BILL REQ. #:  H-3581.2 

Prefiled 01/08/10. Read first time 01/11/10.   Referred to Committee on Transportation.

     AN ACT Relating to the use of wireless communications devices while driving; and amending RCW 46.20.055, 46.20.075, 46.61.667, and 46.61.668.

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

Sec. 1   RCW 46.20.055 and 2006 c 219 s 14 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Driver's instruction permit. The department may issue a driver's instruction permit with or without a photograph to an applicant who has successfully passed all parts of the examination other than the driving test, provided the information required by RCW 46.20.091, paid a fee of twenty dollars, and meets the following requirements:
     (a) Is at least fifteen and one-half years of age; or
     (b) Is at least fifteen years of age and:
     (i) Has submitted a proper application; and
     (ii) Is enrolled in a traffic safety education program offered, approved, and accredited by the superintendent of public instruction or offered by a driver training school licensed and inspected by the department of licensing under chapter 46.82 RCW, that includes practice driving.
     (2) Waiver of written examination for instruction permit. The department may waive the written examination, if, at the time of application, an applicant is enrolled in:
     (a) A traffic safety education course as defined by RCW 28A.220.020(2); or
     (b) A course of instruction offered by a licensed driver training school as defined by RCW 46.82.280(((4))).
     The department may require proof of registration in such a course as it deems necessary.
     (3) Effect of instruction permit. A person holding a driver's instruction permit may drive a motor vehicle, other than a motorcycle, upon the public highways if:
     (a) The person has immediate possession of the permit; ((and))
     (b) The person is not using a wireless communications device, unless the person is using the device to report illegal activity, summon medical or other emergency help, or prevent injury to a person or property; and
     (c) An approved instructor, or a licensed driver with at least five years of driving experience, occupies the seat beside the driver.
     (4) Term of instruction permit. A driver's instruction permit is valid for one year from the date of issue.
     (a) The department may issue one additional one-year permit.
     (b) The department may issue a third driver's permit if it finds after an investigation that the permittee is diligently seeking to improve driving proficiency.
     (c) A person applying to renew an instruction permit must submit the application to the department in person.

Sec. 2   RCW 46.20.075 and 2009 c 125 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) An intermediate license authorizes the holder to drive a motor vehicle under the conditions specified in this section. An applicant for an intermediate license must be at least sixteen years of age and:
     (a) Have possessed a valid instruction permit for a period of not less than six months;
     (b) Have passed a driver licensing examination administered by the department;
     (c) Have passed a course of driver's education in accordance with the standards established in RCW 46.20.100;
     (d) Present certification by his or her parent, guardian, or employer to the department stating (i) that the applicant has had at least fifty hours of driving experience, ten of which were at night, during which the driver was supervised by a person at least twenty-one years of age who has had a valid driver's license for at least three years, and (ii) that the applicant has not been issued a notice of traffic infraction or cited for a traffic violation that is pending at the time of the application for the intermediate license;
     (e) Not have been convicted of or found to have committed a traffic violation within the last six months before the application for the intermediate license; and
     (f) Not have been adjudicated for an offense involving the use of alcohol or drugs during the period the applicant held an instruction permit.
     (2) For the first six months after the issuance of an intermediate license or until the holder reaches eighteen years of age, whichever occurs first, the holder of the license may not operate a motor vehicle that is carrying any passengers under the age of twenty who are not members of the holder's immediate family as defined in RCW 42.17.020. For the remaining period of the intermediate license, the holder may not operate a motor vehicle that is carrying more than three passengers who are under the age of twenty who are not members of the holder's immediate family.
     (3) The holder of an intermediate license may not operate a motor vehicle between the hours of 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. except when the holder is accompanied by a parent, guardian, or a licensed driver who is at least twenty-five years of age.
     (4) The holder of an intermediate license may not operate a moving motor vehicle while using a wireless communications device unless the holder is using the device to report illegal activity, summon medical or other emergency help, or prevent injury to a person or property.
     (5) It is a traffic infraction for the holder of an intermediate license to operate a motor vehicle in violation of the restrictions imposed under this section.
     (((5))) (6) Except for a violation of subsection (4) of this section, enforcement of this section by law enforcement officers may be accomplished only as a secondary action when a driver of a motor vehicle has been detained for a suspected violation of this title or an equivalent local ordinance or some other offense.
     (((6))) (7) An intermediate licensee may drive at any hour without restrictions on the number of passengers in the vehicle if necessary for agricultural purposes.
     (((7))) (8) An intermediate licensee may drive at any hour without restrictions on the number of passengers in the vehicle if, for the twelve-month period following the issuance of the intermediate license, he or she:
     (a) Has not been involved in an accident involving only one motor vehicle;
     (b) Has not been involved in an accident where he or she was cited in connection with the accident or was found to have caused the accident;
     (c) Has not been involved in an accident where no one was cited or was found to have caused the accident; and
     (d) Has not been convicted of or found to have committed a traffic offense described in chapter 46.61 RCW or violated restrictions placed on an intermediate licensee under this section.

