BP BHEAD INT S

AN ACT Relating to persons under the age of twenty-one driving with alcohol in their systems; amending RCW 46.04.480 and 46.20.311; adding a new section to chapter 46.20 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 46.61 RCW; and prescribing penalties.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 46.20 RCW to read as follows:

(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, a person under the age of twenty-one may not drive, operate, or be in physical control of a motor vehicle while having alcohol in his or her system in a concentration of 0.02 or above.

(2) A person under the age of twenty-one who drives or is in physical control of a motor vehicle within this state is deemed to have given consent, subject to RCW 46.61.506, to be detained long enough, and be transported if necessary, to take a test or tests of that person's blood or breath for the purpose of determining the alcohol concentration in his or her system.

(3) A test or tests may be administered at the direction of a law enforcement officer, who after stopping or detaining the driver, has reasonable grounds to believe that the driver was driving or in actual physical control of a motor vehicle while having alcohol in his or her system.

(4) The law enforcement officer requesting the test or tests under subsection (2) of this section shall warn the person requested to submit to the test that a refusal to submit will result in that person's driver's license or driving privilege being revoked.

(5) If the person refuses testing, or submits to a test that discloses an alcohol concentration of 0.02 or more, the law enforcement officer shall:

(a) Serve the person notice in writing on behalf of the department of licensing of its intention to suspend, revoke, or deny the person's license, permit, or privilege to drive;

(b) Serve the person notice in writing on behalf of the department of licensing of the person's right to a hearing, specifying the steps required to obtain a hearing;

(c) Confiscate the person's Washington state license or permit to drive, if any, and issue a temporary license to replace any confiscated license or permit. The temporary license shall be valid for thirty days from the date of the traffic stop or until the suspension or revocation of the person's license or permit is sustained at a hearing as provided by subsection (7) of this section, whichever occurs first. No temporary license is valid to any greater degree than the license or permit it replaces;

(d) Notify the department of licensing of the traffic stop, and transmit to the department any confiscated license or permit and a sworn report stating:

(i) That the officer had reasonable grounds to believe the person was driving or in actual physical control of a motor vehicle within this state with alcohol in his or her system;

(ii) That pursuant to this section a test of the person's alcohol concentration was administered or that the person refused to be tested;

(iii) If administered, that the test indicated the person's alcohol concentration was 0.02 or higher; and

(iv) Any other information that the department may require by rule.

(6) Upon receipt of the sworn report of a law enforcement officer under subsection (5) of this section, the department shall suspend or revoke the driver's license or driving privilege beginning thirty days from the date of the traffic stop or beginning when the suspension, revocation, or denial is sustained at a hearing as provided by subsection (7) of this section. Within fifteen days after notice of a suspension or revocation has been given, the person may, in writing, request a formal hearing. If such a request is not made within the prescribed time the right to a hearing is waived. Upon receipt of such request, the department shall afford the person an opportunity for a hearing as provided in RCW 46.20.329 and 46.20.332. The hearing shall be conducted in the county of the arrest. For the purposes of this section, the hearing shall cover the issues of whether a law enforcement officer had reasonable grounds to believe the person had been driving or was in actual physical control of a motor vehicle within this state while having alcohol in his or her system, whether the person refused to submit to the test or tests upon request of the officer after having been informed that the refusal would result in the revocation of the person's driver's license or driving privilege, and, if the test or tests of the person's breath or blood was administered, whether the results indicated an alcohol concentration of 0.02 or more. The department shall order that the suspension or revocation of the person's driver's license or driving privilege either be rescinded or sustained. Any decision by the department suspending or revoking a person's driver's license or driving privilege is stayed and does not take effect while a formal hearing is pending under this section or during the pendency of a subsequent appeal to superior court so long as there is no conviction for a moving violation or no finding that the person has committed a traffic infraction that is a moving violation during the pendency of the hearing and appeal. If the suspension or revocation of the person's driver's license or driving privilege is sustained after the hearing, the person may file a petition in the superior court of the county of arrest to review the final order of suspension or revocation by the department in the manner provided in RCW 46.20.334.

(7) The department shall suspend or revoke the driver's license or driving privilege of a person as required by this section as follows:

(a) In the case of a person who has refused a test or tests:

(i) For a first refusal within five years, revocation for one year;

(ii) For a second or subsequent refusal within five years, revocation or denial for two years.

(b) In the case of an incident where a person has submitted to a test or tests indicating an alcohol concentration of 0.02 or more:

(i) For a first incident within five years, suspension for ninety days;

(ii) For a second or subsequent incident within five years, revocation for one year or until the person reaches age twenty-one whichever occurs first.

