Researcher: SM Page 1 4/7/25
OLR Bill Analysis
sHB 7060
AN ACT CONCERNING TRANSPORTATION WORKER SAFETY.
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
SUMMARY
§§ 1 & 2 — ROAD AND BRIDGE NAMINGS
Names a (1) section of road in Meriden the “Andrew DiDomenico Memorial Highway” and
(2) bridge in Southington the “State Trooper First Class Aaron M. Pelletier Memorial Bridge”
§§ 3-5 — HIGHWAY WORK ZONE AND ROADSIDE VEHICLE SAFETY
AWARENESS PROGRAM
Creates a new DMV-administered highway work zone and roadside vehicle safety awareness
program and related requirements; generally requires driver’s license applicants and violators
of the “move over” law or highway worker endangerment law to take the program and requires
suspension of violators’ licenses if they commit specified additional violations within a certain
time period after completing it
§§ 6 & 7 — RECKLESS DRIVING
Makes driving a motor vehicle on a limited access highway while engaged in any activity
prohibited by the state’s existing distracted driving law a reckless driving violation; sets
increased penalties for a first reckless driving offense that occurs in a highway work zone
§§ 8 & 9 — FINES FOR VIOLATIONS OF “MOVE OVER” LAW OR
AGGRAVATED ENDANGERM ENT OF A HIGHWAY WOR KER
Increases current law’s enhanced penalties for violations of the “move over” law and the law
on endangering highway workers that result in the injury or death of an emergency vehicle
driver or occupant or a highway worker
SUMMARY
This bill (1) creates a new Department of Motor Vehicles-
administered highway work zone and roadside vehicle safety
awareness program; (2) increases the penalties for violations of several
laws related to roadway safety, including the safety of highway workers
and emergency vehicle drivers; and (3) names a road and bridge. It also
makes various minor, technical, and conforming changes. A section-by-
section analysis follows.
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2025, except the road and bridge
namings are effective upon passage. 2025HB-07060-R000558-BA.DOCX
Researcher: SM Page 2 4/7/25
§§ 1 & 2 — ROAD AND BRIDGE NAMINGS
Names a (1) section of road in Meriden the “Andrew DiDomenico Memorial Highway”
and (2) bridge in Southington the “State Trooper First Class Aaron M. Pelletier
Memorial Bridge”
The bill names (1) a section of Connecticut Special Service Road 495
in Meriden the “Andrew DiDomenico Memorial Highway” and (2)
Bridge No. 01241 in Southington the “State Trooper First Class Aaron
M. Pelletier Memorial Bridge.”
§§ 3-5 — HIGHWAY WOR K ZONE AND ROADSIDE VEHICLE
SAFETY AWARENESS PRO GRAM
Creates a new DMV-administered highway work zone and roadside vehicle safety
awareness program and related requirements; generally requires driver’s license
applicants and violators of the “move over” law or highway worker endangerment law to
take the program and requires suspension of violators’ licenses if they commit specified
additional violations within a certain time period after completing it
The bill creates a new highway work zone and roadside vehicle safety
awareness program administered by the Department of Motor Vehicles
(DMV). It generally requires this program to be completed by (1)
applicants for a driver’s license or learner’s permit and (2) drivers
convicted of violating the “move over” law or the law on endangering
highway workers (see §§ 8 & 9 below).
Specifically, the bill requires 16- and 17-year-old driver’s license
applicants who receive a learner’s permit on or after October 1, 2025, to
submit a program completion certificate to the DMV commissioner, as
he prescribes. Beginning on the same date, it also generally applies this
requirement to any driver’s license applicant who (1) has not previously
held a Connecticut license and (2) does not hold a valid license issued
by (a) another state or U.S. territory or possession or (b) a foreign
country with which the commissioner has an agreement for reciprocal
recognition of driver training requirements.
The bill establishes program requirements and allows the
commissioner to certify organizations (e.g., licensed driving schools) to
offer the program. It requires a violator’s driving record to reflect
program participation for a specified time period and sets license
suspension requirements for drivers who commit certain additional
violations during this time period. 2025HB-07060-R000558-BA.DOCX
Researcher: SM Page 3 4/7/25
The bill also requires the DMV commissioner to adopt regulations to
implement the program.
