Council bill would cut payouts to New Yorkers who report idling trucks and buses
Intro 561-A would replace the 25% share of fines paid to citizen reporters with a flat $125 and add exemptions, including for private buses. Advocates say it would gut the program; the DEP says it faces a backlog of about 230,000 videos.
Photo: Artsistra / Wikimedia Commons · CC0
- The Council's Environmental Protection Committee heard Intro 561-A on Tuesday. Sponsored by Chair Jim Gennaro, it would cut the payout to citizen idling reporters from 25% of the fine collected to a flat $125 (NY1).
- The bill would add exemptions, such as letting private buses idle at certain points on their routes, and require violations within 60 days or dismissal of the complaint.
- DEP says it reviewed more than 163,000 citizen submissions in 2025 and issued about 102,000 idling summonses, roughly 300 a day, and has a backlog of about 230,000 videos.
- Reinvent Albany warned the changes would cut participation and mean more pollution; bus and trucking groups backed faster processing and more exemptions.
- The bill has no co-sponsors, and it is unclear whether it has the votes to pass, NY1 reported.
New Yorkers who film idling trucks and buses and collect a share of the fines could see their payouts shrink under a City Council bill heard Tuesday, a change advocates say would weaken one of the city's most popular enforcement programs.
The bill, Intro 561-A, sponsored by Environmental Protection Committee Chair Jim Gennaro, would replace the current payout of 25% of the fine collected with a flat $125, and would allow more exemptions from idling enforcement, NY1 reported. It would also require the Department of Environmental Protection to issue a violation within 60 days or dismiss the complaint. Today it can take up to 18 months for a violator to get notice.
How the program works
Anyone can log in to the DEP's Air Complaint System, upload a video of a vehicle idling with a description, and receive a share of the penalty if the evidence leads to a violation, the agency said in written testimony. Two DEP staff members, including a supervisor, review each submission. Participants told NY1 a video must show the vehicle idling for at least three minutes and one second, along with the license plate and company information. Fines start at $350, and payouts can reach $500 per violation, according to Council Speaker Julie Menin's office.
The program has exploded:
- 2020: 9,594 complaints, 7,165 summonses
- 2023: 82,615 complaints, 72,053 summonses
- 2025: about 163,000 complaints, about 102,000 summonses, almost 300 a day
- 2026 through September: about 132,000 complaints, 68,000 summonses
The DEP said it now receives about 700 idling reports a day and has a backlog of about 230,000 videos awaiting review. It has 21 new positions approved in the November budget plan, and seven new inspectors recently started.
The fight over the bill
Alex Camarda of the watchdog group Reinvent Albany testified that the loopholes and lower payments would push people to drop out, "and that will ultimately result in more idling and more air pollution," according to NY1. He said both sides want faster processing, but that a 60-day deadline without new resources would wipe out complaints the DEP can't reach in time.
Industry groups pushed back. Glenn Every, president of the Bus Association of New York State, said private coach buses sometimes need to keep engines running to power brakes, air circulation and wheelchair lifts, and noted that MTA buses are exempt. Zach Miller of the Trucking Association of New York said the current delays make it nearly impossible for companies to defend themselves, NY1 reported.
The DEP did not appear at the hearing, citing pending litigation, and declined to comment on Intro 561-A or a related bill, Intro 11-A. The committee also heard bills to make the complaint website available in the city's designated languages, shift some idling liability to vehicle lessees, set a code of conduct for citizen noise complainants and share fleet-program data with the Finance Department, according to the DEP testimony and the committee's docket.
The bill has no co-sponsors, and it is unclear whether it has enough votes to pass, NY1 reported.
- NY1City Council weighs changes to idling complaint program
- NYC Department of Environmental ProtectionTestimony of Lisa Garcia, Commissioner, DEP, on Citizen Enforcement Programs
- Hearing HearingsCommittee on Environmental Protection and Waterfronts
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