Less Tears...More Years Act

AN ACT

relating to driver education and driver's licensing requirements.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. This Act shall be known as the LESS TEARS MORE YEARS ACT.

SECTION 2. Section 29.902, Education Code, is amended by

adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:

education and traffic safety course during each school year. If the

district offers the course, the district may:

(1) conduct the course and charge a fee for the course

in the amount determined by the agency to be comparable to the fee

charged by a driver education school that holds a license under

Chapter 1001; or

(2) contract with a driver education school that holds

a license under Chapter 1001 to conduct the course.

SECTION 3. Section 1001.004, Education Code, is amended to

read as follows:

Sec. 1001.004. COST OF ADMINISTERING CHAPTER. (a) Except

as provided by Subsection (b), the [The] cost of administering this

chapter shall be included in the state budget allowance for the

agency.

(b) The commissioner may charge a fee to each driver

education school in an amount not to exceed the actual expense

incurred in the regulation of driver education courses established

under Section 1001.1015.

SECTION 4. Section 1001.055(a), Education Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(a) The agency shall print and supply to each licensed or

exempt driver education school driver education certificates to be

used for certifying completion of an approved driver education

course to satisfy the requirements of Sections [Section]

521.204(a)(2) and 521.1601, Transportation Code. The certificates

must be numbered serially.

SECTION 5. Section 1001.101, Education Code, is amended to

read as follows:

Sec. 1001.101. ADULT AND MINOR DRIVER EDUCATION COURSE

CURRICULUM AND TEXTBOOKS. (a) The commissioner by rule shall

establish or approve the curriculum and designate the textbooks to

be used in a driver education course for minors and adults,

including a driver education course conducted by a school district,

driver education school, or parent or other individual under

Section 521.205, Transportation Code.

(b) A driver education course must require the student to

complete:

(1) 7 hours of behind-the-wheel instruction in the

presence of a person who holds a driver education instructor

license or who meets the requirements imposed under Section

521.205, Transportation Code;

(2) 7 hours of observation instruction in the presence

of a person who holds a driver education instructor license or who

meets the requirements imposed under Section 521.205,

Transportation Code; and

(3) 20 hours of behind-the-wheel instruction,

including at least 10 hours of instruction that takes place at

night, in the presence of an adult who meets the requirements of

Section 521.222(d)(2), Transportation Code.

SECTION 6. Subchapter C, Chapter 1001, Education Code, is

amended by adding Section 1001.1015 to read as follows:

Sec. 1001.1015. ADULT DRIVER EDUCATION COURSE CURRICULUM

AND EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS. (a) The commissioner by rule shall

establish the curriculum and designate the educational materials to

be used in a driver education course exclusively for adults.

(b) A driver education course under Subsection (a) must:

(1) be a six-hour course; and

(2) include instruction in:

(A) alcohol and drug awareness;

(B) the traffic laws of this state;

regulate, warn, or direct traffic; and

(D) the issues commonly associated with motor

vehicle accidents, including poor decision-making, risk taking,

impaired driving, distraction, speed, failure to use a safety belt,

driving at night, failure to yield the right-of-way, and using a

wireless communication device while operating a vehicle.

an online course.

(d) A driving safety course or a drug and alcohol driving

awareness program may not be approved as a driver education course

under Subsection (a).

SECTION 7. Subchapter C, Chapter 1001, Education Code, is

amended by adding Section 1001.110 to read as follows:

Sec. 1001.110. INFORMATION RELATING TO DRIVING

DISTRACTIONS. (a) The commissioner by rule shall require that

information relating to the effect of using a wireless

communication device or engaging in other actions that may distract

a driver on the safe or effective operation of a motor vehicle be

included in the curriculum of each driver education course or

driving safety course.

(b) In developing rules under this section, the

commissioner shall consult with the department.

SECTION 8. Subchapter F, Chapter 1001, Education Code, is

amended by adding Section 1001.257 to read as follows:

Sec. 1001.257. DENIAL OF LICENSE. The commissioner may not

issue or renew a driver education instructor license, including a

temporary license, to a person who has six or more points assigned

to the person's driver's license under Subchapter B, Chapter 708,

Transportation Code.

SECTION 9. Section 521.142(d), Transportation Code, is

amended to read as follows:

(d) If the applicant is under 21 [25] years of age, the

application must state whether the applicant has completed a driver

education course required by Section 521.1601 [approved by the

department].

SECTION 10. The heading to Subchapter H, Chapter 521,

Transportation Code, is amended to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER H. EDUCATION AND EXAMINATION REQUIREMENTS

SECTION 11. Subchapter H, Chapter 521, Transportation Code,

is amended by adding Sections 521.1601 and 521.167 to read as

follows:

Sec. 521.1601. DRIVER EDUCATION REQUIRED. The department

may not issue a driver's license to a person who is younger than 21

years of age unless the person submits to the department a driver

education certificate issued under Chapter 1001, Education Code,

that states that the person has completed and passed:

(1) a driver education and traffic safety course

approved by the Texas Education Agency under Section 29.902,

Education Code, or a driver education course approved by that

agency under Section 1001.101 of that code or approved by the

department under Section 521.205; or

(2) if the person is 18 years of age or older, a driver

education course approved by the Texas Education Agency under

Section 1001.101 or 1001.1015, Education Code.

