BILL REQ. #: H-0936.2
State of Washington | 63rd Legislature | 2013 Regular Session |
Read first time 02/06/13. Referred to Committee on Transportation.
AN ACT Relating to commercial transportation of passengers; and amending RCW 46.72.020, 46.72.100, 46.72A.080, and 46.72A.090.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1 RCW 46.72.020 and 1992 c 114 s 1 are each amended to read
as follows:
No for hire operator shall cause operation of a for hire vehicle
upon any highway of this state without first obtaining a permit from
the director of licensing, except for those for hire operators
regulated by cities or counties in accordance with chapter 81.72 RCW.
Application for a permit shall be made on forms provided by the
director and shall include (1) the name and address of the owner or
owners, and if a corporation, the names and addresses of the principal
officers thereof; (2) city, town or locality in which any vehicle will
be operated; (3) name and motor number of any vehicle to be operated;
(4) the endorsement of a city official authorizing an operator under a
law or ordinance requiring a license; and (5) such other information as
the director may require. However, the director may not issue or renew
a permit if the applicant has been cited, fined, or sanctioned two or
more times in the preceding twenty-four months for a violation of any
law that prevents unfair competition practices by for hire drivers
other than taxicabs, including laws that prohibit for hire drivers from
soliciting passengers, cruising for passengers, picking up passengers
in a taxi zone, using another person to solicit a passenger, or
impermissibly prearranging a trip.
Sec. 2 RCW 46.72.100 and 2003 c 53 s 250 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) In addition to the unprofessional conduct specified in RCW
18.235.130, the director may take disciplinary action if he or she has
good reason to believe that one of the following is true of the
operator or the applicant for a permit or certificate: (a) He or she
is guilty of committing two or more offenses for which mandatory
revocation of driver's license is provided by law; (b) he or she has
been convicted of vehicular homicide or vehicular assault; (c) he or
she is intemperate or addicted to the use of narcotics; or (d) he or
she has been cited, fined, or sanctioned for a violation of any law
that prevents unfair competition practices by for hire drivers other
than taxicabs, including laws that prohibit for hire drivers from
soliciting passengers, cruising for passengers, picking up passengers
in a taxi zone, using another person to solicit a passenger, or
impermissibly prearranging a trip.
(2) Any for hire operator who operates a for hire vehicle without
first having filed a bond or insurance policy and having received a for
hire permit and a for hire certificate as required by this chapter is
guilty of a gross misdemeanor, and upon conviction shall be punished by
imprisonment in jail for a period not exceeding ninety days or a fine
of not exceeding five hundred dollars, or both fine and imprisonment.
Sec. 3 RCW 46.72A.080 and 2011 c 374 s 7 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) No limousine carrier may advertise without listing the
carrier's unified business identifier issued by the department in the
advertisement and specifying the type of service offered as provided in
RCW 46.04.274. No limousine carrier may advertise or hold itself out
to the public as providing taxicab transportation services.
(2) All advertising, contracts, correspondence, cards, signs,
posters, papers, and documents that show a limousine carrier's name or
address shall list the carrier's unified business identifier and the
type of service offered. The alphabetized listing of limousine
carriers appearing in the advertising sections of telephone books or
other directories and all advertising that shows the carrier's name or
address must show the carrier's current unified business identifier.
(3) Advertising in the alphabetical listing in a telephone
directory need not contain the carrier's certified business identifier.
(4) It is a violation, subject to a fine of up to five thousand
dollars per violation, for a person to (a) falsify a unified business
identifier or use a false or inaccurate unified business identifier;
(b) fail to specify the type of service offered; (c) advertise or
otherwise hold itself out to the public as providing taxicab
transportation services in connection with a solicitation or
identification as an authorized limousine carrier; or (d) conduct
commercial limousine business without a valid limousine carrier license
or valid limousine vehicle certificate as required under this chapter,
unless licensed as a charter party carrier under chapter 81.70 RCW.
(5) If the basis for the violation is advertising, each
advertisement reproduced, broadcast, or displayed via a particular
medium constitutes a separate violation.
(6) In deciding the amount of penalty to be imposed per violation,
the department shall consider the following factors:
(a) The carrier's willingness to comply with the department's rules
under this chapter; and
(b) The carrier's history with respect to compliance with this
section.
