256485 Driver's Licenses, Revocation, Title & Registration, Inspections, Safety, Adjudication and Definitions

DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLES

 

NOTICE OF PROPOSED RULEMAKING

 

The Director of the Department of Motor Vehicles, pursuant to the authority set forth in section 1825 of the Department of Motor Vehicles Establishment Act of 1998, effective March 26, 1999 (D.C. Law 12-175; D.C. Official Code § 50-904), sections 6, 7, and 13 of the District of Columbia Traffic Act of 1925, approved March 3, 1925 (43 Stat. 1121,1125; D.C. Official Code §§ 50-2201.03, 50-1401.01, and 50-1403.01), section 5 of the Uniform Anatomical Gift Revision Act of 2008, effective April 15, 2008 (D.C. Law 17-145; D.C. Official Code § 7-1531.04), sections 5(a) and 79 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Responsibility Act of the District of Columbia, approved May 25, 1954 (68 Stat. 122, 139; D.C. Official Code §§ 50-1301.03(a) and 50-1301.79), section 107 of the Traffic Adjudication Act of 1978, effective September 12, 1978 (D.C. Law 2-104; D.C. Official Code § 50-2301.07), sections 2(d)(2A) and 3(a) of Title IV of the District of Columbia Revenue Act of 1937, approved August 17, 1937 (50 Stat. 680; D.C. Official Code §§ 50-1501.02(d)(2A) and 50-1501.03(a)) and Mayor’s Order 2007-168, dated July 23, 2007, hereby gives notice of the intent to adopt the following rulemaking that will amend Chapters 1 (Issuance of Driver’s Licenses), 3 (Cancellation, Suspension, or Revocation of Licenses), 4 (Motor Vehicle Title and Registration), 7 (Motor Vehicle Equipment), 8 (Safety Responsibility), 30 (Adjudication and Enforcement), and 99 (Definitions) of Title 18 (Vehicles and Traffic) of the District of Columbia Municipal Regulations (DCMR). 

 

The proposed rules would: limit the number of times an applicant may take the knowledge and road tests; increase the fee for failure to appear at a scheduled road test; make conforming changes to be consistent with the requirements of the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act;

conform the District’s motor vehicle regulations with recent statutory and regulatory amendments made by the Department of Motor Vehicles Driver License, Special Identification Card and Vehicle Inspection Amendment Act of 2008, effective September 15, 2008 (D.C. Law 17-219;  55 DCR 7662) by extending the terms of driver’s licenses and non-driver special identification cards from five (5) to eight (8) years; mandate driver license revocation for conviction for operating a vehicle while impaired by the consumption of intoxicating liquor;  authorize the Director to suspend a driver’s license of a District resident whose driving privileges have been suspended by another jurisdiction; add a new section governing the approval of vintage tags on historic vehicles; set the safety requirements for low speed vehicles; clarify that an individual requesting a DMV record pursuant to a court-issued subpoena will be subject to the fees applicable to DMV record requests; allow the Director to revoke a certificate of self-insurance for failing to follow District laws applicable to self-insurers; add the District Department of Transportation as an agency authorized to issue moving and non-moving violations; and add the definition for the term “low-speed vehicle”.

 

Final rulemaking action shall be taken in not less than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice in the D.C. Register. 

 

Title 18 (Vehicles and Traffic) of the DCMR is amended as follows:

 

Chapter 1 (Issuance of Driver’s Licenses) is amended as follows:

 

             1.        Section 103 (Applications for a Driver’s License or Learner’s Permit) is amended as follows:

 

Section 103.9 is amended by striking “ten dollars ($ 10)” and inserting “thirty dollars ($30)”.

 

2.         Section 104 (Examinations of Applicants for Driver’s Licenses), is amended as follows:

 

a.         Section 104.10 is amended by striking the phrase “three (3) examinations within a twelve (12) month period” and inserting the phrase “three (3) written examinations and three (3) road tests within a twelve (12) month period” in its place.

 

3.         Section 108 (Notations on Licenses: Anatomical Gift Act), is amended as follows:

 

a.         Section 108.1 is amended by striking the phrase “on or after the effective date of the Uniform Anatomical Gift Revision Act of 2008, passed on 2nd reading on February 5, 2008 (Enrolled version of Bill 17- 58)” and inserting the phrase “on or after April 15, 2008” in its place.

 

b.         Section 108.2 is amended by striking the phrase “the Uniform Anatomical Gift Revision Act of 2008, passed on 2nd reading on February 5, 2008 (Enrolled version of Bill 17-58)” and inserting the phrase “the Uniform Anatomical Gift Revision Act of 2008, effective April 15, 2008 (D.C. Law 17-145; D.C. Official Code § 7-1531.01 et seq.) (“Uniform Anatomical Gift Revision Act”)” in its place.

 

c.         Section 108.3 is amended by adding the phrase “or otherwise authorized a statement or symbol indicating that the donor has made an anatomical gift” after the phrase “signed an anatomical gift card”.

 

d.         Section 108.4 is amended by striking the phrase “the Uniform Anatomical Gift Revision Act of 2008, passed on 2nd reading on February 5, 2008 (Enrolled version of Bill 17-58)” and inserting the phrase “the Uniform Anatomical Gift Revision Act” in its place.

 

4.  Section 110 (Renewal of Driver’s Licenses) is amended as follows:

 

a.         Section 110.1 is amended to read as follows:

 

110.1         Unless the Director provides otherwise, the initial term of a driver’s license issued after August 16, 2008 and the next renewal term of any driver’s license issued before that date, shall expire on the licensee’s birth date occurring in the eighth (8th) year of the license term, and may thereafter be renewed for up to an eight (8)-year period ending on the licensee’s birth date.

