On Sat, 18 Apr 2009 21:15:38 -0700 (PDT), radioguy
wrote:

On Apr 18, 5:37*pm, Steve Stone wrote:
* New York State
* Department of Motor Vehicles
* Custom Plate Gallery - Emergency Services

Ham Radio Operator
Requirements: copy of license issued by FCC. * *$23/$5

-----

§ 397
§ 397. Equipping motor vehicles with radio receiving sets capable of
receiving signals on the frequencies allocated for police use. A person,
not a police officer or peace officer, acting pursuant to his special
duties, who equips a motor vehicle with a radio receiving set capable of
receiving signals on the frequencies allocated for police use or
knowingly uses a motor vehicle so equipped or who in any way knowingly
interferes with the transmission of radio messages by the police without
having first secured a permit so to do from the person authorized to
issue such a permit by the local governing body _ or board of the city.
town or village in which such person resides, or where such person
resides outside of a city or village in a county having a county police
department by the board of supervisors of such county, is guilty of a
misdemeanor, punishable by a tine not exceeding one thousand dollars, or
imprisonment not exceeding six months, or both. Nothing in this section
contained shall be construed to apply to any person who holds a valid
amateur radio operators license issued by the federal communications
commission and who operates a duly licensed portable mobile transmitter
and in connection therewith a receiver or receiving set on frequencies
exclusively allocated by the federal communications commission to duly
licensed radio amateurs.

This law deals with the installation of ANY radio RECEIVER that can
monitor police frequencies. The wording DOES NOT suggest that a ham
MUST have a unit in the plated vehicle. The law only says that the
owner of said plates must be licensed to do so.


§ 397-a. Radar detectors prohibited. 1. No radar detector shall be used
in any motor vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than
eighteen thousand pounds. The presence in such vehicle of a radar
detector connected to a power source and in an operable condition is
presumptive evidence of its use by any person operating such vehicle.
Such presumption shall be rebutted by any credible and reliable evidence
which tends to show that such radar detector was not in use.


What happened to the FEDERAL law that states states must recognize
other state's laws and vehicle equipment installations as legal?

That's known as the "International Reciprocity Pact". It is not
necessarily a federal law. Which is also damned difficult to find on
the search engines.

If you live in NY, anything that NY law says is legal on your
vehicle, must also be accepted as legal anywhere else in the country
as well as Mexico and Canada.



Yours contradicts both the other states and FEDERAL law.

If you have ham plates, then Alaska, Oregon, North Carolina, Texas,
Virginia, and Missouri ALL REQUIRE that you MUST have ham radio
equipment INSTALLED in the vehicle.

No. Those states can only accept the plate. Their laws are for the
residents of their states for the issuance of such plates.


And most cities, countis, and police departments in other states do
not issue any such documents as you say New York requires.

People do go on vacation to other states.

And since many people can only afford one car,

what if it's the ham's wife driving the car thrugh New York without
him.

All that is necessary is that the owner of the said vehicle and plates
has met the state's requirement's for those plates. Stopping an out of
state vehicle simply because the officer did not see the registered
owner driving the vehicle is not probable cause and would not hold up
in court.



Of course, she isnt going to have any such document as you say New
York requires even if his locality did issue such a document to him.
Which most don't because the plates are proof enough.

And of course, she wouldn't have a radio liscense like he does.

Plus SOME states by law put a design in the middle of the ham plate
letters.

And I've seen posts saying that's illegal in New York to have a design
in the middle of your ha call letters on your ham plates, and if you
drive through there like that, you will get arrested eveen more.

If your plates are from NY.


So that is saying that sdome hams are NOT allowed to drive their
perfectly legal cars with theirperfectly legal ham call plates through
New York state because some states require a design like a lightning
bolt on the ham plates in the middle of the call letters.

And you all probably don't even know how to run ham plates.

SOME states allow the exact same call plates on multiple vehicles.
That is, no -1, -2, -3 like New York requires.

Really? Got a case cite for this?



I saw posts saying that is illegal in New York to have any vehicle
with ham plates like that
registered to multiple vehicles even if you're from out of state.

Since when does New York state law OVERRULE Federal law?

Because they say it does.


The FEDERAL law about states must recognize other state's laws about
license plates, stickers, sticker placement, and equipment
installation in vehicles as legal if it's legal in the state the car
and driver are registered in is still in effect and valid.

And what about a large family of hams who the whole family has gotten
ham liscenses and has all their vehicles registered with the exact
same ham call plate, perfctly legal in their home state who then must
tak and drive two or all three of their cars on vacation through New
York state in order to legally fit them in the cars.

wrong.


It's illegal in my state to have a car overcrowded with too many
people. Four or six is the limit depending on how many seatbelts there
are and the size of the vehicle, 2 door or 3 door.

And some vehicles only seat two people, like some pickup trucks or
some small cars.