Brief⁽¹⁾

S.B. 417, as amended, relates to drivers' licenses. The bill:

• requires drivers under 16 years of age to provide a signed affidavit from either a parent or guardian stating that the applicant has completed at least 20 hours of actual driving with ten of those hours being at night;



• provides that a person issued a restricted license or a farm permit who is under the age of 16 and is convicted of two or more traffic violations committed on separate occasions will not be eligible to receive an unrestricted driver's license until such person reaches the age of 17 years;



• makes it a moving violation for a person with a restricted driver's license or farm permit to operate a motor vehicle with nonsibling minor passengers; and



• allows holders of restricted Class C or Class M drivers' licenses or instruction permits or restricted instruction permits or farm permits, on the effective date of the act, to continue to operate motor vehicles subject to current legal conditions, limitations, and restrictions in effect on June 30, 1998.

Background

S.B. 417, as introduced, was requested by the American Automobile Association. As introduced, the bill would have required drivers under 17 years of age with a restricted Class C or Class M license or holders of a farm permit to provide a signed affidavit from either parent or guardian stating that the applicant had completed at least 50 hours of actual driving with ten of those hours being at night. Other changes would have:

• allowed persons under the age of 16 years to obtain an unrestricted driver's license or a farm permit;



• allowed holders of restricted licenses or farm permits to drive only between the hours of 5:00 a.m. and 12:00 midnight;



• required persons who accompany a driver with a restricted license or farm permit to be at least 21 years old;



• prohibited drivers under the age of 17 with restricted licenses or farm permits and convicted of two of more traffic violations committed on separate occasions from receiving an unrestricted driver's license until they reached the age of 18; and



• allowed persons at least 16 years of age and holders of a valid Class C or Class M drivers' licenses or farm permits, on the effective date of the act, to continue to operate motor vehicles subject to the same conditions, limitations, and restriction as contained in the law in effect on June 30, 1998.

Conferees who testified in support of the bill, as introduced, included: an attorney of Federico Consulting; the spokesperson of the American Automobile Association; a private citizen from Wichita; a physician from the University of Kansas Medical Center; a student from Hayden High School; and the spokesperson for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Conferees who appeared in opposition included the spokesperson for Kansas Farm Bureau and two private citizens, one from Shawnee and another from Topeka.

The Committee also received testimony from three law enforcement officers who testified about a current statutory provision which prohibits persons with restricted licenses from operating a vehicle with nonsibling minor passengers. These officers included the Shawnee County Sheriff, a Sergeant with the Topeka Police Department, and the Chief of Police of Silver Lake.

A fiscal note is not available for the amended version of S.B. 417.

1. *Supplemental notes are prepared by the Legislative Research Department and do not express legislative intent. The supplemental note and fiscal note for this bill may be accessed on the Internet at http://www.ink.org/public/legislative/fulltext-bill.html.