee or any sublicensee or any member of a firm or corporation which
  is so licensed has:
    (1) violated any provision of,  or  any  obligation  imposed  by,  the
  insurance law, or has violated any other law of the state;
    (2)  has  made  a  material  misstatement  in the application for such
  license;
    (3) has been guilty of any fraudulent or dishonest practices or  other
  misconduct or malfeasance;
    (4) has charged or received, as premium or compensation for the making
  of any deposit or bail bond, any sum in excess of that permitted by law;
    (5)  has  required,  as a condition of his executing a bail bond, that
  the principal agree to engage the services of a specified attorney; or
    (6) has demonstrated his incompetency or untrustworthiness to act as a
  licensee.
    (l) The superintendent, in lieu of revoking or suspending a license in
  accordance with  the  provisions  of  this  article,  may,  in  any  one
  proceeding,  by order, require the licensee to pay to the people of this
  state a penalty in a sum not exceeding five  hundred  dollars  for  each
  offense,  and  a  penalty  in  a  sum  not exceeding twenty-five hundred
  dollars in the aggregate for all offenses. Upon failure of such licensee
  to pay such penalty within twenty days after the mailing of such  order,
  postage  prepaid,  registered,  and addressed to the last known place of
  business of such licensee, unless such order is stayed  by  a  court  of
  competent  jurisdiction,  the  superintendent  may revoke the license of
  such licensee or may  suspend  the  same  for  such  period  as  he  may
  determine.

    (m)  Every  license  issued  to  an  officer, employee, or agent of an
  insurer doing a bail bond business pursuant to this section shall be for
  a term expiring on the thirty-first day of  December  of  even  numbered
  years  and  may  be  renewed for the ensuing two calendar years upon the
  filing  of a renewal application. The superintendent may refuse to issue
  any such license if in his judgment such refusal will best  promote  the
  interests  of  the  people  of  this  state.  Every  such  licensee  and
  sublicensee shall  file  an  information  statement  on  or  before  the
  thirty-first  day  of  December of each even numbered year, the form and
  subject matter of which may be prescribed by the superintendent.
    (n) Any domestic, foreign or alien surety company which  was  licensed
  to  do a bail bond business in this state before January first, nineteen
  hundred forty shall so long as its license or  any  renewal  remains  in
  force,  be  deemed licensed as an insurer to do such business within the
  meaning of paragraph one of subsection (b) of section six thousand eight
  hundred one of this article and article eleven of this chapter.
    (o) This section shall not apply to any  insurer  authorized  in  this
  state  to  execute  and  issue  policies  of  motor vehicle and aircraft
  insurance as specified in paragraphs thirteen, fourteen and nineteen  of
  subsection  (a)  of  section  one  thousand one hundred thirteen of this
  chapter or to any agent of such insurer or to  any  broker  who,  as  an
  incident  to  the  execution  and  issuance of any such policy or to the
  solicitation, negotiation or procurement thereof undertakes to  pay,  in
  addition  to  the applicable limits of liability, the cost of bail bonds
  required of the insured because of  accident  or  asserted  traffic  law
  violations  arising  out of the use of a vehicle insured under the terms
  of the policy, provided the cost of each such bail bond does not  exceed
  one  hundred  dollars,  or who otherwise arranges for the execution of a
  bail bond or deposit in lieu of cash bail on behalf of  the  insured  in
  the  event of the insured's arrest or detention by reason of an asserted
  violation of any law relating to the use of a motor vehicle.
    (p) The superintendent may issue a  replacement  for  a  currently  in
  force  license which has been lost or destroyed. Before such replacement
  license shall be issued, there shall be on file in  the  office  of  the
  superintendent  a  written  application  for  such  replacement license,
  affirming under penalty of perjury that the original  license  has  been
  lost or destroyed, together with a fee of fifteen dollars.