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2014 SESSION

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Senate Committee on Transportation

Chairman: Stephen D. Newman

Clerk: Maribeth Turner
Staff: Nicole Brenner, Alan Wambold
Date of Meeting: January 15, 2014
Time and Place: 45 min. after adjournment, Senate Room A
Removed SB8,24,26,73,91,135,156,162,165,179,259,375 & 513

S.B. 61 Handbills, solicitation of contributions, etc.; distribution on highways.

Patron: Puller

Distribution of handbills, solicitation of contributions, etc., on highways. Allows localities to adopt ordinances allowing for the solicitation of contributions on highways for organizations granted tax-exempt status under § 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

S.B. 80 Parking of certain vehicles; adds Town of Blackstone to list of towns that may regulate or prohibit.

Patron: Ruff

Regulation or prohibition of parking of certain vehicles. Adds the Town of Blackstone to the list of counties and towns that may regulate or prohibit the parking of certain vehicles.

S.B. 97 Bicycles, etc.; minimum clearance for passing.

Patron: Reeves

Minimum clearance for passing bicycles, etc. Increases from two to three feet the minimum clearance between a passing vehicle and a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, moped, animal, or animal-drawn vehicle.

S.B. 99 Traffic accidents; State Police maintenance of reports.

Patron: Ruff

State Police maintenance of reports; traffic accidents. Requires State Police, in addition to DMV, to furnish copies of reports of traffic accidents upon request.

S.B. 138 Vehicle safety inspection approval; increases grace period for certain members of armed services.

Patron: Barker

Vehicle safety inspection approval; armed services grace period. Increases the grace period for vehicle safety inspection from five business days to 14 calendar days for members of the armed services on active duty.

S.B. 139 Provisional driver's license holders; changes use of cell phone from secondary to primary offense.

Patron: Barker

Provisional driver's license holders. Changes use of a cell phone by a provisional driver's license holder from a secondary offense to a primary offense.

S.B. 205 Driver training and road tests; licensure and examination for persons age 19 or older.

Patron: McWaters

Licensure and examination for persons age 19 or older. Allows persons age 19 or over the option of taking the behind-the-wheel examination at a driver training school as long as they complete the current requirements already in place for persons under 19. The bill would also allow students who are not minors to take driver's education and their behind-the-wheel examination with their school or with a driver training school.

Current law allows persons age 19 or over (i) to obtain a learner's permit and hold such permit for 60 days and then take a behind-the-wheel examination administered by the DMV or (ii) to take driver's education and then take a behind-the-wheel examination administered by the DMV.

The bill retains the requirements that those seeking a commercial driver's license or on medical review take their behind-the-wheel examination administered by the DMV and that persons who fail the behind the wheel test three times at DMV must return to DMV to take the test after completing requirements at a driver training school.

S.B. 225 Motor vehicle doors; drivers and passengers to wait for a reasonable opportunity to open.

Patron: Petersen

Opening and closing motor vehicle doors. Requires drivers and passengers to wait for a reasonable opportunity to open vehicle doors on the side adjacent to moving traffic. A violation constitutes a traffic infraction punishable by a fine of not more than $100.

S.B. 264 Fare enforcement inspectors; appointed to enforce fares for use of mass transit facilities.

Patron: Ebbin

Fare enforcement inspectors. Provides for the appointment of fare enforcement inspectors to enforce payment of fares for use of mass transit facilities. The bill also provides that failure of a transit user to produce proof of fare payment constitutes a Class 4 misdemeanor.

S.B. 293 Reckless driving; causing death or injury of certain persons, Class 6 felony.

Patron: Puckett

Reckless driving causing death or injury of certain persons. Punishes reckless driving that causes the death or serious physical injury of a law-enforcement officer, emergency medical services personnel, highway worker, or firefighter engaged in his duties as a Class 6 felony with a $2,500 mandatory minimum fine. The bill further requires the court to suspend the offender's driver's license for one year. In addition, the court may impose a civil penalty of up to $10,000 and the proceeds shall be deposited into the general fund.

S.B. 356 Titling manufactured homes.

Patron: Cosgrove

Titling manufactured homes. Revises requirements and procedures for titling manufactured homes.

S.B. 367 Driver's license and special identification card designations; emergency contact program.