Sec. 521.167. WAIVER OF CERTAIN EDUCATION AND EXAMINATION

REQUIREMENTS. A person who has completed and passed a driver

education course approved by the Texas Education Agency under

Section 1001.1015, Education Code, is not required to take the

highway sign and traffic law parts of the examination required

under Section 521.161 if those parts have been successfully

completed as determined by a licensed driver education instructor.

SECTION 12. Section 521.165, Transportation Code, is

amended by amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (d) to

read as follows:

driver's license for certain types of vehicles, the director may

waive a driving test for an applicant who has successfully

completed and passed the training and testing conducted by a person

certified under Subsection (a).

(d) The director may not waive the driving test required by

Section 521.161 for an applicant who is under 18 years of age.

SECTION 13. Section 521.204(a), Transportation Code, is

amended to read as follows:

(a) The department may issue a Class C driver's license to

an applicant under 18 years of age only if the applicant:

(1) is 16 years of age or older;

(2) has submitted to the department a driver education

certificate issued under Section 9A, Texas Driver and Traffic

Safety Education Act (Article 4413(29c), Vernon's Texas Civil

Statutes), that states that the person has completed and passed a

driver education course approved by the department under Section

521.205 or by the Texas Education Agency;

(3) has obtained a high school diploma or its

equivalent or is a student:

(A) enrolled in a public school, home school, or

private school who attended school for at least 80 days in the fall

or spring semester preceding the date of the driver's license

application; or

(B) who has been enrolled for at least 45 days,

and is enrolled as of the date of the application, in a program to

prepare persons to pass the high school equivalency exam; [and]

(4) has submitted to the department written parental

or guardian permission for the department to access the applicant's

school enrollment records maintained by the Texas Education Agency;

and

(5) has passed the examination required by Section

521.161.

SECTION 14. Section 521.205(a), Transportation Code, is

amended to read as follows:

(a) The department by rule shall provide for approval of a

driver education course conducted by the parent, stepparent, foster

parent, legal guardian, step-grandparent, or grandparent of a

person who is required to complete a driver education course to

obtain a Class C license. The rules must provide that:

(1) the person conducting the course possess a valid

license for the preceding three years that [and the license] has not

been suspended, revoked, or forfeited in the past three years for an

offense that involves the operation of a motor vehicle [traffic

related violations];

(2) the student driver spend a minimum number of hours

in:

(A) classroom instruction; and

(B) behind-the-wheel instruction;

(3) the person conducting the course not be convicted

of:

(A) criminally negligent homicide; or

(B) driving while intoxicated; [and]

(4) the person conducting the course not be disabled

because of mental illness; and

(5) the person conducting the course not have six or

more points assigned to the person's driver's license under

Subchapter B, Chapter 708, at the time the person begins conducting

the course.

SECTION 15. Subchapter J, Chapter 521, Transportation Code,

is amended by adding Section 521.206 to read as follows:

Sec. 521.206. COLLISION RATE STATISTICS PUBLICATION. (a)

The department shall collect data regarding collisions of students

taught by public schools, driver education schools licensed under

Chapter 1001, Education Code, and other entities that offer driver

education courses to students for which a uniform certificate of

course completion is issued. The collision rate is computed by

determining the number of an entity's students who complete a

driver education course during a state fiscal year, dividing that

number by the number of collisions that involved students who

completed such a course and that occurred in the 12-month period

following their licensure, and expressing the quotient as a

percentage.

(b) The department shall collect data regarding the

collision rate of students taught by course instructors approved

under Section 521.205. The collision rate is computed by

determining the number of students who completed a course approved

under Section 521.205 during a state fiscal year, dividing that

number by the number of collisions that involved students who

completed such a course and that occurred in the 12-month period

following their licensure, and expressing the quotient as a

percentage.

shall issue a publication listing the collision rate for students

taught by each driver education entity and the collision rate for

students taught by a course instructor approved under Section

521.205, noting the severity of collisions involving students of

each entity and each type of course.

SECTION 16. Section 521.271, Transportation Code, is

amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to

read as follows:

(a) Each original driver's license and provisional license

expires as follows:

(1) except as provided by Section 521.2711, a driver's

license expires on the first birthday of the license holder

occurring after the sixth anniversary of the date of the

application;

(2) a provisional license expires on [the earlier of:

[(A)] the 18th birthday of the license holder[;

[(B) the first birthday of the license holder

occurring after the date of the application];

(3) an instruction permit expires on the 18th birthday

of the license holder [second birthday of the license holder

occurring after the date of the application]; and

(4) an occupational license expires on the first

anniversary of the court order granting the license.

