CHAPTER 66
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CHAPTER 66
( HB 320 )
AN ACT relating to commercial driver's licenses.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky:
ď˘Section 1. KRS 281A.160 is amended to read as follows:
(1) (a) Except as provided in subsection (4) of this section, the State Police shall be responsible for
administering both the knowledge and skills test required by KRS 281A.130.
(b) Applicants who fail the written knowledge test shall be permitted to retake the written test on the next
day the tests are administered. Applicants who fail the written test six (6) times shall be required to wait
three (3) days before taking the knowledge test again. Applicants who subsequently fail the written test
three (3) additional times shall be required to wait three (3) days prior to retaking the test.
(2) (a) Except as provided for in subsection (3) of this section, at the time a CDL permit is issued:
1. An applicant who has held a Kentucky operator's license for thirty (30) days or longer shall pay a
skills-testing fee of fifty dollars ($50); and
2. An applicant who has held a Kentucky operator's license for less than thirty (30) days shall pay a
skills-testing fee of one hundred fifty dollars ($150).
(b) A person applying under subsection (8) of this section shall pay a skills-testing fee of one hundred
fifty dollars ($150).
(c) There is created within the State Treasury a trust fund to be known as the State Police CDL skills-
testing fund. The fund shall be administered by the State Police and shall receive all skills-testing and
retesting fees collected under subsections (2)(a) and (b) and (6)(e) of this section, in addition to any
grants, gifts, or appropriations of state or federal moneys and any interest earned on moneys in the fund.
Moneys in the fund shall not lapse and shall be carried forward to the next succeeding fiscal year. The
State Police CDL skills-testing fund shall be used by the State Police to contract with and train civilian
CDL skills examiners and to improve the logistics of the CDL skills-testing process.
(d)[(c)] The State Police, upon request of an applicant who has passed both the vision and knowledge
tests, may schedule the applicant for the skills test at the first available test date at a test site designated
by the State Police but not less than fourteen (14) days after the applicant has filed the application and
been issued a CDL permit. Except in extenuating circumstances, a retest for a failed portion of the skills
test shall be given within three (3) days of a request of a retest.
(e)[(d)] An applicant shall provide a class representative commercial vehicle, for the class of CDL for
which the applicant is testing, in which to take the skills test. Unless the State Police grant an exemption
at the time the application for testing is made, the vehicle supplied under this paragraph shall be
unloaded. Upon arrival for the skills test, the applicant shall have in his or her possession a valid
Kentucky operator's license and a valid CDL permit. A CDL-licensed driver who is at least twenty-one
(21) years old shall accompany the applicant at all times the applicant is in operation of a commercial
vehicle.
(3) A testing fee shall not be charged to:
(a) An individual applying for a CDL with an "S" endorsement as defined in KRS 281A.170; or
(b) Military personnel applying for a CDL under KRS 281A.165.
(4) The State Police may authorize a third party to administer the skills test specified by this section if:
(a) The test is the same that would otherwise be administered by the state; and
(b) The third party has entered into an agreement with this Commonwealth which complies with
requirements of Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 383.75, as adopted by the Transportation
Cabinet. ACTS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2
(5) The State Police shall promulgate administrative regulations under KRS Chapter 13A that establish procedures
that ensure an arm's-length relationship is maintained between a third-party tester and any owner, officer, or
employee of any program offering commercial truck driving under the Kentucky Community and Technical
College System or a proprietary school licensed under KRS Chapter 165A.
(6) (a) Applicants shall be permitted to take the skills test for a particular class vehicle an unlimited number of
times; however, an applicant shall not retest more than one (1) time in any twenty-four (24) hour period.
(b) The skills test shall consist of three (3) separate portions: pre-trip inspection, basic maneuvering, and
road skills. An applicant must achieve a score of at least eighty percent (80%) on each portion of the
skills test before a CDL may be issued to the applicant. An applicant who passes one (1) or more
portions of the skills test but does not pass all portions of the skills test shall retest only on those
portions of the skills test the applicant failed.
(c) An applicant who fails any portion of the skills test four (4) times shall be notified by the State Police
that the applicant is required to wait one (1) week before retaking a portion of this skills test again.
(d) Failure of an applicant to notify the State Police at least forty-eight (48) hours prior to missing an
appointment for a skills test, or provide a written medical excuse from a licensed physician, advanced
registered nurse practitioner, or physician's assistant, shall be considered a failure, on all parts of the
skills test scheduled to be given, for the purposes of determining number of failures, waiting periods,
and retesting fees under paragraphs (c) and (e) of this subsection for individual applicants. The fees for
a missed appointment failure shall be forfeited and retained in the State Police CDL skills-testing fund
established under this section. If the forty-eight (48) hour notice or medical excuse is given, the fee
shall be applied to the rescheduled test. A missed appointment failure under this paragraph shall not be
reported as a failure to the board.
(e) Except as provided for in paragraph (d) of this subsection, at the time of application for a retest under
this subsection, the applicant shall pay a retesting fee of fifty dollars ($50).
(7) (a) An applicant who seeks reinstatement of a commercial driver's license after a suspension, withdrawal,
revocation, or disqualification of less than one (1) year shall pay the reinstatement fee as prescribed by
KRS 281A.150(7) and shall receive his or her commercial driver's license with all endorsement and
restrictions that were in effect at the time of suspension. An applicant who seeks reinstatement of a
commercial driver's license after a suspension, withdrawal, revocation, or disqualification of one (1)
year or more shall submit to the skills, knowledge, and vision tests.
(b) Subject to paragraphs (c) and (d) of this subsection, a person who possessed a Kentucky commercial
driver's license that has expired for a period of less than five (5) years and was not subject to
suspension, withdrawal, revocation, or disqualification for any reason at the time of expiration may
have that license reinstated, with all endorsements, without submitting to the skills and knowledge tests
by applying to the cabinet for renewal. Upon submission of medical certification, driver self-
certifications required under KRS 281A.140(1)(f), successful completion of any necessary criminal
background check, and review of the person's driving history record, the cabinet shall issue a renewal
CDL, with all endorsements, to an applicant under this paragraph.
(c) A person who otherwise meets the requirements of paragraph (b) of this subsection whose CDL was
subject to suspension or revocation solely for failure to provide medical certification may apply for
renewal of a CDL under paragraph (b) of this subsection.
(d) If the CDL held by a person who otherwise meets the requirements of paragraph (b) of this subsection
carried a hazardous materials endorsement, and the applicant wishes to retain that endorsement, he or
she shall complete any examinations required for a hazardous materials endorsement renewal in KRS
281A.180(2) prior to renewing the CDL under paragraph (b) of this subsection.
(8) An applicant who is not a resident of the Commonwealth, possesses both a valid operator's license and a
commercial driver's instruction permit, and has complied with all necessary federal requirements may take
a commercial driver's license skills test under this section.
(9) (a) The commissioner of the Department of Kentucky State Police shall promulgate administrative
regulations pursuant to the provisions of KRS Chapter 13A to implement the provisions of this section.
(b) The State Police shall promulgate administrative regulations under KRS Chapter 13A to set forth the
qualifications for contract examiners retained under subsection (2)(c)[(b)] of this section. CHAPTER 66
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Signed by Governor March 22, 2023.