Sec. 3   RCW 46.61.667 and 2007 c 417 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Except as provided in subsections (2) and (3) of this section, a person operating a moving motor vehicle while holding a wireless communications device to his or her ear is guilty of a traffic infraction.
     (2) Subsection (1) of this section does not apply to a person operating:
     (a) An authorized emergency vehicle, or a tow truck responding to a disabled vehicle;
     (b) A moving motor vehicle using a wireless communications device in hands-free mode;
     (c) A moving motor vehicle using a hand-held wireless communications device to:
     (i) Report illegal activity;
     (ii) Summon medical or other emergency help;
     (iii) Prevent injury to a person or property;
     (d) A moving motor vehicle while using a hearing aid.
     (3) Subsection (1) of this section does not restrict the operation of an amateur radio station by a person who holds a valid amateur radio operator license issued by the federal communications commission.
     (4) For purposes of this section, "hands-free mode" means the use of a wireless communications device with a speaker phone, headset, or earpiece.
     (5) The state preempts the field of regulating the use of wireless communications devices in motor vehicles, and this section supersedes any local laws, ordinances, orders, rules, or regulations enacted by a political subdivision or municipality to regulate the use of wireless communications devices by the operator of a motor vehicle.
     (6) ((Enforcement of this section by law enforcement officers may be accomplished only as a secondary action when a driver of a motor vehicle has been detained for a suspected violation of this title or an equivalent local ordinance or some other offense.
     (7))) Infractions that result from the use of a wireless communications device while operating a motor vehicle under this section shall not become part of the driver's record under RCW 46.52.101 and 46.52.120. Additionally, a finding that a person has committed a traffic infraction under this section shall not be made available to insurance companies or employers.

Sec. 4   RCW 46.61.668 and 2007 c 416 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, a person operating a moving motor vehicle who, by means of an electronic wireless communications device, other than a voice-activated global positioning or navigation system that is permanently affixed to the vehicle, sends, reads, or writes a text message, is guilty of a traffic infraction. A person does not send, read, or write a text message when he or she reads, selects, or enters a phone number or name in a wireless communications device for the purpose of making a phone call.
     (2) Subsection (1) of this section does not apply to a person operating:
     (a) An authorized emergency vehicle; or
     (b) A moving motor vehicle while using an electronic wireless communications device to:
     (i) Report illegal activity;
     (ii) Summon medical or other emergency help;
     (iii) Prevent injury to a person or property; or
     (iv) Relay information between a transit or for-hire operator and that operator's dispatcher, in which the device is permanently affixed to the vehicle.
     (3) ((Enforcement of this section by law enforcement officers may be accomplished only as a secondary action when a driver of a motor vehicle has been detained for a suspected violation of this title or an equivalent local ordinance or some other offense.
     (4))) Infractions under this section shall not become part of the driver's record under RCW 46.52.101 and 46.52.120. Additionally, a finding that a person has committed a traffic infraction under this section shall not be made available to insurance companies or employers.