| 1 | The Committee on Transportation recommends the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Committee Substitute |
| 4 | Remove the entire bill and insert: |
| 5 | A bill to be entitled |
| 6 | An act relating to highway safety; amending s. 316.650, |
| 7 | F.S.; providing for a parental notification form to be |
| 8 | issued by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor |
| 9 | Vehicles; requiring the form to be completed by a traffic |
| 10 | enforcement officer upon issuing a traffic citation or a |
| 11 | written warning for a traffic infraction to a person under |
| 12 | 18 years of age; requiring the chief administrative |
| 13 | officer to provide such notification to the parent, |
| 14 | guardian, or other responsible adult who signed the |
| 15 | driver's license application; amending s. 322.09, F.S.; |
| 16 | requiring a parent, guardian, or other responsible adult |
| 17 | signing the driver license application of a minor to |
| 18 | provide certain contact information; providing an |
| 19 | effective date. |
| 20 |
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| 21 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 22 |
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| 23 | Section 1. Section 316.650, Florida Statutes, is amended |
| 24 | to read: |
| 25 | 316.650 Traffic citations; parental notification forms.-- |
| 26 | (1)(a) The department shall prepare, and supply to every |
| 27 | traffic enforcement agency in this state, an appropriate form |
| 28 | traffic citation containing a notice to appear (which shall be |
| 29 | issued in prenumbered books with citations in quintuplicate) and |
| 30 | meeting the requirements of this chapter or any laws of this |
| 31 | state regulating traffic, which form shall be consistent with |
| 32 | the state traffic court rules and the procedures established by |
| 33 | the department. Upon all future printings of the traffic |
| 34 | citation, the form shall include a special box which is to be |
| 35 | checked by the law enforcement officer when the officer believes |
| 36 | that the traffic violation or crash was due to aggressive |
| 37 | careless driving as defined in s. 316.1923. |
| 38 | (b) The department shall prepare, and supply to every |
| 39 | traffic enforcement agency in the state, an appropriate |
| 40 | affidavit-of-compliance form which shall be issued along with |
| 41 | the form traffic citation for any violation of s. 316.610 and |
| 42 | which shall indicate the specific defect which needs to be |
| 43 | corrected. However, such affidavit of compliance shall not be |
| 44 | issued in the case of a violation of s. 316.610 by a commercial |
| 45 | motor vehicle as defined in s. 316.003(66). Such affidavit-of- |
| 46 | compliance form shall be distributed in the same manner and to |
| 47 | the same parties as is the form traffic citation. |
| 48 | (c) The department shall prepare, and supply to every |
| 49 | traffic enforcement agency in the state, an appropriate parental |
| 50 | notification form which shall be completed by any traffic |
| 51 | enforcement officer issuing a traffic citation or a written |
| 52 | warning to a person under 18 years of age who violates the |
| 53 | traffic laws while operating a motor vehicle. The form shall be |
| 54 | used to record the time and date the driver was stopped, the |
| 55 | reason for stopping the motor vehicle, the number of people in |
| 56 | the motor vehicle with the driver, the reason for issuing the |
| 57 | citation or written warning, the name of the person driving, and |
| 58 | the name of the traffic enforcement officer who issued the |
| 59 | citation or warning. The parental notification form shall be |
| 60 | distributed in the same manner and to the same parties as is the |
| 61 | form traffic citation. |
| 62 | (d)(c) Notwithstanding paragraphs (a), and (b), and (c), a |
| 63 | traffic enforcement agency may produce uniform traffic citations |
| 64 | by electronic means. Such citations must be consistent with the |
| 65 | state traffic court rules and the procedures established by the |
| 66 | department; must be appropriately numbered and inventoried; and |
| 67 | may have fewer copies than the quintuplicate form. Affidavit-of- |
| 68 | compliance forms and parental notification forms may also be |
| 69 | produced by electronic means. |
| 70 | (e)(d) The department must distribute to every traffic |
| 71 | enforcement agency and to any others who request it, a traffic |
| 72 | infraction reference guide describing the class of the traffic |
| 73 | infraction, the penalty for the infraction, the points to be |
| 74 | assessed on a driver's license, and any other information |
| 75 | necessary to describe a violation and the penalties therefor. |
| 76 | (2) Courts, enforcement agencies, and the department are |
| 77 | jointly responsible to account for all uniform traffic citations |
| 78 | in accordance with rules and procedures promulgated by the |
| 79 | department. |
| 80 | (3)(a) Except for a traffic citation issued pursuant to s. |
| 81 | 316.1001, each traffic enforcement officer, upon issuing a |
| 82 | traffic citation to an alleged violator of any provision of the |
| 83 | motor vehicle laws of this state or of any traffic ordinance of |
| 84 | any city or town, shall deposit the original and one copy of |
| 85 | such traffic citation or, in the case of a traffic enforcement |
| 86 | agency which has an automated citation issuance system, shall |
| 87 | provide an electronic facsimile with a court having jurisdiction |
| 88 | over the alleged offense or with its traffic violations bureau |
| 89 | within 5 days after issuance to the violator. |
| 90 | (b) If a traffic citation is issued pursuant to s. |
| 91 | 316.1001, a traffic enforcement officer may deposit the original |
| 92 | and one copy of such traffic citation or, in the case of a |
| 93 | traffic enforcement agency that has an automated citation |
| 94 | system, may provide an electronic facsimile with a court having |
| 95 | jurisdiction over the alleged offense or with its traffic |
| 96 | violations bureau within 45 days after the date of issuance of |
| 97 | the citation to the violator. |
| 98 | (4) The chief administrative officer of every traffic |
| 99 | enforcement agency shall require the return to him or her of the |
