http://www.nf2g.com/scannist/nys_laws.html
Mobile Scanning
Section 397 of the Vehicle and Traffic Law makes it unlawful to equip a motor vehicle with "a radio receiving set capable of receiving signals on the frequencies allocated for police use" unless one is a Peace Officer or a licensed amateur radio operator.
This section provides for obtaining a mobile monitoring permit from the police, but the average citizen is not likely to be granted such a permit. They have been issued to newsgathering organizations and to companies that serve the public and can demonstrate a need for mobile monitoring.
Many ham operators are of the opinion that the so-called "ham exemption" to Section 397 only applies to amateur transceivers that incidentally receive frequencies outside of the ham bands. I believed that reasoning myself until I did a little bit of research. As it turns out, Section 397 was passed into law before there were any ham rigs with built-in extended VHF coverage. Therefore, it was not likely the Legislature's intent to exempt equipment that did not yet exist.
Different local courts and police agencies have varying ideas about the actual meaning of Section 397. The law is not clear and there are no Court of Appeals cases that control statewide interpretation of this statute. I am researching the issue and preparing an article about it for submission to a law journal. When the article is published, I will announce it here.
A.2601 would allow volunteer firefighters and ambulance corps members to install mobile fire and ambulance frequency receivers in their cars without a permit. This obviously well-intentioned bill does not actually address the real problems with the current law, because it does not specifically address the use of police frequency receivers. There are no scanners available that are capable of fire/EMS reception while being unable to tune police frequencies. Also, there are other classes of citizens that need to have mobile scanners (Red Cross disaster volunteers, Neighborhood Watch groups, Civil Air Patrol members, private security guards, etc.), and none of them are mentioned. (This bill was sent to the Assembly Transportation Committee on January 29, 2003 and again on January 7, 2004. Several similar bills have been allowed to languish this way in previous sessions.)
New York State has another law on the books that may have some bearing on scanner use. While not specifically directed at the hobbyist, Section 140.40 of the NYS Penal Code deals with unauthorized use of radio equipment. This law's intent is to prosecute the use of police frequency receivers by criminals who wish to escape apprehension. It also applies to the use of any two-way radio equipment in the commission of any of the specified crimes (robbery, burglary, larceny, gambling or drug offenses). An example would be the use of a pair of 49 MHz walkie-talkies in a "lookout" arrangement.
New York further restricts use of radio receiving equipment in Section 250.05 of the Penal Code (Eavesdropping). A New York court held that this law applies to the monitoring of cordless radio telephones in People v. Fata, 159 A.D.2d 180, 559 N.Y.S.2d 248 (1st Dep't 1990).
Transmitting on an official public safety or governmental radio network without permission could be a Class A Misdemeanor under Penal Law Section 195.05 (Obstructing governmental administration in the second degree). This offense would become a felony if the interference causes "serious physical injury" to anyone, according to Section 195.07 (OGA in the first degree). I say "could be" because the regulation of radio transmitters is clearly within federal jurisdiction.
Local Ordinances
The City of Rochester scanner ordinance is Code 44-2. Note that the ordinance goes beyond the State's restriction on mobile use of a police frequency receiver. The City sought to ban mobile and portable police and fire receivers.
This law does not appear to be well known among law enforcement officers in the City of Rochester. I have been told what channel to monitor during a major incident by a police officer who could see the portable receiver in my hand. A large number of volunteer firefighters from surrounding communities, as well as many other spectators, can be found at the scene of any multiple alarm fire in the City. They do not get arrested despite having portable fire receivers with them.
