Senate Bill No. 438
(By Senators Ball and Wooton)
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[Introduced February 9, 1998; referred to the Committee
on Transportation; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend article two, chapter seventeen-b of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated section
three-b, relating to graduated driver's licensing; limited
learner's permit, limited provisional license and full
provisional license; requirements for licensing; driving
restrictions; out-of-state exceptions; application; duration
and fees; supervising driver defined; penalty for
violations; and effective date.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article two, chapter seventeen-b of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section
three-b, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. ISSUANCE OF LICENSE, EXPIRATION AND RENEWAL.
§17B-2-3b. Issuance of limited learner's permit and provisional
driver's license to persons under eighteen years of age.
(a) To ensure that a person who is less than eighteen years
old has both instruction and experience before obtaining a
drivers license, driving privileges shall be granted first on a
limited basis and then expanded in accordance with the following
process:
(1) Level 1. -- Driving with a limited learner's permit.
(2) Level 2. -- Driving with a limited provisional license.
(3) Level 3. -- Driving with a full provisional license.
A permit or license issued under this section shall have a
color background or border that indicates the level of driving
privileges granted by the permit or license.
(b) Level 1. -- A person who is at least sixteen years old
but less than eighteen years old may obtain a limited learner's
permit if the person meets the following requirements:
(1) Passes a course of driver education in school or a
course of driver instruction at a licensed commercial driver
training school; and
(2) Passes a written test and a vision test prescribed by
the commissioner.
(c) Level 1 restrictions. -- A limited learner's permit
authorizes the permit holder to drive a specified type or class
of motor vehicle, prescribed by the commissioner, under the
following conditions only:
(1) The permit holder shall be in possession of the permit; (2) A supervising driver shall be seated beside the permit
holder in the front seat of the vehicle when it is in motion. No
person other than the supervising driver may be in the front
seat; and
(3) The permit holder may drive only between the hours of
five o'clock a.m. and nine o'clock p.m.
(d) Level 2. -- A person who is at least sixteen and one-
half years old but less than eighteen years old may obtain a
limited provisional license if the person meets the following
requirements:
(1) Has held a limited learner's permit issued by the
commissioner for at least six months;
(2) Has not had a motor vehicle accident and has not been
convicted of a motor vehicle moving violation during the
preceding six months; and
(3) Passes a road test prescribed by the commissioner.
(e) Level 2 restrictions. -- A limited provisional license
authorizes the license holder to drive a specified type or class of motor vehicle, prescribed by the commissioner, under the
following conditions only:
(1) The license holder shall be in possession of the
license;
(2) The license holder may drive without supervision in any
of the following circumstances:
(A) From five o'clock a.m. to nine o'clock p.m.;
(B) When driving to or from work; and
(C) When driving to or from an activity of a volunteer fire
department, volunteer rescue squad, or volunteer emergency
medical service, if the driver is a member of the organization;
(3) The license holder may drive with supervision at any
time. When the license holder is driving with supervision, the
supervising driver shall be seated beside the license holder in
the front seat of the vehicle when it is in motion. The
supervising driver need not be the only other occupant of the
front seat, but shall be the person seated next to the license
holder.
(f) Level 3. -- A person who is at least seventeen and one-
half years old but less than eighteen years old may obtain a full
provisional license if the person meets the following
requirements:
(1) Has held a limited provisional license issued by the commissioner for at least twelve months; and
(2) Has not had a motor vehicle accident and has not been
convicted of a motor vehicle moving violation during the
preceding twelve months.
A person who meets these requirements may obtain a full
provisional license by mail. The restrictions on Level 1 and
Level 2 drivers concerning time of driving, supervision and
passenger limitations do not apply to a full provisional license.
(g) Out-of-state exceptions. -- A person who is at least
sixteen years old but less than eighteen years old, who was a
resident of another state and has an unrestricted driver's
license issued by that state, and who becomes a resident of this
state may obtain one of the following:
(1) A temporary permit, if the person has not completed a
drivers education program that meets the requirements of
subsection (b). A temporary permit is valid for the period
specified in the permit by the commissioner and authorizes the
holder of the permit to drive a specified type or class of motor
vehicle, prescribed by the commissioner, when in possession of
the permit, and subject to any restrictions imposed by the
commissioner concerning time of driving, supervision and
passenger limitations. The period shall end within ten days
after the completion date of a drivers education program by the applicant.
(2) A limited provisional license, if the person has
completed a drivers education program that meets the
requirements of subsection (b), but either did not hold the
license issued by the other state for at least twelve months, or
had a motor vehicle accident or was convicted during the
preceding twelve months of a motor vehicle moving violation
either in this state or another state.
(3) A full provisional license, if the person has completed
a drivers education program that meets the requirements of
subsection (b), has held the license issued by the other state
for at least twelve months, and has not had a motor vehicle
accident or been convicted during the preceding twelve months of
a motor vehicle moving violation either in this state or another
state.
(h) Application. -- An application for a permit or license
authorized by this section shall be signed by both the applicant
and another person. That person shall be the applicant's parent
or guardian if the parent or guardian resides in this state and
is qualified to be a supervising driver. In all other
circumstances, that person shall be an adult approved by the
commissioner.
(i) Duration and fee. -- Any permit or license issued under this section expires on the eighteenth birthday of the permit or
license holder. A person eighteen years of age or older may
obtain an operator's license without participating in the
graduated driver licensing program set forth in this section.
Any fee for a permit or license issued under this section shall
be prescribed by the commissioner.
(j) Supervising driver. -- A supervising driver shall be a
parent or guardian of the permit holder or license holder if a
parent or guardian signed the application for the permit or
license. If a parent or guardian did not sign the application,
the supervising driver shall be the adult who signed the
application. A supervising driver shall be a licensed driver who
has been licensed to drive for at least five years.
(k) Violations. -- It is unlawful for the holder of a
limited learner's permit, a temporary permit, or a limited
provisional license to drive a motor vehicle in violation of the
restrictions that apply to the permit or license. Any person who
violates the provisions of this section is guilty of a
misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be subject to
penalty as set forth in section one, article five of this
chapter.
(l) This section shall take effect on the first day of
January, in the year one thousand nine hundred ninety-nine. The provisions of this section do not apply to any person who holds
a valid West Virginia learner's permit or junior operator's
license issued before the effective date of this section.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to implement graduated
driver's licensing for persons under 18 years of age.
This section is new; therefore, underscoring and strike- throughs have been omitted.