| 100 | department record copy of every traffic citation issued by an |
| 101 | officer under the chief administrative officer's supervision to |
| 102 | an alleged violator of any traffic law or ordinance and of all |
| 103 | copies of every traffic citation which has been spoiled or upon |
| 104 | which any entry has been made and not issued to an alleged |
| 105 | violator. In the case of a traffic enforcement agency which has |
| 106 | an automated citation issuance system, the chief administrative |
| 107 | officer shall require the return of all electronic traffic |
| 108 | citation records. |
| 109 | (5) Upon the deposit of the original and one copy of such |
| 110 | traffic citation or upon deposit of an electronic facsimile of |
| 111 | the traffic citation with respect to traffic enforcement |
| 112 | agencies which have an automated citation issuance system with a |
| 113 | court having jurisdiction over the alleged offense or with its |
| 114 | traffic violations bureau as aforesaid, the original, facsimile, |
| 115 | or copy of such traffic citation may be disposed of only by |
| 116 | trial in the court or other official action by a judge of the |
| 117 | court, including forfeiture of the bail, or by the deposit of |
| 118 | sufficient bail with, or payment of a fine to, the traffic |
| 119 | violations bureau by the person to whom such traffic citation |
| 120 | has been issued by the traffic enforcement officer. |
| 121 | (6) The chief administrative officer shall transmit, on a |
| 122 | form approved by the department, the department record copy of |
| 123 | the uniform traffic citation to the department within 5 days |
| 124 | after submission of the original and one copy to the court, or |
| 125 | citation and transmittal data may be transmitted to the |
| 126 | department in an automated fashion, in a form prescribed by the |
| 127 | department. A copy of such transmittal shall also be provided to |
| 128 | the court having jurisdiction for accountability purposes. |
| 129 | (7) The chief administrative officer shall also maintain |
| 130 | or cause to be maintained in connection with every traffic |
| 131 | citation issued by an officer under his or her supervision a |
| 132 | record of the disposition of the charge by the court or its |
| 133 | traffic violations bureau in which the original or copy of the |
| 134 | traffic citation was deposited. |
| 135 | (8) The chief administrative officer shall also notify or |
| 136 | cause to be notified in connection with every parental |
| 137 | notification form completed by an officer under his or her |
| 138 | supervision the parent, guardian, or other responsible adult |
| 139 | who, pursuant to s. 322.09, signed the driver license |
| 140 | application of the minor who is the subject of the notification |
| 141 | form. The notification shall be mailed within 10 days after the |
| 142 | motor vehicle is stopped by the officer. |
| 143 | (9)(8) It is unlawful and official misconduct for any |
| 144 | traffic enforcement officer or other officer or public employee |
| 145 | to dispose of a traffic citation or copies thereof or of the |
| 146 | record of the issuance of the same in a manner other than as |
| 147 | required herein. |
| 148 | (10)(9) Such citations shall not be admissible evidence in |
| 149 | any trial. |
| 150 | (11)(10) If a uniform traffic citation has not been issued |
| 151 | with respect to a criminal traffic offense, or with respect to |
| 152 | an offense that requires mandatory revocation of the driver's |
| 153 | license or driving privilege pursuant to s. 322.26 upon |
| 154 | conviction of such offense, and the prosecution is by affidavit, |
| 155 | information, or indictment, the prosecutor shall direct the |
| 156 | arresting officer to prepare a citation. In the absence of an |
| 157 | arresting officer, the prosecutor shall prepare the citation. |
| 158 | For the purpose of this subsection, the term "arresting officer" |
| 159 | means the law enforcement officer who apprehended or took into |
| 160 | custody the alleged offender. |
| 161 | (12)(11) Driver information contained in a uniform traffic |
| 162 | citation, which includes but is not limited to, the accused |
| 163 | person's name and address, shall not be used for commercial |
| 164 | solicitation purposes. However, the use of such driver |
| 165 | information contained in a uniform traffic citation shall not be |
| 166 | considered a commercial purpose when used for publication in a |
| 167 | newspaper or other news periodical, when used for broadcast by |
| 168 | radio or television, or when used to inform a person of the |
| 169 | availability of driver safety training. |
| 170 | Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 322.09, Florida |
| 171 | Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 172 | 322.09 Application of minors; responsibility for |
| 173 | negligence or misconduct of minor.-- |
| 174 | (1)(a) The application of any person under the age of 18 |
| 175 | years for a driver's license must be signed and verified before |
| 176 | a person authorized to administer oaths by the father, mother, |
| 177 | or guardian, or, if there is no parent or guardian, by another |
| 178 | responsible adult who is willing to assume the obligation |
| 179 | imposed under this chapter upon a person signing the application |
| 180 | of a minor. This section does not apply to a person under the |
| 181 | age of 18 years who is emancipated by marriage. |
| 182 | (b) The parent, guardian, or other responsible adult |
| 183 | signing the application of a minor pursuant to this section must |
| 184 | furnish an address and phone number with the application for the |
| 185 | purpose of being contacted in the event that the minor applicant |
| 186 | is issued a traffic citation or a written warning by a traffic |
| 187 | enforcement officer. |
| 188 | (c)(b) There shall be submitted with each application a |
| 189 | certified copy of a United States birth certificate, a valid |
| 190 | United States passport, an alien registration receipt card |
| 191 | (green card), an employment authorization card issued by the |
| 192 | United States Department of Justice, or proof of nonimmigrant |
| 193 | classification provided by the United States Department of |
| 194 | Justice, for an original license. |
| 195 | Section 3. This act shall take effect October 1, 2004. |