The Florida Senate

322.095  Traffic law and substance abuse education program for driver's license applicants.--

(1)  The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles must approve traffic law and substance abuse education courses that must be completed by applicants for a Florida driver's license. The curricula for the courses must provide instruction on the physiological and psychological consequences of the abuse of alcohol and other drugs, the societal and economic costs of alcohol and drug abuse, the effects of alcohol and drug abuse on the driver of a motor vehicle, and the laws of this state relating to the operation of a motor vehicle. All instructors teaching the courses shall be certified by the department.

(2)  The department shall contract for an independent evaluation of the courses. Local DUI programs authorized under s. 316.193(5) and certified by the department or a driver improvement school may offer a traffic law and substance abuse education course. However, prior to offering the course, the course provider must obtain certification from the department that the course complies with the requirements of this section. The course provider must offer the approved course at locations reasonably accessible to most applicants and must issue a certificate to those persons successfully completing the course.

(3)  The completion of a course does not qualify a person for the reinstatement of a driver's license which has been suspended or revoked.

(4)  The fee charged by the course provider must bear a reasonable relationship to the cost of the course. The department must conduct financial audits of course providers conducting the education courses required under this section or require that financial audits of providers be performed, at the expense of the provider, by a certified public accountant.

(5)  The provisions of this section do not apply to any person who has been licensed in any other jurisdiction or who has satisfactorily completed a Department of Education driver's education course offered pursuant to s. 1003.48

(6)  Each course provider must collect a $3 assessment fee in addition to the enrollment fee charged to participants of the traffic law and substance abuse course required under this section. The $3 assessment fee collected by the course provider must be forwarded to the department within 30 days after receipt of the assessment.

(7)  The department is authorized to maintain the information and records necessary to administer its duties and responsibilities for the program. Where such information is a public record as defined in chapter 119, it shall be made available to the public upon request pursuant to s. 119.07(1). The department shall approve and regulate courses that use technology as the delivery method of all traffic law and substance abuse education courses as the courses relate to this section.

History.--s. 1, ch. 89-134; s. 72, ch. 93-120; s. 4, ch. 93-246; s. 4, ch. 95-326; s. 9, ch. 96-330; s. 37, ch. 2000-313; s. 47, ch. 2002-1; s. 15, ch. 2002-235; s. 969, ch. 2002-387.