Patron: McEachin

Driver's license and special identification card designations; emergency contact program. Permits the Department of Motor Vehicles, upon the request of the applicant and presentation of a signed statement by a licensed physician confirming the applicant's condition, to designate an intellectual disability or autism spectrum disorder on the applicant's driver's license and to designate hearing or speech impairment, insulin-dependent diabetes, or an intellectual disability or autism spectrum disorder on the applicant's special identification card. Current law allows the designation of a hearing or speech impairment or a condition of insulin-dependent diabetes on a person's driver's license. The bill also provides that effective January 1, 2015, DMV may establish an emergency contact program to allow customers to give DMV an emergency contact person and information to keep in their customer record to be made available to law-enforcement officers in emergency situations.

S.B. 376 Emergency vehicles of the Virginia National Guard.

Patron: Reeves

Emergency vehicles of the Virginia National Guard. Provides that, for the purposes of exemptions granted to emergency vehicles in certain situations, the term "emergency vehicle" shall include any Virginia National Guard vehicle when responding to an emergency. The bill additionally permits such vehicles to be equipped with flashing, blinking, or alternating red or red and white combination warning lights.

S.B. 383 New vehicle classification; autocycle.

Patron: Reeves

New vehicle classification; autocycle. Defines a new class of vehicle, known as an autocycle, and provides for examination of drivers, registration fees, safety, inspection, and other requirements pursuant to creating this new class of vehicle. The bill contains technical amendments.

S.B. 402 Gross weight for hydraulic truck cranes.

Patron: McDougle

Gross weight for hydraulic truck cranes. Allows a hydraulic truck crane with a gross weight of 100,000 pounds or less to carry counterweights properly mounted on the deck of the crane and to carry all equipment necessary for one-person assembly and operation.

S.B. 408 Motor vehicle safety inspection; tint.

Patron: McWaters

Motor vehicle safety inspection; tint. Requires the Department of State Police to amend its regulations to include inspection of window tint as part of the motor vehicle safety inspection.

S.B. 491 Restricted driver's license; written offer of employment.

Patron: Deeds

Restricted driver's license; written offer of employment. Provides that a court may authorize the issuance of a restricted driver's license to a person whose license has been suspended for failure to pay fines, etc., if he presents to the court a written offer of employment contingent upon obtaining a driver's license. Currently, the person must present to the court written verification of employment. A person issued a restricted license must petition each court that suspended his license for an installment or deferred payment agreement for the payment of such fines, etc., as a condition of keeping the restricted license.

S.B. 511 Commonwealth Transportation Board; composition.

Patron: Wagner

Commonwealth Transportation Board; composition. Changes the composition of the CTB so that one member will be appointed from each of Virginia's 11 congressional districts instead of from each of the 9 highway construction districts. The five at-large members and four ex officio members remain unchanged.

S.B. 518 Highway systems; funding.

Patron: Wagner

Funding among highway systems. Includes primary state highway system extensions, the part of the primary highway that runs through a city or town, in the list of highways that receive the 25 percent for reconstruction of deteriorated highways of the amount allocated each year by the Commonwealth Transportation Board.

S.B. 522 Disabled American Veterans Highway.

Patron: Saslaw

Disabled American Veterans Highway. Designates the entire length of Interstate Route 495 (Capital Beltway) in Virginia the "Disabled American Veterans Highway."

S.B. 525 Parking violations at VDOT commuter lots; failure to appear.

Patron: Carrico

Parking violations at VDOT commuter lots; failure to appear. Provides that if a person issued a summons for a parking violation at a commuter parking lot owned by the Virginia Department of Transportation fails to appear after being mailed a summons at the address on record with the Department of Motor Vehicles, the person shall be deemed to have waived a court hearing and the court may hear the case in his absence. A violation is a traffic infraction. Under existing law, if the person fails to appear the summons is to be delivered by personal or substitute service.

S.B. 531 Contract passenger carriers.

Patron: Watkins

Contract passenger carriers. Eliminates the requirements that (i) contract passenger carrier service be provided for a minimum of one hour per vehicle trip and (ii) each vehicle carry a trip sheet showing passenger destinations.

S.B. 554 Driver education instructors.

Patron: Marsden

Driver education instructors. Allows institutions of higher education to offer courses required to become driver education instructors.