New York Laws
Article 26 - Miscellaneous
397-A - Distributing Unsolicited Advertising on Private Property Prohibited; Certain Cities.

§ 397-a. Distributing unsolicited advertising on private property
prohibited; certain cities. 1. In any city with a population of one
million or more, no person shall place, or cause or permit to be placed
on private property any unsolicited papers, fliers, pamphlets,
handbills, circulars, or other materials advertising a business or
soliciting business where the owner has posted, in a conspicuous
location, a sign stating that the placement of such materials shall be
prohibited. In a single family dwelling or a multiple family dwelling
that is owner-occupied and is designed for and occupied exclusively by
no more than three families, any owner of such property shall have the
authority to post such a sign. In all other multiple dwellings as
defined in section four of the multiple dwelling law, the property owner
shall only post such a sign if the owner or lessee of each separate
dwelling unit within the building or on such property agrees to prohibit
such solicitations, and any sign posted without the consent of at least
one unit owner or lessee of each such unit shall be invalid. In the
event that there are one or more units in which the unit owner or lessee
consents to the prohibition of such unsolicited advertising, the
property owner may instead post a sign designating a particular location
or an appropriate receptacle for the placement of such unsolicited
advertising, and limiting the number of such materials that may be
delivered to the property to an amount equal to the number of units in
which a unit owner or lessee has not consented to the prohibition. Any
such delivery location or receptacle shall be reasonably accessible to
such unit owners or lessees and to the distributors of such unsolicited
materials. When such a sign is posted, a person may only leave an amount
of unsolicited advertising materials that is equal to the number of unit
owners or lessees indicated on the sign, and such materials shall be
left in the location designated on the sign. Nothing contained in this
subdivision shall be deemed to prohibit or otherwise regulate the
delivery of any such matter by the United States postal service, or
prohibit the distribution of sample copies of newspapers regularly sold
by the copy or by annual subscription or sale or coupon newspapers and
magazines containing more than a deminimus amount of news that are
published at least weekly.

2. To be valid and enforceable, any sign prohibiting the delivery of
such unsolicited materials shall be at least five inches tall and seven
inches wide in size and shall state, in legible letters at least one
inch in size, as follows: "Do Not Place Unsolicited Advertising
Materials On This Property." In a multiple dwelling in which some unit
owners or lessees have consented to the prohibition of such unsolicited
materials, the property owner may post, in a conspicuous location, a
sign that is at least five inches tall and seven inches wide in size and
written in legible letters at least one inch in size, identifying the
number of unit owners or lessees who wish to receive unsolicited
materials and the location where such materials shall be placed.

3. There shall be a rebuttable presumption that the person whose name,
telephone number, or other identifying information appears on any
unsolicited advertising materials described in subdivision one of this
section and placed at two or more premises shall be liable for any
violations of this section.

4. The provisions of this section may be enforced by an agency or
agencies, as designated by the mayor of such city. A civil penalty of
not less than two hundred fifty dollars nor more than one thousand
dollars shall be imposed for each violation of this section, but in no
event shall the total amount of such penalty exceed the sum of five
thousand dollars for the placement of materials on a single day. Each
unauthorized placement of materials at a single location where a sign is

posted as described in subdivision one of this section shall be
considered a separate violation of this section. Notwithstanding any
other provision of law, any notice of violation issued by an agency or
agencies, as designated by the mayor of such city, charging a violation
of this section shall be returnable to the environmental control board
of such city, which shall have the power to impose the civil penalties
herein provided; provided, however, that service of a notice of
violation charging a violation of this section may be made by (a) a
means prescribed for service of process by article three of the civil
practice law and rules or article three of the business corporation law,
or (b) by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the respondent's
last known residence or business address, provided that delivery of such
notice shall be restricted to the respondent. Service by certified mail
shall be deemed complete upon mailing of the notice of violation unless
the notice of violation is returned to the sender by the United States
postal service for any reasons other than refusal of delivery. All civil
penalties collected for any violations of subdivision one of this
section that have been imposed by the environmental control board of
such city shall be paid into the general fund of such city.

5. The agency or agencies of such city as designated by subdivision
four of this section shall be authorized to promulgate rules
implementing the provisions of this section.

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