Can a New York village pass a local law banning the use of truck engine compression brakes (jake brakes) in town?

Plain-English summary

The Village of Greenwich wanted to deal with resident complaints about the loud, distinctive noise that truckers make when they slow down using engine compression brakes (sometimes called "jake brakes") instead of mechanical brakes. The Village Attorney asked whether the Village could enact a local law banning the practice except in emergencies. The Attorney General's office concluded the Village could not.

Vehicle and Traffic Law §§ 1600 and 1604 reserve regulation of motor vehicles on public highways to the State, except where the Legislature has expressly delegated authority. Article 9 of the V&T Law sets statewide standards for brake equipment, and § 1640 lists what villages may regulate (such as designating truck routes or excluding trucks from certain highways). Restricting the type of brake a trucker may use is not on that list. Because the State has preempted brake regulation and has not delegated authority to villages to add their own brake-equipment rules, the local law would have been preempted.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1999. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: What is an "engine compression brake" or "jake brake"?
A: It is a device that slows a diesel truck by using the engine's compression rather than the truck's mechanical brakes. Drivers use it to save wear on service brakes, especially on grades. It produces a loud, staccato exhaust noise that residents on truck routes often find objectionable.

Q: Why couldn't the Village regulate this as a noise issue rather than a brake issue?
A: The Village's proposed law was framed as a ban on use of a particular type of brake equipment, which falls inside the V&T Law's preempted territory. A general municipal noise ordinance with neutral decibel limits is a different legal question that this opinion did not resolve.

Q: What could a village regulate about trucks under § 1640?
A: V&T Law § 1640 lists subjects the Legislature has delegated, including designating truck routes within village boundaries and excluding trucks from certain highways. The list does not include prohibiting or requiring particular types of brake equipment.

Q: What was the People v Grant principle?
A: People v Grant, 306 NY 258 (1954), held that regulation of motor vehicles on public highways is preempted by the State Vehicle and Traffic Law, except as the Legislature has specifically delegated power to local governments.

Q: Could the State itself ban engine compression brakes?
A: Yes. The Commissioner of Motor Vehicles sets brake standards under V&T Law § 375 and 15 NYCRR §§ 41.1, 41.2, and 53. The Legislature could amend the V&T Law to restrict the practice. The point of the opinion was that a village could not do so on its own.

Background and statutory framework

New York's framework for regulating motor vehicles on public highways is heavily centralized at the state level. V&T Law § 1604 declares that the V&T Law's traffic provisions are exclusive and uniform throughout the State unless otherwise expressly provided. Local governments derive their traffic-regulation authority from specific delegations, principally Articles 39 (cities and villages) and 41 (towns).

Article 9 covers vehicle equipment, including brakes. The Commissioner of Motor Vehicles sets brake-efficiency standards by regulation (15 NYCRR §§ 41.1, 41.2, 53), and the State requires all vehicles to have adequate service brakes (V&T Law § 375(1)). The statewide regulation makes no provision for, and does not authorize, local restrictions on the use of compression brakes.

Within Article 39, V&T Law § 1640 grants villages a list of specified powers, including the authority to exclude trucks from certain highways and to designate truck routes. The Legislature did not include the power to prohibit specific types of brake equipment.

Citations and references

Statutes and regulations:

• N.Y. Vehicle and Traffic Law § 375 (equipment standards)
• N.Y. Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1600 (local powers preempted unless authorized)
• N.Y. Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1604 (uniformity of statewide V&T Law)
• N.Y. Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1640 (powers of villages)
• 15 NYCRR §§ 41.1, 41.2, 53 (Commissioner's brake standards)

Cases:

• People v Grant, 306 N.Y. 258 (1954) (V&T Law preempts local regulation of motor vehicles on public highways absent specific delegation)

Source

• Landing page: https://ag.ny.gov/libraries-documents/opinions/opinions-year
• Original PDF: https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/opinions/I_99-29_pw.pdf

Original opinion text

VEHICLE AND TRAFFIC LAW, ART 9, §§ 375, 1600, 1604, 1640;
15 NYCRR §§ 41.1, 41.2, 53.
A Village is not authorized to enact a local law
prohibiting, except in cases of emergency, the use within the
Village of truck engine compression brakes.

October 13, 1999

Michael J. Catalfimo, Esq.
Village Attorney
Village of Greenwich
P. O. Box 184
Greenwich, New York 12834

Informal Opinion
No. 99-29

Dear Mr. Catalfimo:
You have asked whether the Village may enact a local law
prohibiting, except in cases of emergency, the use within the
Village of truck engine compression brakes. You have advised us
that the engine compression brakes create a "very loud and
distinctive noise" and that the Village Board recently has
received a number of complaints about this noise from several
residents whose homes or businesses abut heavily traveled truck
routes. You note that drivers of large trucks frequently use
engine compression brakes to slow the vehicles without engaging
the truck's mechanical brakes in order to reduce wear and tear on
the mechanical brakes.
We conclude that the Village is not authorized to enact such
a local law. Regulation of use of the streets and highways by
operators of motor vehicles has long been governed by State law
except to the extent that the Legislature delegates power to
local governments. Vehicle and Traffic Law §§ 1600, 1604; People
v Grant, 306 NY 258 (1954). The Vehicle and Traffic Law contains
comprehensive provisions governing equipment for motor vehicles
operated upon the public highways of the State. Vehicle and
Traffic Law Article 9. The Commissioner of Motor Vehicles is
directed to establish standards for brake efficiency. All
vehicles are required to have adequate brakes; trailers and semitrailers over specified weights also must have adequate brakes.
Vehicle and Traffic Law § 375(1); see also, 15 NYCRR §§ 41.1,
41.2, 53 (establishing standards for service brakes, auxiliary
brakes and brake linings). These provisions do not restrict
truck drivers' use of engine compression brakes. Because State

2
law regulates this subject, without a delegation of authority to
villages, regulation of truck brakes by your Village is
preempted. People v Grant, 306 NY 258, 260 (1954).
The Legislature has not delegated authority to villages to
regulate this subject. Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1640 provides
that villages may enact local laws with respect to specified
subjects. For example, that section authorizes villages to
exclude trucks from certain highways and to designate truck
routes within village boundaries. Vehicle and Traffic Law
§ 1640(5),(10). It does not, however, empower villages to either
prohibit or require the use of particular types of truck brakes
or other equipment. In our view the proposed local law would be
preempted by the provisions of the Vehicle and Traffic Law. Id.,
§§ 1600, 1604.
The Attorney General renders formal opinions only to
officers and departments of State government. This perforce is
an informal and unofficial expression of the views of this
office.
Very truly yours,

SIOBHAN S. CRARY
Assistant Solicitor General