Driver's licenses: instruction permits and provisional licenses.

(1) Existing law, the Brady-Jared Teen Driver Safety Act of 1997, establishes a provisional licensing program and generally requires that a driver's license issued to a person at least 16 years of age but under 18 years of age be issued pursuant to that provisional licensing program. Existing law requires a person to hold an instruction permit for not less than 6 months prior to applying for a provisional license. During the first 12 months after issuance of a provisional license, existing law prohibits the licensee from driving between the hours of 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. and transporting passengers who are under 20 years of age, unless he or she is accompanied and supervised by a licensed driver, as specified, or a licensed or certified driving instructor. Existing law provides limited exceptions to these restrictions under which a licensee is authorized to drive under specified circumstances, including a school or school-authorized activity or an employment necessity, and requires the licensee to keep certain supporting documentation in his or her possession. Existing law requires a person to complete 50 hours of supervised driving practice prior to the issuance of a provisional license, as specified, and requires the person to submit to the Department of Motor Vehicles the certification of a parent, spouse, guardian, or licensed or certified driving instructor that the applicant has completed the required amount of driving practice and is prepared to take the department's driving test. Existing law allows a person without a parent, spouse, guardian, or who is an emancipated minor, to have a licensed driver 25 years of age or older or a licensed or certified driving instructor complete the certification. A violation of these provisions is punishable as an infraction. This bill would, commencing January 1, 2020, expand the scope of the provisional licensing program by extending the applicable age range for the program to 16 to under 21 years of age. The bill would exempt active duty members of the California National Guard, the State Military Reserve, or the United States Armed Forces who are at least 18 years of age from the program. The bill would also exempt a person who is at least 18 years of age and possesses an ambulance driver certificate, a certificate to drive other specified vehicles, including school buses, or a commercial driver's license from the program. The bill would, commencing January 1, 2020, apply the requirement to hold an instruction permit for not less than 6 months only to persons under 18 years of age, and would reduce that time period to not less than 60 days for persons at least 18 years of age, but under 21 years of age. The bill also would, commencing January 1, 2020, authorize persons at least 18 years of age, but under 21 years of age, to have a driving practice certification completed by a licensed driver or certified driving instructor, as specified. By expanding the scope of the provisional licensing program, the violation of which constitutes an infraction, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would, commencing January 1, 2020, authorize a licensee who is 18, 19, or 20 years of age to keep in his or her possession a copy of his or her class schedule or work schedule as documentation to satisfy the exceptions for a school or school-authorized activity and employment necessity, respectively, and would provide that a signed statement by a parent or legal guardian is not required if reasonable transportation facilities are inadequate and the operation of a vehicle by a licensee who is 18, 19, or 20 years of age is necessary to transport the licensee or the licensee's immediate family member. The bill would, commencing January 1, 2020, make other technical and conforming changes, including changes to age restriction provisions for the issuance of an M1 or M2 motorcycle license. The bill would also include specified findings and declarations. (2) Existing law generally authorizes the Department of Motor Vehicles, for good cause, to issue an instruction permit to any physically and mentally qualified person who applies to the department for an instruction permit and who meets any one of 5 specified requirements, including that the person is 17 years and 6 months of age or older. This bill would, commencing January 1, 2020, raise the age for the above requirement to 20 years and 6 months. Existing law provides that a person, while having in his or her immediate possession a valid permit issued pursuant to the above provisions, may operate a motor vehicle, other than a motorcycle, motorized scooter, or a motorized bicycle, when accompanied by, and under the immediate supervision of, a California-licensed driver with a valid license of the appropriate class, 18 years of age or over whose driving privilege is not on probation, as specified. A violation of this provision is punishable as an infraction. This bill would, commencing January 1, 2020, raise the required age of the California-licensed driver to 21 years of age. By changing the definition of an existing infraction, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (3) Existing law prohibits a person from owning or operating a driving school or giving driving instruction for compensation without a license issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles. This bill would require an owner or operator of a driving school or an independent driving instructor, as a condition to obtain a new license or renewed license from the department on and after January 1, 2018, to offer and accept installment payments, as specified, for the compensation to provide the instruction required by the Brady-Jared Teen Driver Safety Act of 1997. The bill would also authorize the Department of Motor Vehicles to charge a driving school, as specified, a fee not to exceed $1 for each driver education or driver training certificate of completion furnished by the department and issued to a person who has demonstrated satisfactory completion of a certified driver education and driver training course, in order to recover the department's reasonable costs in administering the provisional licensing program. The bill would prohibit a driving school from charging an applicant a fee for a certificate of completion that exceeds the fee the department charges the school. (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.