(a-1) The department and the Texas Education Agency shall

enter into a memorandum of understanding under which the department

may access the agency's electronic enrollment records to verify a

student's enrollment in a public school. The memorandum of

understanding must specify that the department may only access

information necessary to verify the identity and enrollment status

of a license renewal applicant and only if a parent or guardian of

the applicant has provided written permission for the department to

access that information. Nothing in this subsection may be

construed to allow the release of information in violation of the

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (20 U.S.C.

Section 1232g).

SECTION 17. Section 521.421(c), Transportation Code, is

amended to read as follows:

license or instruction permit is $15 [$5].

SECTION 18. Section 545.424, Transportation Code, is

amended by amending Subsections (a), (b), and (c) and adding

Subsection (f) to read as follows:

(a) A person under 18 years of age[, during the six-month

period following issuance of an original Class A, B, or C driver's

license to the person,] may not operate a motor vehicle:

(1) during the 12-month period following issuance of

an original Class A, B, or C driver's license to the person:

(A) after midnight and before 5 a.m. unless the

operation of the vehicle is necessary for the operator to attend or

participate in employment or a school-related activity or because

of a medical emergency; or

(B) [(2)] with more than one passenger in the

vehicle under 21 years of age who is not a family member; or

(2) [(3)] while using a wireless communications

device, except in case of emergency.

(b) A person under 17 years of age who holds a restricted

motorcycle license or moped license, during the 12-month

[six-month] period following the issuance of an original motorcycle

license or moped license to the person, may not operate a motorcycle

or moped:

(1) after midnight and before 5 a.m. unless:

(A) the person is in sight of the person's parent

or guardian; or

(B) the operation of the vehicle is necessary for

the operator to attend or participate in employment or a

school-related activity or because of a medical emergency; or

(2) while using a wireless communications device,

except in case of emergency.

(1) the holder of a hardship license; [or]

(2) a person operating a motor vehicle while

accompanied in the manner required by Section 521.222(d)(2) for the

holder of an instruction permit; or

(3) a person licensed by the Federal Communications

Commission to operate a wireless communication device or a radio

frequency device.

(f) In this section, "wireless communication device" means

a handheld or hands-free device that uses commercial mobile

service, as defined by 47 U.S.C. Section 332.

SECTION 19. (a) For the purpose of compiling data for the

publication required by Section 521.206, Transportation Code, as

added by this Act, the Texas Department of Public Safety shall

determine the number of minor students taught by each driver

education entity and the total number of minor students taught by

courses approved under Section 521.205, Transportation Code, who

become licensed during the state fiscal year beginning September 1,

2009, and ending August 31, 2010.

(b) The first publication of collision rate data compiled

under Section 521.206, Transportation Code, as added by this Act,

shall be issued not later than October 1, 2011.

SECTION 20. Not later than November 30, 2009, the Texas

Department of Public Safety shall appoint a task force to review and

make recommendations regarding the effectiveness of the materials

provided by the Texas Education Agency for use in courses licensed

under Chapter 1001, Education Code, or authorized by Section

521.205. The task force shall consist of the following members:

(1) a representative of the Texas Department of Public

Safety;

(2) a representative of the Texas Education Agency;

(3) a commercial provider of driver education courses;

(4) a member of an interested group or association, as

determined by the department; and

(5) other appropriate members, as determined by the

department.

SECTION 21. (a) Section 29.902(c), Education Code, as

added by this Act, applies beginning with the 2010-2011 school

year.

(b) Not later than January 1, 2010, the commissioner of

education shall adopt rules as required by Section 1001.101,

Education Code, as amended by this Act.

the Texas Education Agency under Chapter 1001, Education Code, must

comply with the curriculum requirements of Section 1001.101,

Education Code, as amended by this Act, not later than May 1, 2010.

(d) Section 521.165, Transportation Code, as amended by

this Act, applies only to an application for a driver's license

submitted on or after the effective date of this Act. An

application for a driver's license submitted before the effective

date of this Act is subject to the law in effect on the date the

application was submitted, and that law is continued in effect for

that purpose.

(e) The changes in law made by this Act to Section 521.205,

Transportation Code, apply to a course approved under that section

that begins on or after the effective date of this Act. A course

beginning before the effective date of this Act is governed by the

law in effect on the date the course was commenced, and that law is

continued in effect for that purpose.

(f) The changes in law made by this Act to Sections 521.271,

521.421, and 545.424, Transportation Code, apply only to a person

issued a driver's license on or after the effective date of this

Act. A person issued a driver's license before the effective date

of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the license

was issued, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.

SECTION 22. As soon as practicable after the effective date

of this Act, the commissioner of education shall adopt the rules

required by Section 1001.110, Education Code, as added by this Act.

SECTION 23. The changes in law made by Section 521.142,

Transportation Code, as amended by this Act, and Sections 521.1601

and 521.167, Transportation Code, as added by this Act, apply to an

application for the issuance of a driver's license filed on or after

the effective date of this Act. An application for the issuance of

a driver's license filed before the effective date of this Act is

governed by the law in effect on the date of the filing, and that law

is continued in effect for that purpose.

SECTION 24. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.

Less Tears...More Years Act

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