Vehicles: supervised driving: young drivers.

(1) Existing law allows a person with an instructional permit issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles to generally operate a motor vehicle when accompanied and supervised by a California licensed driver who, among other things, is 18 years of age or over and whose driving privilege is not on probation. A violation of these provisions is an infraction. This bill would additionally require that the supervising licensed driver have held his or her license for at least one year. (2) Existing law requires the department, upon proper application, to issue driver's licenses to persons 18 years of age or older who meet specified criteria. This bill would require, on and after January 1, 2011, for a driver's license to be issued to a person at least 18 years of age but under 25 years of age, the person to complete 50 hours of supervised driving practice, not less that 10 of which is required to include driving during darkness. The bill would require the person to record and maintain a supervised driving log, provided by the department, in the vehicle while the person is practicing. Upon application for a driver's license, the person would be required to submit to the department the supervised driving log, certifying that the applicant has completed the required amount of driving practice and is prepared to take the department's driving test. (3) Existing law, the Brady-Jared Teen Driver Safety Act of 1997, allows for the issuance of a driver's license to a person at least 16 years of age but under 18 years of age pursuant to the provisional licensing program. Under the act, licensees are required to meet specified requirements, driver education, and training, and are prohibited during the first 12 months after issuance of a license from driving during the hours of 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. or from transporting passengers who are under 20 years of age, except as provided. A violation of these provisions is an infraction. This bill would require a person at least 16 years of age but under 18 years of age who is eligible for a driver's license issued pursuant to the provisional licensing program to record and maintain a supervised driving log in the vehicle while the person is practicing. Because these provisions would create new crimes, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (4) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.