Program Requirements
Under the bill, the highway work zone and roadside vehicle safety
awareness program must, at minimum, do the following and conclude
with a written or electronic test:
1. review principles of safe motor vehicle operation,
2. highlight dangers of highway work zones and emphasize risks
related to driving unsafely in them,
3. include testimonials from highway workers and their families,
4. emphasize the dangers of vehicles located on the highway
shoulder, and
5. review proper interactions with emergency vehicles.
DMV and other program providers (see below) may offer it in person,
virtually (i.e. through distance learning), or by a combination of both.
The virtual option must have interactive components (e.g., mandatory
interactions, participation, or testing). Any person required to attend the
program due to a conviction for one of the violations discussed above
must complete it in person.
Program Fee. The bill sets a maximum $150 fee providers may
charge for the program. (The cap specifically applies when the program
is provided to 16- and 17-year-olds according to related driver’s license
application requirements, as described above, but appears to apply for
other required participants as well.)
Program Providers
The bill requires DMV to offer the program and allows the
commissioner to certify other organizations (e.g., licensed driving
schools) to do so. He must determine how many program providers are
needed. 2025HB-07060-R000558-BA.DOCX
Researcher: SM Page 4 4/7/25
Under the bill, each organization or driving school seeking
certification or recertification must apply to DMV as the commissioner
prescribes and submit a $350 application fee. Certifications are valid for
two years and are not transferable. Additionally, each applicant must:
1. be registered to do business in Connecticut and maintain good
standing with the Office of the Secretary of the State;
2. have a permanent place of business in the state where all
program records are maintained and accessible to DMV during
normal business hours;
3. submit to the DMV commissioner for approval a detailed
curriculum and lesson plan (including any changes to them),
which will be used in each program;
4. electronically transmit to the commissioner, at the times and in
the form he prescribes, information on enrollment and program
completion; and
5. file and maintain a $50,000 surety bond (a) conditioned on
compliance with state and federal laws or regulations related to
the program and (b) provided as indemnity for the state’s or any
person’s losses or expenses due to the program provider’s acts or
omissions.
This bond must be executed in the name of the state for the benefit of
any aggrieved party, but the penalty of the bond may only be imposed
on the DMV commissioner’s order after a hearing.
Under the bill, the commissioner has discretion over provider
recertification.
Background Check. Before the DMV commissioner certifies an
applicant to provide the program, he must investigate the applicant’s
character, driving history, and criminal history (including its principals
and officers, in the case of business entities). The bill requires applicants
to submit to the commissioner any information on current or past
criminal or civil actions. 2025HB-07060-R000558-BA.DOCX
Researcher: SM Page 5 4/7/25
Driving Records and License Suspension
Under the bill, anyone required to attend the program due to a “move
over” law or highway worker endangerment law violation, as discussed
above, must have the requirement and its completion date posted on his
or her driving record. The program completion date must remain on the
driver’s record until he or she has gone 36 consecutive months without
any subsequent (1) moving or suspension violations or (2) violations of
the “move over” law.
If a driver commits one of these violations before 36 months pass, the
commissioner must suspend his or her driver’s license for (1) 30 days
upon a first conviction, (2) 60 days upon a second conviction, and (3) 90
days upon a third or subsequent conviction.
“Moving violations” and “suspension violations” are violations
specified in existing law for which the DMV commissioner can require
a driver, after committing a certain number of them, to attend a four-
hour operator’s retraining program. These violations include, for
example, speeding and reckless driving.
§§ 6 & 7 — RECKLESS DRIVING
Makes driving a motor vehicle on a limited access highway while engaged in any activity
prohibited by the state’s existing distracted driving law a reckless driving violation; sets
increased penalties for a first reckless driving offense that occurs in a highway work zone
Distracted Driving on a Limited Access Highway
The bill makes it a reckless driving violation to drive a motor vehicle
on a limited access highway while engaging in any activity the state’s
existing distracted driving law prohibits. Under current law, the penalty
for a first reckless driving offense is a fine of $100 to $300, up to 30 days
imprisonment, or both. The penalty for a subsequent offense is a fine up
to $600, up to 364 days imprisonment, or both. (Existing law’s distracted
driving penalties are a fine of $200 for a first violation, $375 for a second
violation, and $625 for subsequent violations.) Under the bill, a person
cannot be prosecuted for both a reckless driving violation and distracted
driving violation for the same offense.
