| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to motor vehicles; creating the |
| 3 | "Highway Safety Act"; providing legislative intent |
| 4 | relating to road rage and aggressive careless driving; |
| 5 | amending s. 316.003, F.S.; defining the term "road |
| 6 | rage"; amending s. 316.083, F.S.; requiring an |
| 7 | operator of a motor vehicle to yield the left lane |
| 8 | when being overtaken on a multilane highway; providing |
| 9 | exceptions; amending s. 316.1923, F.S.; revising the |
| 10 | number of specified acts necessary to qualify as an |
| 11 | aggressive careless driver; providing specified |
| 12 | punishments for aggressive careless driving, including |
| 13 | imposition of an increased fine; amending s. 318.121, |
| 14 | F.S.; revising the preemption of additional fees, |
| 15 | fines, surcharges, and court costs to allow imposition |
| 16 | of the increased fine for aggressive careless driving; |
| 17 | amending s. 318.18, F.S.; specifying the amount of the |
| 18 | fine and the allocation of moneys received from the |
| 19 | increased fine imposed for aggressive careless |
| 20 | driving; amending s. 318.19, F.S.; providing that a |
| 21 | second or subsequent infraction as an aggressive |
| 22 | careless driver requires attendance at a mandatory |
| 23 | hearing; requiring the Department of Highway Safety |
| 24 | and Motor Vehicles to provide information about the |
| 25 | Highway Safety Act in driver's license educational |
| 26 | materials; reenacting s. 316.650(1)(a), F.S., relating |
| 27 | to traffic citations, to incorporate the amendments |
| 28 | made to s. 316.1923, F.S., in a reference thereto; |
| 29 | providing an effective date. |
| 30 |
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| 31 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 32 |
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| 33 | Section 1. This act may be cited as the "Highway Safety |
| 34 | Act." |
| 35 | Section 2. The Legislature finds that road rage and |
| 36 | aggressive careless driving are a growing threat to the health, |
| 37 | safety, and welfare of the public. The intent of the Legislature |
| 38 | is to reduce road rage and aggressive careless driving, reduce |
| 39 | the incidence of drivers' interfering with the movement of |
| 40 | traffic, minimize crashes, and promote the orderly, free flow of |
| 41 | traffic on the roads and highways of the state. |
| 42 | Section 3. Subsection (89) is added to section 316.003, |
| 43 | Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 44 | 316.003 Definitions.-The following words and phrases, when |
| 45 | used in this chapter, shall have the meanings respectively |
| 46 | ascribed to them in this section, except where the context |
| 47 | otherwise requires: |
| 48 | (89) ROAD RAGE.-The act of a driver or passenger to |
| 49 | intentionally or unintentionally, due to a loss of emotional |
| 50 | control, injure or kill another driver, passenger, or |
| 51 | pedestrian, or to attempt or threaten to injure or kill another |
| 52 | driver, passenger, or pedestrian. |
| 53 | Section 4. Present subsection (3) of section 316.083, |
| 54 | Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (4), and a new |
| 55 | subsection (3) is added to that section, to read: |
| 56 | 316.083 Overtaking and passing a vehicle.-The following |
| 57 | rules shall govern the overtaking and passing of vehicles |
| 58 | proceeding in the same direction, subject to those limitations, |
| 59 | exceptions, and special rules hereinafter stated: |
| 60 | (3)(a) On roads, streets, or highways having two or more |
| 61 | lanes that allow movement in the same direction, a driver may |
| 62 | not continue to operate a motor vehicle in the furthermost left- |
| 63 | hand lane if the driver knows, or reasonably should know, that |
| 64 | he or she is being overtaken in that lane from the rear by a |
| 65 | motor vehicle traveling at a higher rate of speed. |
| 66 | (b) Paragraph (a) does not apply to a driver operating a |
