AN ACT Relating to issuance and suspension of drivers' licenses; amending RCW 28A.27.010, 46.20.100, and 46.20.291; and adding a new section to Title 28A RCW.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to Title 28A RCW to read as follows:

In accordance with RCW 46.20.100 and 46.20.291, the attendance director or chief administrator of a school district shall provide documentation of enrollment status on a form approved by the superintendent of public instruction to any student upon request who is properly enrolled in a school under the jurisdiction of the official for presentation to the department of licensing on application for or reinstatement of an instruction permit or license to operate a motor vehicle or motorcycle. Whenever a student sixteen years of age or older withdraws from school, the attendance director or chief administrator shall notify the department of licensing of such withdrawal. Within five days of receipt of such notice, the department of licensing shall send a notice to the licensee that the license will be suspended as provided for in RCW 46.20.291 on the thirtieth day following the date the notice was sent unless documentation of compliance with this section is received by the department of licensing before such time.

Sec. 2. Section 2, chapter 10, Laws of 1972 ex. sess. as last amended by section 1, chapter 132, Laws of 1986 and RCW 28A.27.010 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) All parents in this state of any child eight years of age and under eighteen years of age shall cause such child to attend the public school of the district in which the child resides and such child shall have the responsibility to and therefore shall attend for the full time when such school may be in session unless:

(a) The child is attending an approved private school for the same time or is enrolled in an extension program as provided in RCW 28A.02.201(4);

(b) The child is receiving home-based instruction as provided in subsection (4) of this section; or

(c) The school district superintendent of the district in which the child resides shall have excused such child from attendance because the child is physically or mentally unable to attend school, is attending a residential school operated by the department of social and health services, or has been temporarily excused upon the request of his or her parents for purposes agreed upon by the school authorities and the parent: PROVIDED, That such excused absences shall not be permitted if deemed to cause a serious adverse effect upon the student's educational progress: PROVIDED FURTHER, That students excused for such temporary absences may be claimed as full time equivalent students to the extent they would otherwise have been so claimed for the purposes of RCW 28A.41.130 and 28A.41.140, as now or hereafter amended, and shall not affect school district compliance with the provisions of RCW 28A.58.754, as now or hereafter amended((;

~~(d) The child is fifteen years of age or older and:~~

(i) The school district superintendent determines that such child has already attained a reasonable proficiency in the branches required by law to be taught in the first nine grades of the public schools of this state;

~~(ii) The child is regularly and lawfully engaged in a useful or remunerative occupation;~~

~~(iii) The child has already met graduation requirements in accordance with state board of education rules and regulations; or~~

~~(iv) The child has received a certificate of educational competence under rules and regulations established by the state board of education under RCW 28A.04.135~~)).

(2) A parent for the purpose of this chapter means a parent, guardian, or person having legal custody of a child.

(3) An approved private school for the purposes of this chapter shall be one approved under regulations established by the state board of education pursuant to RCW 28A.04.120 as now or hereafter amended.

(4) For the purposes of this chapter, instruction shall be home-based if it consists of planned and supervised instructional and related educational activities, including a curriculum and instruction in the basic skills of occupational education, science, mathematics, language, social studies, history, health, reading, writing, spelling, and the development of an appreciation of art and music, provided for a number of hours equivalent to the total annual program hours per grade level established for approved private schools under RCW 28A.02.201 and 28A.02.240 and if such activities are:

(a) Provided by a parent who is instructing his or her child only and are supervised by a certificated person. A certificated person for purposes of this chapter shall be a person certified under chapter 28A.70 RCW. For purposes of this section, "supervised by a certificated person" means: The planning by the certificated person and the parent of objectives consistent with this subsection; a minimum each month of an average of one contact hour per week with the child being supervised by the certificated person; and evaluation of such child's progress by the certificated person. The number of children supervised by the certificated person shall not exceed thirty for purposes of this subsection; or

(b) Provided by a parent who is instructing his or her child only and who has either earned forty-five college level quarter credit hours or its equivalent in semester hours or has completed a course in home-based instruction at a postsecondary institution or a vocational-technical institute; or

(c) Provided by a parent who is deemed sufficiently qualified to provide home-based instruction by the superintendent of the local school district in which the child resides.