(8) For purposes of this section, "alcohol concentration" means (a) grams of alcohol per two hundred ten liters of a person's breath, or (b) the percent by weight of alcohol in a person's blood.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 46.61 RCW to read as follows:

(1) Any person requested or signaled to stop by a law enforcement officer pursuant to section 1 of this act has a duty to stop.

(2) Whenever any person is stopped pursuant to section 1 of this act, the officer may detain that person for a reasonable period of time necessary to: Identify the person; check the status of the person's license, insurance identification card, and the vehicle's registration; and transport the person, if necessary, to and administer a test or tests to determine the alcohol concentration in the person's system.

(3) Any person requested to identify himself or herself to a law enforcement officer pursuant to an investigation under section 1 of this act has a duty to identify himself or herself, give his or her current address, and sign an acknowledgement of receipt of the warning required by section 1(4) of this act and receipt of the notice and temporary license issued under section 1(5) of this act.

Sec. 3. RCW 46.04.480 and 1988 c 148 s 8 are each amended to read as follows:

"Revoke," in all its forms, means the invalidation for a period of one calendar year and thereafter until reissue: PROVIDED, That under the provisions of section 1 of this act, RCW 46.20.285, 46.20.311, 46.20.265, or 46.61.515 and chapter 46.65 RCW the invalidation may last for a period other than one calendar year.

Sec. 4. RCW 46.20.311 and 1993 c 501 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The department shall not suspend a driver's license or privilege to drive a motor vehicle on the public highways for a fixed period of more than one year, except as permitted under RCW 46.20.342 or 46.61.515. Except for a suspension under section 1 of this act, RCW 46.20.289 ((~~and~~)), or 46.20.291(5), whenever the license or driving privilege of any person is suspended by reason of a conviction, a finding that a traffic infraction has been committed, pursuant to chapter 46.29 RCW, or pursuant to RCW 46.20.291, the suspension shall remain in effect until the person gives and thereafter maintains proof of financial responsibility for the future as provided in chapter 46.29 RCW. The department shall not issue to the person a new, duplicate, or renewal license until the person pays a reissue fee of twenty dollars. If the suspension is the result of a violation of RCW 46.61.502 ((or)), 46.61.504, or section 1 of this act, the reissue fee shall be fifty dollars.

(2) Any person whose license or privilege to drive a motor vehicle on the public highways has been revoked, unless the revocation was for a cause which has been removed, is not entitled to have the license or privilege renewed or restored until: (a) After the expiration of one year from the date the license or privilege to drive was revoked; (b) after the expiration of the applicable revocation period provided by RCW 46.61.515(3) (b) or (c); (c) after the expiration of two years for persons convicted of vehicular homicide; (d) after the expiration of one year in cases of revocation for the first refusal within five years to submit to a chemical test under RCW 46.20.308; (e) after the expiration of two years in cases of revocation for the second or subsequent refusal within five years to submit to a chemical test under RCW 46.20.308; or (f) after the expiration of the applicable revocation period provided by RCW 46.20.265 or section 1 of this act. After the expiration of the appropriate period, the person may make application for a new license as provided by law together with a reissue fee in the amount of twenty dollars, but if the revocation is the result of a violation of RCW 46.20.308, 46.61.502, ((or)) 46.61.504, or section 1 of this act, the reissue fee shall be fifty dollars. Except for a revocation under RCW 46.20.265 or section 1 of this act, the department shall not then issue a new license unless it is satisfied after investigation of the driving ability of the person that it will be safe to grant the privilege of driving a motor vehicle on the public highways, and until the person gives and thereafter maintains proof of financial responsibility for the future as provided in chapter 46.29 RCW. For a revocation under RCW 46.20.265 or section 1 of this act, the department shall not issue a new license unless it is satisfied after investigation of the driving ability of the person that it will be safe to grant that person the privilege of driving a motor vehicle on the public highways.

(3) Whenever the driver's license of any person is suspended pursuant to Article IV of the nonresident violators compact or RCW 46.23.020 ((or)), 46.20.289, or 46.20.291(5), the department shall not issue to the person any new or renewal license until the person pays a reissue fee of twenty dollars. If the suspension is the result of a violation of the laws of this or any other state, province, or other jurisdiction involving (a) the operation or physical control of a motor vehicle upon the public highways while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs, or (b) the refusal to submit to a chemical test of the driver's blood alcohol content, the reissue fee shall be fifty dollars.