 

b.         Section 110.3 is amended to read as follows:

 

110.3         The Director may extend the validity of a driver’s license without an additional fee for such additional period or periods as the Director, in his or her discretion, may; provided, that such additional period or periods shall not exceed eight (8) years in the aggregate.

 

4.         Section 112 (Special Identification Cards) is amended as follows:

 

a.         Section 112.14 is amended by striking the phrase “shall not exceed five (5) years” and inserting the phrase “shall not exceed eight (8) years” in its place.

 

Chapter 3 (Cancellation, Suspension, or Revocation of Licenses) is amended as follows:

 

1.         Section 301 (Mandatory Revocations) is amended as follows:

 

a.         Section 301.1(a) is amended as follows:

 

i.          Insert the phrase “or while the ability to operate a vehicle is impaired by the consumption of intoxicating liquor;” at the end.

 

2.         Section 304 (Suspension for Failure to Comply Answer with Traffic Citations) is amended by adding new sections 304.4 and 304.5 to read as follows:

 

304.4         Pursuant to § 300.7, or under applicable law, the Director may suspend, without a hearing, the license of a resident of the District whose driving privileges have been suspended in another jurisdiction.  The Director shall provide at least ten (10) days notice of the effective date of the suspension in the District and shall provide such notice by mail or email to the resident’s address as indicated on the Department of Motor Vehicle records.

 

304.5         The suspension authorized in subsection § 304.4 shall terminate upon proof satisfactory to the Director that the licensee has been reinstated to operate a motor vehicle in the other jurisdiction.

 

Chapter 4 (Motor Vehicle Title and Registration) is amended as follows:

 

A new section 435, entitled “Vintage Tags”, is added to read as follows:

 

435            VINTAGE TAGS

 

435.1         Vintage license tags shall be permitted on historic motor vehicles in place of historic motor vehicle license tags if approved by the Director pursuant to this section.

 

435.2         A person who seeks to display vintage license tags shall submit an application to the Director by letter, or at the discretion of the Director, by email or through the Department’s website.

 

435.3         The application shall include the applicant’s name, address, vehicle information number (“VIN”), make, model, year of manufacture, and a color photograph of the vintage tag.  The Director may request the applicant to appear in person with the vintage tag for the purposes of inspection.

 

435.4         The Director may deny the application if:

 

(a)        The tag does not meet reflective or safety standards as set forth in §§ 422.5 and 422.8;

 

(b)        The tag is illegible;

 

(c)        The letters, numbers, or combination of letters and numbers of the tag is the same as the configuration of letters, numbers, or combination of letters and numbers of any tag either issued or for which application has been made pursuant to § 423;

 

(d)       The Director is unable to verify the tag is from the same year as the model year of the historic vehicle; or

 

(e)        The Director concludes that the use of the vintage tags would adversely impact public safety.

 

435.5         The Director may rescind or revoke the use of a vintage tag for violation of any District of Columbia law or regulation relating to motor vehicles, or for any reason described in § 435.4.

 

Chapter 7 (Motor Vehicle Equipment) is amended as follows:

 

A new section 757, entitled “Low-Speed Vehicles”, is added to read as follows:

          

757            LOW-SPEED VEHICLES

 

757.1         Low-speed vehicles shall comply with the safety standards set forth in Federal Motor Safety Standard No. 500 at 49 C.F.R. § 571.500.

 

757.2         The manufacturer’s certificate of origin shall clearly identify the vehicle as a low-speed vehicle.

 

757.3         Aftermarket conversion of manufactured non-compliant vehicles to low-speed vehicles not in compliance with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards is prohibited.

 

Chapter 8 (Safety Responsibility) is amended as follows:

 

1.         New subsections 801.11 and 801.12 are added to read as follows:

 

801.11       A request for a certified or uncertified abstract pursuant to a subpoena shall be subject to the fee specified in this section, except if the subpoena is submitted by a governmental entity.

 

801.12       A fee shall not be imposed for a certified or uncertified abstract if the abstract is requested by a person filing an in forma pauperis petition.

 

2.         Section 807.6 is amended as follows:

 

a.         Paragraph (c) is amended by striking the word “and”.

 

b.         Paragraph (d) is amended by striking the period at the end and inserting the phrase “; and” in its place.

 

c.         A new paragraph (e) is added to read as follows:

 

(e)        Failure to comply with all District laws applicable to self-insurers.

 

Chapter 30 (Adjudication and Enforcement) is amended as follows:

 

1.         Section 3003 (Issuance of Moving and Non-Moving Violations)

 

a.         Subsection 3003.1 is amended as follows:

 

i.          Paragraph (l) is amended by striking the word “and”.

 

ii.         Paragraph (m) is amended by striking the period at the end and inserting the phrase “; and” in its place.

 

iii.        A new paragraph (n) is added to read as follows:

 

(n)        District Department of Transportation.

 

Chapter 99 (Definitions) is amended as follows:

 

Section 9901 (Definitions) is amended by inserting the following new definition:

        

Low-speed vehicle – a four (4)-wheeled motor vehicle whose speed attainable in one (1) mile is more than twenty (20) miles per hour and not more than twenty-five (25) miles per hour on a paved level surface and which has a gross vehicle weight rating of less than three thousand (3,000) pounds.

 

All persons desiring to comment on the subject matter of this proposed rulemaking should file comments, in writing, to David Glasser, General Counsel, D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles, 95 M Street, S.W., Suite 300, Washington, D.C. 20024.  Comments must be received not later than thirty (30) days after the publication of this notice in the D.C. Register.  Copies of this proposal may be obtained, at cost, by writing to the above address.