(5) The legislature recognizes that home-based instruction is less structured and more experiential than the instruction normally provided in a classroom setting. Therefore, the provisions of subsection (4) of this section relating to the nature and quantity of instructional and related educational activities shall be liberally construed.

Sec. 3. Section 46.20.100, chapter 12, Laws of 1961 as last amended by section 2, chapter 234, Laws of 1985 and RCW 46.20.100 are each amended to read as follows:

The department of licensing shall not consider an application of any minor under the age of eighteen years for a driver's license or the issuance of a motorcycle endorsement for a particular category unless:

(1) The application is also signed by the father or mother of the applicant, otherwise by the parent or guardian having the custody of such minor, or in the event a minor under the age of eighteen has no father, mother, or guardian, then a driver's license shall not be issued to the minor unless his or her application is also signed by the minor's employer; ((~~and~~))

(2) The applicant has satisfactorily completed a traffic safety education course as defined in RCW ((~~46.81.010~~)) 28A.08.010, conducted by a recognized secondary school, that meets the standards established by the office of the state superintendent of public instruction or the applicant has satisfactorily completed a traffic safety education course, conducted by a commercial driving instruction enterprise, that meets the standards established by the office of the superintendent of public instruction and is officially approved by that office on an annual basis: PROVIDED, HOWEVER, That the director may upon a showing that an applicant was unable to take or complete a driver education course waive that requirement if the applicant shows to the satisfaction of the department that a need exists for the applicant to operate a motor vehicle and he or she has the ability to operate a motor vehicle in such a manner as not to jeopardize the safety of persons or property, under rules to be promulgated by the department in concert with the supervisor of the traffic safety education section, office of the superintendent of public instruction. For a person under the age of eighteen years to obtain a motorcycle endorsement, he or she must successfully complete a motorcycle safety education course that meets the standards established by the department of licensing.

The department may waive any education requirement under this subsection for an applicant previously licensed to drive a motor vehicle or motorcycle outside this state if the applicant provides proof satisfactory to the department that he or she has had education equivalent to that required under this subsection; and

(3) The applicant presents a certificate of enrollment verifying that the applicant is enrolled in school or is excused from compliance with the compulsory attendance requirement as set forth in RCW 28A.27.010.

Sec. 4. Section 25, chapter 121, Laws of 1965 ex. sess. as amended by section 12, chapter 128, Laws of 1980 and RCW 46.20.291 are each amended to read as follows:

((~~(1)~~)) The department is hereby authorized to suspend the license of a driver upon a showing by its records or other sufficient evidence that the licensee:

((~~(a)~~)) (1) Has committed an offense for which mandatory revocation or suspension of license is provided by law;

((~~(b)~~)) (2) Has, by reckless or unlawful operation of a motor vehicle, caused or contributed to an accident resulting in death or injury to any person or serious property damage;

((~~(c)~~)) (3) Has been convicted of offenses against traffic regulations governing the movement of vehicles, or found to have committed traffic infractions, with such frequency as to indicate a disrespect for traffic laws or a disregard for the safety of other persons on the highways;

((~~(d)~~)) (4) Is incompetent to drive a motor vehicle for any of the reasons enumerated in subsections (4), (5) and (8) of RCW 46.20.031;

((~~(e)~~)) (5) Has committed one of the prohibited practices relating to drivers' licenses defined in RCW 46.20.336;

(6) Is under the age of eighteen and has withdrawn from school and has failed to enroll in a program leading to or has obtained a general educational development certificate or the student is excused from compliance with chapter 28A.27 RCW. For purposes of this section, "withdrawal" means more than ten consecutive or fifteen total unexcused absences during a single semester.