| 67 | motor vehicle in the furthermost left-hand lane if: |
| 68 | 1. The driver is driving the legal speed limit and is not |
| 69 | impeding the flow of traffic in the furthermost left-hand lane; |
| 70 | 2. The driver is in the process of overtaking a slower |
| 71 | motor vehicle in the adjacent right-hand lane for the purpose of |
| 72 | passing the slower moving vehicle so that the driver may move to |
| 73 | the adjacent right-hand lane; |
| 74 | 3. Conditions make the flow of traffic substantially the |
| 75 | same in all lanes or preclude the driver from moving to the |
| 76 | adjacent right-hand lane; |
| 77 | 4. The driver's movement to the adjacent right-hand lane |
| 78 | could endanger the driver or other drivers; |
| 79 | 5. The driver is directed by a law enforcement officer, |
| 80 | road sign, or road crew to remain in the furthermost left-hand |
| 81 | lane; or |
| 82 | 6. The driver is preparing to make a left turn. |
| 83 | (c) A driver who violates s. 316.183 and this subsection |
| 84 | simultaneously shall receive a uniform traffic citation solely |
| 85 | under s. 316.183. |
| 86 | Section 5. Section 316.1923, Florida Statutes, is amended |
| 87 | to read: |
| 88 | 316.1923 Aggressive careless driving.- |
| 89 | (1) "Aggressive careless driving" means committing three |
| 90 | two or more of the following acts simultaneously or in |
| 91 | succession: |
| 92 | (a)(1) Exceeding the posted speed as defined in s. |
| 93 | 322.27(3)(d)5.b. |
| 94 | (b)(2) Unsafely or improperly changing lanes as defined in |
| 95 | s. 316.085. |
| 96 | (c)(3) Following another vehicle too closely as defined in |
| 97 | s. 316.0895(1). |
| 98 | (d)(4) Failing to yield the right-of-way as defined in s. |
| 99 | 316.079, s. 316.0815, or s. 316.123. |
| 100 | (e)(5) Improperly passing or failing to yield to |
| 101 | overtaking vehicles as defined in s. 316.083, s. 316.084, or s. |
| 102 | 316.085. |
| 103 | (f)(6) Violating traffic control and signal devices as |
| 104 | defined in ss. 316.074 and 316.075. |
| 105 | (2) Any person convicted of aggressive careless driving |
| 106 | shall be cited for a moving violation and punished as provided |
| 107 | in chapter 318, and by the accumulation of points as provided in |
| 108 | s. 322.27, for each act of aggressive careless driving. |
| 109 | Section 6. Section 318.121, Florida Statutes, is amended |
| 110 | to read |
| 111 | 318.121 Preemption of additional fees, fines, surcharges, |
| 112 | and costs.-Notwithstanding any general or special law, or |
| 113 | municipal or county ordinance, additional fees, fines, |
| 114 | surcharges, or costs other than the additional fees, fines, |
| 115 | court costs, and surcharges assessed under s. 318.18(11), (13), |
| 116 | (18), and (19), and (22) may not be added to the civil traffic |
| 117 | penalties assessed in this chapter. |
| 118 | Section 7. Subsection (22) is added to section 318.18, |
| 119 | Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 120 | 318.18 Amount of penalties.-The penalties required for a |
| 121 | noncriminal disposition pursuant to s. 318.14 or a criminal |
| 122 | offense listed in s. 318.17 are as follows: |
| 123 | (22)(a) In addition to any penalties or points imposed |
| 124 | under s. 316.1923, a person convicted of aggressive careless |
| 125 | driving shall also pay: |
| 126 | 1. Upon a first violation, a fine of $100. |
| 127 | 2. Upon a second or subsequent conviction, a fine of not |
| 128 | less than $250 but not more than $500 and be subject to a |
| 129 | mandatory hearing under s. 318.19. |
| 130 | (b) The clerk of the court shall remit the moneys |
| 131 | collected from the increased fine imposed by this subsection to |
| 132 | the Department of Revenue for deposit into the Department of |
| 133 | Health Administrative Trust Fund. Of the funds deposited into |
| 134 | the Department of Health Administrative Trust Fund, $200,000 in |
| 135 | the first year after October 1, 2012, and $50,000 in the second |
| 136 | and third years, shall be transferred into the Highway Safety |