The distracted driving law generally prohibits a driver from talking
or listening with a hand-held cell phone (unless he or she uses a hands- 2025HB-07060-R000558-BA.DOCX
Researcher: SM Page 6 4/7/25
free device), using any mobile electronic device, or texting on either. It
provides for certain exceptions, such as to contact an emergency
response operator or police department in an emergency. It also
prohibits, with certain exceptions, the use of these devices (even with
hands-free accessories) by drivers under age 18 or school bus operators
driving with passengers.
Increased Penalty for Reckless Driving in a Work Zone
For first reckless driving offenses that occur in a highway work zone,
the bill increases the penalty to a fine of up to $500, up to three months
imprisonment, or both. For subsequent offenses, the bill retains the
penalties in existing law (see above).
As under existing law, a “highway work zone” is an area of a state
highway (1) where construction, maintenance, or utility work is being
performed and (2) that is marked in a specified manner signifying where
the work zone begins and ends.
Background — Related Bills
sSB 1375, reported favorably by the Transportation Committee, (1)
modifies the distracted driving law by explicitly prohibiting watching
or playing a video while driving, including on an installed screen or
other digital display (§ 4), and (2) requires drivers to attend the
operator’s retraining program upon their first conviction of reckless
driving (§ 9).
sHB 7204 (File 476), reported favorably by the Public Safety and
Security Committee, criminalizes certain violations by subjecting them
to the penalties for reckless driving (§ 2).
§§ 8 & 9 — FINES FOR VIOLATIONS OF “MOVE OVER” LAW OR
AGGRAVATED ENDANGERM ENT OF A HIGHWAY WOR KER
Increases current law’s enhanced penalties for violations of the “move over” law and the
law on endangering highway workers that result in the injury or death of an emergency
vehicle driver or occupant or a highway worker
“Move Over” Law
The state’s “move over” law requires drivers, when approaching
slow or stationary emergency vehicles in the shoulder, lane, or 2025HB-07060-R000558-BA.DOCX
Researcher: SM Page 7 4/7/25
breakdown lane, to (1) immediately slow down to a speed reasonably
below the speed limit and (2) if traveling in the lane adjacent to the
shoulder or lane with the emergency vehicle, move over one lane unless
it would be unsafe to do so. (While these provisions specifically apply
on public roads with at least two travel lanes going in the same
direction, the requirement to slow down generally also applies to two-
lane roads with undivided traffic proceeding in opposite directions.)
Under current law, violations are generally infractions; however,
violators are subject to higher fines if the violation results in an
emergency vehicle driver’s or occupant’s injury (up to $2,500) or death
(up to $10,000). The bill increases these enhanced penalties to $10,000
and $20,000, respectively.
Endangerment of a Highway Worker
Under existing law, drivers generally commit the offense of
endangerment of a highway worker if they are convicted of any of the
following in a highway work zone with a highway worker nearby:
1. exceeding the posted speed limit by at least 15 mph;
2. failing to obey certain traffic control devices for any reason other
than an emergency, avoiding an obstacle, or protecting another
person’s health and safety;
3. driving through or around the work zone in a lane not clearly
designated for this use; or
4. physically assaulting, attempting to assault, or threatening a
highway worker with a motor vehicle or other instrument.
Drivers commit the offense of “aggravated endangerment of a
highway worker” if they are convicted of one of the above offenses that
resulted in a highway worker’s serious physical injury or death. The bill
increases the enhanced penalties for this offense from $5,000 to $10,000
(in the case of injury) and from $10,000 to $20,000 (in the case of death).
COMMITTEE ACTION 2025HB-07060-R000558-BA.DOCX
Researcher: SM Page 8 4/7/25
Transportation Committee
Joint Favorable Substitute
Yea 34 Nay 0 (03/19/2025)