Driver's licenses: motorcycle licensing pilot program.

Existing law requires the Department of Motor Vehicles to require an examination for issuance of a driver's license. The examination is required to be appropriate to the type of motor vehicle or combination of vehicles the applicant desires a license to drive or tow, in accordance with certain license classifications, and includes a driving demonstration. Existing law authorizes the department to grant a license to operate a motorcycle or motor-driven cycle, as defined, to applicants who are already licensed to drive other specified vehicles and pass an examination. Existing law establishes a motorcycle safety program administered by the Department of the California Highway Patrol to enhance motorcycle operation and safety and authorizes the Commissioner of the California Highway Patrol to adopt standards for course content and instructional quality control for a novice rider training course, among other things. Existing law prohibits the commissioner from directly managing or providing program services and requires that services are provided under contractual arrangements or grant funding. This bill would require the Department of Motor Vehicles to establish a pilot program in order to evaluate the use of motorcycle safety program service providers and grant recipients to administer the driving demonstration portion of an exam to receive a license to drive a motorcycle, as specified. The bill would require a minimum of 25% of motorcycle safety program service providers and grant recipient sites to participate in the program. The bill would require the department, if it determined that participating instructors were passing applicants without administering the examination, to revoke the instructors' participation in the pilot program, among other consequences. These provisions would be repealed on January 1, 2025. The bill would require the department, in conjunction with the Department of the California Highway Patrol, to report specified information to the Legislature, including the number of participants, a comparison of the pass and failure rates, and a recommendation as to whether the program should be extended, among other things. These provisions would be repealed on January 1, 2028.