Title: An act relating to driving record abstracts furnished to transit authorities.

Brief Description: Allowing release of bus drivers' driving abstracts to employers.

Sponsors: Representatives Lovick, Jarrett, Wallace, Ericksen, Dickerson, Flannigan, Murray, Edwards and Anderson.

Brief Summary of Bill

• The Department of Licensing must release to transit authorities certified abstracts of driver records of currently employed or prospective transit operators without signed statements from the current or prospective employee or the transit authority.

Majority Report: Do pass. Signed by 22 members: Representatives Murray, Chair; Rockefeller, Vice Chair; Ericksen, Ranking Minority Member; Jarrett, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Anderson, Armstrong, Bailey, Campbell, Clibborn, Dickerson, Hankins, Hatfield, Kristiansen, Lovick, Mielke, Nixon, Romero, Schindler, Shabro, Sullivan, Wallace and Woods.

Minority Report: Do not pass. Signed by 6 members: Representatives Simpson, Vice Chair; Cooper, Flannigan, Hudgins, Morris and Wood.

The Department of Licensing (DOL) must provide, upon proper request, certified abstracts of driving records to the driver, employers or prospective employers of commercial vehicle or school bus drivers, insurance companies and transit authorities checking on volunteer vanpool drivers, and certain others. However, before the DOL may release certified abstracts to current or prospective employers, the employee must provide a written authorization releasing the information and the employer must provide a written statement attesting that the information will only be used to determine whether the licensee should be employed to operate a commercial vehicle or school bus.

Upon proper request, the DOL must provide a certified abstract of the full driving record of currently employed or prospective transit operators to an employee or agent of a transit authority. The release of the record does not require a signed statement by either the employee or the transit authority. This information may only be used for insurance and risk management needs.

Effective Date: The bill takes effect 90 days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For: This bill addresses an issue of public safety. Providing access to driver abstracts without first having to obtain employee signatures will allow transit authorities to better manage risk at the operator level. Until last year, transit authorities were able to obtain copies of driver abstracts through their insurance company. Requiring the signatures adds significantly to the cost of obtaining the abstract.

(With concerns) Providing abstracts to transit authorities with the employee's consent does not present a concern but providing the abstracts to employers without employee consent is intrusive.

Testified: (In support) Representative Lovick, prime sponsor; Jim Shipman; Jim Turpie, Community Transit; and Allen Hatten, Washington State Transit Insurance Pool.