| 137 | Operating Trust Fund to offset the cost of providing educational |
| 138 | materials related to this act. Funds deposited into the |
| 139 | Department of Health Administrative Trust Fund under this |
| 140 | subsection shall be allocated as follows: |
| 141 | 1. Twenty-five percent shall be allocated equally among |
| 142 | all Level I, Level II, and pediatric trauma centers in |
| 143 | recognition of readiness costs for maintaining trauma services. |
| 144 | 2. Twenty-five percent shall be allocated among Level I, |
| 145 | Level II, and pediatric trauma centers based on each center's |
| 146 | relative volume of trauma cases as reported in the Department of |
| 147 | Health Trauma Registry. |
| 148 | 3. Twenty-five percent shall be transferred to the |
| 149 | Emergency Medical Services Trust Fund and used by the department |
| 150 | for making matching grants to emergency medical services |
| 151 | organizations as defined in s. 401.107. |
| 152 | 4. Twenty-five percent shall be transferred to the |
| 153 | Emergency Medical Services Trust Fund and made available to |
| 154 | rural emergency medical services as defined in s. 401.107, and |
| 155 | shall be used solely to improve and expand prehospital emergency |
| 156 | medical services in this state. Additionally, these moneys may |
| 157 | be used for the improvement, expansion, or continuation of |
| 158 | services provided. |
| 159 | Section 8. Section 318.19, Florida Statutes, is amended to |
| 160 | read: |
| 161 | 318.19 Infractions requiring a mandatory hearing.-Any |
| 162 | person cited for the infractions listed in this section shall |
| 163 | not have the provisions of s. 318.14(2), (4), and (9) available |
| 164 | to him or her but must appear before the designated official at |
| 165 | the time and location of the scheduled hearing: |
| 166 | (1) Any infraction which results in a crash that causes |
| 167 | the death of another; |
| 168 | (2) Any infraction which results in a crash that causes |
| 169 | "serious bodily injury" of another as defined in s. 316.1933(1); |
| 170 | (3) Any infraction of s. 316.172(1)(b); |
| 171 | (4) Any infraction of s. 316.520(1) or (2); or |
| 172 | (5) Any infraction of s. 316.183(2), s. 316.187, or s. |
| 173 | 316.189 of exceeding the speed limit by 30 m.p.h. or more; or. |
| 174 | (6) A second or subsequent infraction of s. 316.1923(1). |
| 175 | Section 9. The Department of Highway Safety and Motor |
| 176 | Vehicles shall provide information about the Highway Safety Act |
| 177 | in all driver's license educational materials newly printed on |
| 178 | or after October 1, 2012. |
| 179 | Section 10. For the purpose of incorporating the |
| 180 | amendments made by this act to section 316.1923, Florida |
| 181 | Statutes, in a reference thereto, paragraph (a) of subsection |
| 182 | (1) of section 316.650, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: |
| 183 | 316.650 Traffic citations.- |
| 184 | (1)(a) The department shall prepare and supply to every |
| 185 | traffic enforcement agency in this state an appropriate form |
| 186 | traffic citation that contains a notice to appear, is issued in |
| 187 | prenumbered books, meets the requirements of this chapter or any |
| 188 | laws of this state regulating traffic, and is consistent with |
| 189 | the state traffic court rules and the procedures established by |
| 190 | the department. The form shall include a box that is to be |
| 191 | checked by the law enforcement officer when the officer believes |
| 192 | that the traffic violation or crash was due to aggressive |
| 193 | careless driving as defined in s. 316.1923. The form shall also |
| 194 | include a box that is to be checked by the law enforcement |
| 195 | officer when the officer writes a uniform traffic citation for a |
| 196 | violation of s. 316.074(1) or s. 316.075(1)(c)1. as a result of |
| 197 | the driver failing to stop at a traffic signal. |
| 198 | Section 11. This act shall take effect October 1, 2012. |