New York State UTT Data from the TSLED, AA, and ITS Central Repository Systems (New York State Office of Information Technology Services)

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the New York Freedom of Information Law, I hereby request the following records:

An export of data from all tables of Universal Traffic Ticket (UTT) related data from New York’s Traffic Safety Law Enforcement and Disposition (TSLED) and Administrative Adjudication (AA) systems. We are requesting data starting in 2003 through the most recent year with full data availability in the TSLED and AA systems.

From our research we believe this data is collected by various New York State law enforcement agencies and processed with the Traffic and Criminal Software (TraCS). Furthermore, based on the New York State FFY 2024 - 2026 Triennial Highway Safety Plan [found here: https://www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.gov/files/2023-10/NY_FY24HSP-tag.pdf] we have reason to believe that UTT data from TraCS is sent electronically to a central repository, maintained by the NYS ITS (Office of Information Technology Services) before being delivered from the repository to the NYS DMV. Furthermore, based on the Dec. '19 TraCS System Study [found here: http://fltrafficrecords.com/pdf/TraCS%20System%20Study%20-%20Final%20Report%20with%20Appendices.pdf] for the Florida Department of Transportation State Safety Office that New York State Police participated in, we believe that electronic UTT data was first collected via TraCS in 2003 and about 67% of all vehicle tickets given out in New York State are process through TraCS and in the TSLED and AA.

Specifically, based on our knowledge the following forms/sections in TraCS should contain some — but not all — of the UTT data we are requesting:
"Violations"
"Individual"
"Vehicle"
"Location"
"Court"
"Sub Dep"
"OfficersNotes"
"Attach 1"

Additionally, these are some — but not all — of the detailed data values that are collected in the TraCS system that we are requesting:
"Ticket Number"
"Police Agency"
"Sequence #"
"Local Police Code"
"Photo Lic Shown"
"Last Name(Defendant)"
"First Name"
"MI"
"Suffix"
"Number and Street"
"Apt. No."
"City"
"State"
"Zip Code"
"Client ID Number"
"Lic State"
"Lic Class"
"Date Expires"
"Sex"
"Date of Birth"
"CDL Veh"
"Bus"
"HazMa"
"Plate Number"
"Reg Expires (Optional)"
"Reg. State"
"Color"
"Veh. Type"
"Year"
"Make"
"Own Veh"
"Registered Weight"
"Actual Weight"
"No. Axles"
"U.S. DOT Number"
"Out of Serv."
"Date of Offense"
"Time"
"Co."
"C/T/V Name"
"Loc. Code"

We are also requesting any supplementary resources the DMV or ITS has that documents the data in ITS repository and/or the TSLED and AA such as but not limited to data dictionaries, database documentation files, data logs, or other supplementary informational materials.
We request these records in their native digital formats and not in formats that degrade the accessibility of the records, such as tabular data converted to PDF or Word files. If converting the native digital format to another high-fidelity format, such as CSV or Excel, please take care not to introduce formatting inconsistencies or errors, which can occur in the conversion process (for example, encoding errors or the inclusion of internal unescaped quotation marks in CSV files). Should the records above represent certain values as numeric codes or abbreviations that are not self-explanatory, we additionally request all records necessary to interpret those codes and abbreviations. The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

Please provide the requested records by the fifth business day after your receipt of this e-mail today. If there will be a delay in meeting this request, kindly acknowledge receipt of this request within five business days, pursuant to Public Officers Law § 89[3] and 21 NYCRR § 1401.5(c)(3), and provide an estimate of the specific date by which a final determination on this request will be provided. If a final determination will not be made within 20 business days of your acknowledgment, please provide a written explanation of the reasons for your agency's inability to grant the request within such time period and specify a date certain within a reasonable period of time when this request will be granted in whole or in part, as required by Public Officers Law § 89[3] and 21 NYCRR § 1401.5(c)(4).

If further clarification is needed in order for your agency to locate the requested records, please immediately contact me. In accordance with 18 NYCRR § 340.3(c), I ask that you and your staff "make reasonable efforts to assist" me "in identifying the records" being sought, prior to denying this request. See the July 17, 2006 Advisory Opinion FOIL-AO-16073 of the Committee on Open Government of the New York State Department of State [available at: http://www.dos.state.ny.us/coog/ftext/f16073.htm]

If any of the requested records are not in your agency's possession or cannot be located after a diligent search, kindly provide me with your certification to that effect in accordance with Public Officers Law § 89[3] and 18 NYCRR § 340.3(g). If any of the exact requested records are available on your agency's Internet web site, it will be sufficient to provide me with the specific Uniform Resource Locator (URL) where such records can be downloaded in lieu of sending me an electronic or hard copy of the actual document. Thank you for your consideration and assistance in this matter.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 5 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Adrian Nesta