(7) It is a class 1 civil infraction, with monetary penalties
against the chauffeur as specified in RCW 7.80.120, for a chauffeur to:
(a) Solicit or assign customers directly or through a third party
for immediate, nonprearranged limousine service pick up as described in
RCW 46.72A.020(1); or
(b) Offer payment to a third party to solicit customers for
limousine service pick up without current copies of a written contract
regarding such services on file at the third party's business. Copies
of the current written contract must be stored and made available on
both the third party's and limousine carrier's business premises.
Limousine vehicles engaged in the services detailed in the contract
must carry a certificate verifying existence of a current contract
between the parties. The certificate must contain a general
description of the agreement, including initial and expiration dates.
A written contract may not allow for immediate, nonprearranged
limousine service pick up.
(8) It is a class 1 civil infraction, with monetary penalties
against the individual as specified in RCW 7.80.120, for an individual
to:
(a) Accept payment to solicit or assign customers on the behalf of
a chauffeur for immediate, nonprearranged limousine service pick up as
described in RCW 46.72A.020(1); or
(b) Accept payment to solicit customers for limousine service pick
up without current copies of a written contract regarding such services
on file at the third party's business. Copies of the current written
contract must be stored and made available on the third party's
business premises and in any limousine engaged in the services detailed
in the contract. A written contract may not allow for immediate,
nonprearranged limousine service pick up.
(9)(a) When a citation, fine, or sanction is issued for a violation
of subsection (7) or (8) of this section or a rule adopted under RCW
46.72A.150, the Washington state patrol, or local law enforcement
officer acting pursuant to RCW 46.72A.030, must verify and record the
chauffeur's driver's license number along with documentation of the
citation, fine, or sanction.
(b) When a chauffeur is cited, fined, or sanctioned for a violation
of subsection (7) or (8) of this section or a rule adopted under RCW
46.72A.150, the issuing authority must notify the department and
provide to the department documentation of the citation, fine, or
sanction and the chauffeur's identifying information, including the
chauffeur's driver's license number.
(c) Records of violations, including the chauffeur's driver's
license number, must be retained by the department for at least three
years, and the department must make these records available for the
purposes of carrying out RCW 46.72A.090.
Sec. 4 RCW 46.72A.090 and 2011 c 374 s 8 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) The limousine carrier shall, before a chauffeur operates a
limousine, provide proof in a form approved by the department to the
appropriate regulating authority that each chauffeur hired to operate
a limousine meets the following criteria administered or monitored by
the department or an authority approved by the department: (a) Is at
least twenty-one years of age; (b) holds a valid Washington state
driver's license; (c) has successfully completed a training course
approved by the department; (d) has successfully passed a written
examination which, to the greatest extent practicable, the department
must administer in the applicant's language of preference; (e) has
successfully completed a background check performed by the Washington
state patrol or a credentialing authority approved by the department
that meets standards adopted by rule by the department; (f) has passed
an initial test and is participating in a random testing program
designed to detect the presence of any controlled substances determined
by the department; (g) has a satisfactory driving record that meets
moving accident and moving violation conviction standards adopted by
rule by the department; and (h) has submitted a medical certificate
certifying the individual's fitness as a chauffeur. Upon initial
application and every two years thereafter, a chauffeur must file a
physician's certification with the limousine carrier validating the
individual's fitness to drive a limousine. The department shall
determine by rule the scope of the examination and standards for denial
based upon the chauffeur's physical examination. The director may
require a chauffeur to undergo an additional controlled substance test
or physical examination if the chauffeur has failed a controlled
substance test or his or her physical fitness has been called into
question.
(2) A person may not work as a chauffeur if, in the preceding
twenty-four months, he or she has been cited, sanctioned, or fined two
or more times for a violation of RCW 46.72A.080 (7) or (8), including
any rules adopted under RCW 46.72A.150.
(3) The department may not issue a limousine carrier license under
RCW 46.72A.050 until it has verified that an applicant's prospective
chauffeurs comply with subsection (2) of this section.
(4) The limousine carrier shall keep on file and make available for
inspection all documents required by this section.