COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 497
(By Senators Craigo, Anderson, Bailey, Ball, Boley, Chafin,
Deem, Dittmar, Edgell, Fanning, Helmick, Hunter, Jackson,
Kessler, Love, McCabe, McKenzie, Minard, Minear, Mitchell,
Oliverio, Plymale, Prezioso, Redd, Ross, Schoonover, Sharpe,
Snyder, Sprouse, Unger, Walker, Wooton and Tomblin, Mr.
President)
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[Originating in the Committee on Transportation;
reported February 18, 1999.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact sections one and twelve, article two,
chapter seventeen-b of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, all relating
to the expiration date of driver's licenses and
identification cards; and allowing the commissioner of the
division of motor vehicles to change the date that a driver's license expires to the driver's birthday.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That sections one and twelve, article two, chapter
seventeen-b of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted, all to
read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. ISSUANCE OF LICENSE, EXPIRATION AND RENEWAL.
§17B-2-1. Drivers must be licensed; types of licenses; licensees
need not obtain local government license; motorcycle driver
license; identification cards.
(a) No person, except those hereinafter expressly exempted,
may drive any motor vehicle upon a street or highway in this
state or upon any subdivision street, as used in article twenty- four, chapter eight of this code, when the use of such
subdivision street is generally used by the public unless the
person has a valid driver's license under the provisions of this
code for the type or class of vehicle being driven.
Any person licensed to operate a motor vehicle as provided in this code may exercise the privilege thereby granted as
provided in this code and, except as otherwise provided by law,
shall not be required to obtain any other license to exercise
such privilege by any county, municipality or local board or body
having authority to adopt local police regulations.
(b) The division, upon issuing a driver's license, shall
indicate on the license the type or general class or classes of
vehicle or vehicles the licensee may operate in accordance with
the provisions of this code, federal law or rule.
(c) Driver's licenses issued by the division shall be
classified in the following manner:
(1) Class A, B or C license shall be issued to those
pepersons
eighteen years of age or older with two years driving experience
and who have qualified for the commercial driver's license
established by chapter seventeen-e of this code and the federal
Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986, Title XII of public
law
99870 99-570 and subsequent rules, and have paid the required
fee.
(2) Class D license shall be issued to those persons
eighteen years and older with one year driving experience who operate motor vehicles other than those types of vehicles which
require the operator to be licensed under the provisions of
chapter seventeen-e of this code and federal law and rule and
whose primary function or employment is the transportation of
persons or property for compensation or wages and have paid the
required fee. For the purposes of the regulation of the
operation of a motor vehicle, wherever the term chauffeur's
license is used in this code, it shall be construed to mean the
Class A, B, C or D license described in this section or chapter
seventeen-e of this code or federal law or rule:
Provided, That
anyone who is not required to be licensed under the provisions of
chapter seventeen-e of this code and federal law or rule and who
operates a motor vehicle which is registered or which is required
to be registered as a Class A motor vehicle as that term is
defined in section three, article ten, chapter seventeen-a of
this code with a gross vehicle weight rating of less than eight
thousand one pounds, is not required to obtain a Class D license.
(3) Class E license shall be issued to those persons who
have qualified under the provisions of this chapter and who are
not required to obtain a Class A, B, C or D license and who have paid the required fee. The Class E license may be endorsed under
the provisions of section seven-b of this article for motorcycle
operation.
(4) Class F license shall be issued to those persons who
successfully complete the motorcycle examination procedure
provided for by this chapter and have paid the required fee, but
who do not possess a Class A, B, C and D or E driver's license.
(d) No person, except those hereinafter expressly exempted,
shall drive any motorcycle upon a street or highway in this state
or upon any subdivision street, as used in article twenty-four,
chapter eight of this code, when the use of such subdivision
street is generally used by the public unless the person has a
valid motorcycle license or a valid license which has been
endorsed under section seven-b of this article for motorcycle
operation or has a valid motorcycle instruction permit.
