BILL ANALYSIS �
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Kevin de Le�n, Chair
AB 1113 (Frazier) - Provisional driver's license restrictions.
Amended: August 13, 2013 Policy Vote: T&H 11-0
Urgency: No Mandate: Yes
Hearing Date: August 19, 2013
Consultant: Mark McKenzie
This bill does not meet the criteria for referral to the
Suspense File.
Bill Summary: AB 1113 would make several changes that enhance
the restrictions on young drivers under the provisional driver's
license program, beginning January 1, 2015.
Fiscal Impact: One-time Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) costs
of approximately $100,000 to make necessary programming changes,
and minor costs to update forms and publications (Motor Vehicle
Account).
Background: Existing law provides for a graduated driver's
licensing structure and provisional driver's license program
that restricts the driving privileges of young drivers under the
age of 18, in light of their operating inexperience. Prior to
applying for a provisional license, a person at least 15-1/2
years old may apply for an instructional permit, which allows
for the operation of a vehicle when taking driver training
instruction and practicing driving while under immediate
supervision of a licensed driver who is at least 25 years old,
as specified. A young driver must hold the instructional permit
for at least six months prior to applying for a provisional
license, and must complete driver training instruction,
including at least six hours of behind-the-wheel instruction,
complete 50 hours of supervised driving practice, including at
least 10 hours of driving during darkness, and successfully
complete DMV's examination requirements. An applicant must wait
at least one week before retaking a failed written exam and at
least two weeks before retaking a failed driving test.
During the first 12 months following issuance of a provisional
license to a person between the ages of 16 and 18, the licensee
is prohibited from driving between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. and
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transporting passengers under the age of 20, unless accompanied
by a parent, driving instructor, or a licensed driver who is at
least 25 years old. Existing law provides exceptions to these
restrictions and requirements in cases of medical necessity,
school activities, employment necessity, and transporting
immediate family members, as specified.
Proposed Law: AB 1113 would make several changes to the
restrictions on young drivers under the provisional driver's
license program, beginning January 1, 2015. Specifically, this
bill would:
Increase the minimum time period that a person must hold an
instructional permit before applying for a provisional
license from six months to nine months.
Require all provisional driver's license restrictions to
apply until the age of 18, rather than during the first 12
months after issuance of the license.
Add an hour to the time period in which provisional
licensees are prohibited from driving; the prohibition would
apply between the hours of 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.
Increase the minimum age of passengers who may be
transported by an unsupervised provisional licensee from 20
to 21 years of age.
Staff Comments: In July 2012, Congress passed and President
Obama signed the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century
Act (Public Law 112-41), known as MAP-21, which authorizes
federal transportation funding to states through September 30,
2014. Among other things, MAP-21includes incentives for states
to implement graduated driver's license systems by making states
that meet specified certain benchmarks eligible for grants to
promote teenage driver safety. California's provisional
driver's license program currently meets many of the
requirements. Although final regulations have not yet been
issued that would define compliance requirements to qualify for
federal grants, this bill would bring California law closer to
fully meeting the federal criteria. AB 1113 increases the
likelihood that California would be awarded additional federal
funding in the future.
DMV would incur costs of approximately $100,000 to implement
this bill, primarily derived from necessary programming changes
related to provisions that change the minimum instructional
permit period from six to nine months, and the imposition of
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provisional restrictions up to the age of 18, rather than for 12
months from the date of issuance. Staff notes that the change
to the minimum instructional permit period would effectively
prohibit a young driver from applying for a provisional permit
until they are at least 16 years and three months of age. In
addition, since an instructional permit is only valid for 12
months, this provision makes it more likely that the
instructional permit could lapse before a provisional driver's
license applicant completes all of the minimum requirements,
especially if the applicant has trouble passing the written and
driving tests.