82R10363 KYF-F
By: Naishtat H.B. No. 2897
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the driver safety courses for individuals under the age
of 25 and to the driving course requirements for those individuals
when receiving deferred adjudication of certain traffic offenses.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Effective January 1, 2012, Article 45.051(b-1),
Code of Criminal Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
(b-1) If the defendant is younger than 25 years of age and
the offense committed by the defendant is a traffic offense
classified as a moving violation:
(1) Subsection (b)(8) does not apply;
(2) during the deferral period, the judge shall
require the defendant to complete a driver education [driving
safety] course designed for drivers younger than 25 years of age and
approved under Section 1001.101(a)(1) [Chapter 1001], Education
Code; and
(3) if the defendant holds a provisional license,
during the deferral period the judge shall require that the
defendant be examined by the Department of Public Safety as
required by Section 521.161(b)(2), Transportation Code; a
defendant is not exempt from the examination regardless of whether
the defendant was examined previously.
SECTION 2. Section 521.1601, Transportation Code, as added
by Chapter 1413 (S.B. 1317), Acts of the 81st Legislature, Regular
Session, 2009, is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 521.1601. DRIVER EDUCATION REQUIRED. The department
may not issue a driver's license to a person who is younger than 25
years of age unless the person submits to the department a driver
education certificate issued under Chapter 1001, Education Code,
that states that the person has completed and passed[:
[(1)] a driver education and traffic safety course
approved by the Texas Education Agency under Section 29.902,
Education Code, or a driver education course approved by that
agency under Section 1001.101(a)(1) of that code or approved by the
department under Section 521.205[; or
[(2) if the person is 18 years of age or older, a
driver education course approved by the Texas Education Agency
under Section 1001.101(a)(1) or (2), Education Code].
SECTION 3. Section 1001.101, Education Code, as amended by
Chapters 1253 (H.B. 339) and 1413 (S.B. 1317), Acts of the 81st
Legislature, Regular Session, 2009, is reenacted and amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 1001.101. DRIVER EDUCATION COURSE CURRICULUM AND
EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS. (a) The commissioner by rule shall
establish the curriculum and designate the educational materials to
be used in:
(1) a driver education course for minors and adults;
and
(2) a driver education course exclusively for adults
25 years of age or older.
(b) A driver education course under Subsection (a)(2) must:
(1) be a six-hour course; and
(2) include instruction in:
(A) alcohol and drug awareness;
(B) the traffic laws of this state;
(C) highway signs, signals, and markings that
regulate, warn, or direct traffic; and
(D) the issues commonly associated with motor
vehicle accidents, including poor decision-making, risk taking,
impaired driving, distraction, speed, failure to use a safety belt,
driving at night, failure to yield the right-of-way, and using a
wireless communication device while operating a vehicle.
(b-1) A driver education course under Subsection (a)(1)
must:
(1) be a 10-hour course, including at least 4 hours of
instruction focusing on issues specific to drivers younger than 25
years of age;
(2) include instruction in:
(A) alcohol and drug awareness;
(B) the traffic laws of this state;
(C) highway signs, signals, and markings that
regulate, warn, or direct traffic;
(D) the high rate of motor vehicle accidents and
fatalities for drivers under 25 years of age;
(E) the issues commonly associated with motor
vehicle accidents involving drivers younger than 25 years of age,
including poor decision-making, risk taking, impaired driving,
distraction, speed, failure to use a safety belt, driving at night,
failure to yield the right-of-way, and using a wireless
communication device while operating a vehicle, and the role of
peer pressure in those issues;
(F) the effect of poor driver decision-making on
the family, friends, school, and community of a driver younger than
25 years of age; and
(G) the importance of taking control of
potentially dangerous driving situations both as a driver and a
passenger; and
(3) require a written commitment by the student to
family and friends that the student will not engage in dangerous
driving habits.
(b-2) A course approved for use under Subsection (a)(1)
before January 1, 2012, must comply with the requirements of
Subsection (b-1) and be approved for that purpose by the
commissioner not later than January 1, 2012. This subsection
expires September 1, 2012.
(c) A course approved under Subsection (a)(2) may be offered
as an online course.
(d) A driving safety course or a drug and alcohol driving
awareness program may not be approved as a driver education course
under Subsection (a)(2).
SECTION 4. (a) The Texas Education Agency shall adopt the
rules required by Section 1001.101, Education Code, as reenacted
and amended by this Act, as soon as practicable after the effective
date of this Act.
(b) The change in law made by this Act to Article 45.051,
Code of Criminal Procedure, applies only to an offense committed on
or after January 1, 2012. An offense committed before January 1,
2012, is governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was
committed, and the former law is continued in effect for that
purpose. For purposes of this subsection, an offense was committed
before that date if any element of the offense occurred before that
date.
SECTION 5. Except as otherwise provided by this Act, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2011.