(e) (1) A nonoperator identification card may be issued to
any person who:
(A) Is a resident of this state in accordance with the
provisions of section one-a, article three, chapter seventeen-a
of this code;
(B) Does not have a valid driver's license;
(C) Has reached the age of sixteen years;
(D) Has paid the required fee of ten dollars:
Provided,
That such fee is not required if the applicant is sixty-five
years or older or is legally blind; and
(E) Presents a birth certificate or other proof of age and
identity acceptable to the division with a completed application
on a form furnished by the division.
(2) The nondriver identification card shall contain the same
information as a driver's license except that such identification
card shall be clearly marked as identification card.
The
identification card shall expire every four years. It may be
renewed on application and payment of the fee required by this
section.
(A)
After the thirtieth day of June, one thousand nine
hundred ninety-six, every Every identification card issued to
persons who have attained their twenty-first birthday shall
expire on the
last day of the month
designated by the
commissioner in which the applicant's birthday occurs in those
years in which the applicant's age is evenly divisible by five. Except as provided in paragraph (B) of this subdivision, no
identification card may be issued for less than three years nor
more than seven years
and such identification card shall be
renewed in the month in which the applicant's birthday occurs and
shall be valid for a period of five years expiring in the month
in which the applicant's birthday occurs and in a year in which
the applicant's age is evenly divisible by five.
(B) Every identification card issued to persons who have not
attained their twenty-first birthday shall expire on the
last day
of the month
designated by the commissioner in the year in which
the applicant attains the age of twenty-one years.
(3) The identification card shall be surrendered to the
division when the holder is issued a driver's license. The
division may issue an identification card to an applicant whose
privilege to operate a motor vehicle has been refused, canceled,
suspended or revoked under the provisions of this code.
§17B-2-12. Expiration of licenses; renewal; renewal fees.
(a) Every driver's license shall expire
four five years from
the date of its issuance,
except that the driver's license of any
person in the armed forces shall be is extended for a period of six months from the date the person is separated under honorable
circumstances from active duty in the armed forces.
(b)
After the thirtieth day of June, one thousand nine
hundred ninety-six, the following shall apply:
(1) Every driver's license issued to persons who have
attained their twenty-first birthday shall expire on the
last day
of the month
designated by the commissioner in which the
applicant's birthday occurs in those years in which the
applicant's age is evenly divisible by five. Except as provided
in the following subdivisions, no driver's license may be issued
for less than three years nor more than seven years
and such a
driver's license shall be renewed in the month in which the
applicant's birthday occurs and shall be valid for a period of
five years, expiring in the month in which the applicant's
birthday occurs and in a year in which the applicant's age is
evenly divisible by five.
(2) Every driver's license issued to persons who have not
attained their twenty-first birthday shall expire on the
last day
of the month
designated by the commissioner in the year in which
the applicant attains the age of twenty-one years.
(3) The driver's license of any person in the armed forces
shall be is extended for a period of six months from the date the
person is separated under honorable circumstances from active
duty in the armed forces.
(4) The commissioner may change the date that a driver's
license expires from the last day of the month in those years
specified in subdivisions (1) and (2) of this subsection to the
day of the month in which the applicant's birthday occurs in
those years. If the commissioner changes the expiration date,
the change may only affect new licenses and renewed licenses.
(c) A person who allows his or her driver's license to
expire may apply to the division for renewal
thereof of the
license. Application shall be made upon a form furnished by the
division and shall be accompanied by payment of the fee required
by section eight of this article plus an additional fee of five
dollars. The commissioner shall determine whether
such the
person qualifies for a renewed license and may, in the
commissioner's discretion, renew any expired license without
examination of the applicant.
(cd) Each renewal of a driver's license shall contain a new color photograph of the licensee. By first class mail to the
address last known to the division, the commissioner shall notify
each person who holds a valid driver's license of the expiration
date of the license. The notice shall be mailed at least thirty
days prior to the expiration date of the license and shall
include a renewal application form.
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(NOTE: Strike-throughs indicate language that would be
stricken from the code, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.)