Senate Bill No. 56
(By Senators Craigo and Bailey)
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[Introduced January 19, 1995; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section seven, article two-a, chapter
seventeen-d of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to allowing persons
whose license has been suspended for thirty days for driving
without required insurance to obtain a driving permit to
authorize them to drive to and from work upon proof of
obtaining required insurance.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section seven, article two-a, chapter seventeen-d of
the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one,
as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2A. SECURITY UPON MOTOR VEHICLES.
§17D-2A-7. Suspension or revocation of license,registration
reinstatement.
(a) Any owner of a motor vehicle, subject to the provisions
of this article, who fails to have the required security in
effect at the time such vehicle is being operated upon the roads
or highways of this state, shall have his or her driver's license
suspended by the commissioner of the division of motor vehicles
for a period of thirty days and shall have his or her motor
vehicle registration revoked until such time as he or she shall
present to the division of motor vehicles the proof of security
required by this article: Provided, That within such thirty day
suspension period, the commissioner shall issue a permit for such
owner to drive to and from his place of regular employment upon
satisfactory proof of having obtained the required security:
Provided, however That if a motor vehicle is registered in more
than one name, the driver's license of only one of the owners
shall be suspended by the commissioner.
(b) Any person who knowingly operates a motor vehicle upon
the roads or highways of this state, which does not have the
security required by the provisions of this article, shall have his or her driver's license suspended by the commissioner for a
period of thirty days: Provided, That the commissioner shall
issue a permit for such person to drive to and from his place of
regular employment upon satisfactory proof of having obtained the
required security.
(c) A person's driver's license shall be suspended for a
period of thirty days if the person is operating a motor vehicle
designated for off highway use upon the roads and highways of
this state without the required security in effect, if the motor
vehicle is not properly registered and licensed, or if the
required security was canceled: Provided, That the commissioner
shall issue a permit for such person to drive to and from his
place of regular employment upon satisfactory proof of having
obtained the required security.
(d) The commissioner may withdraw a suspension of a driver's
license provided that the commissioner is satisfied that there
was not a violation of the provisions of required security
related to operation of a motor vehicle upon the roads or
highways of this state by such person. The commissioner may request additional information as needed in order to make such
determination.
(e) No person shall have his or her driver's license or
motor vehicle registration suspended or revoked under any
provisions of this section unless he or she shall first be given
written notice of such suspension or revocation sent by certified
mail, at least twenty days prior to the effective date of such
suspension or revocation, and upon such person's written request,
sent by certified mail, he or she shall be afforded an
opportunity for a hearing thereupon as well as a stay of the
commissioner's order of suspension or revocation and an
opportunity for judicial review of such hearing. Upon
affirmation of the commissioner's order, the period of suspension
or revocation shall commence to run.
(f) Such suspended driver's license shall be reinstated
following the period of suspension upon compliance with the
conditions set forth in this article and such revoked motor
vehicle registration shall be reissued only upon lawful
compliance with the provisions of this article.
(g) If the commissioner has previously suspended the
person's driver's license under the provisions of this section or
section five of this article, the period of suspension shall be
for a period of ninety days.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to allow owners and
drivers who have their driving privileges suspended for thirty
days as the result of first time driving without required
insurance to obtain a permit to drive to and from their place of
regular employment.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.