HB3097eng 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB3097 Engrossed LRB102 16168 RAM 21546 b

AN ACT concerning transportation.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section 27-24.1 as follows:

(105 ILCS 5/27-24.1) (from Ch. 122, par. 27-24.1)

Sec. 27-24.1. Definitions. As used in the Driver Education Act unless the context otherwise requires:

"State Board" means the State Board of Education. ;

"Driver education course" and "course" means a course of instruction in the use and operation of cars, including instruction in the safe operation of cars and rules of the road, and the laws of this State relating to motor vehicles, and law enforcement procedures during traffic stops, including appropriate interactions with law enforcement officers, which meets the minimum requirements of this Act and the rules and regulations issued thereunder by the State Board and has been approved by the State Board as meeting such requirements. ;

"Car" means a motor vehicle of the first division as defined in the Illinois Vehicle Code. ;

"Motorcycle" or "motor driven cycle" means such a vehicle as defined in the Illinois Vehicle Code. ;

"Driver's license" means any license or permit issued by the Secretary of State under Chapter 6 of the Illinois Vehicle Code.

"Distance learning program" means a program of study in which all participating teachers and students do not physically meet in the classroom and instead use the Internet, email, or any other method other than the classroom to provide instruction.

With reference to persons, the singular number includes the plural and vice versa, and the masculine gender includes the feminine.

(Source: P.A. 101-183, eff. 8-2-19; revised 9-26-19.)

Section 10. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended by changing Sections 2-112 and 6-107.5 as follows:

(625 ILCS 5/2-112) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 2-112)

Sec. 2-112. Distribution of synopsis laws.

(a) The Secretary of State may publish a synopsis or summary of the laws of this State regulating the operation of vehicles and may deliver a copy thereof without charge with each original vehicle registration and with each original driver's license.

(b) The Secretary of State shall make any necessary revisions in its publications including, but not limited to, the Illinois Rules of the Road, to accurately conform its publications to the provisions of the Pedestrians with Disabilities Safety Act.

(c) The Secretary of State shall include, in the Illinois Rules of the Road publication, information advising drivers to use the Dutch Reach method when opening a vehicle door after parallel parking on a street (checking the rear-view mirror, checking the side-view mirror, then opening the door with the right hand, thereby reducing the risk of injuring a bicyclist or opening the door in the path a vehicle approaching from behind).

(d) The Secretary of State shall include, in the Illinois Rules of the Road publication, information advising drivers to use the zipper merge method when merging into a reduced number of lanes (drivers in merging lanes are expected to use both lanes to advance to the lane reduction point and merge at that location, alternating turns).

(e) The Secretary of State, in consultation with the Illinois State Police, shall include in the Illinois Rules of the Road publication a description of law enforcement procedures during traffic stops and the actions that a motorist should take during a traffic stop, including appropriate interactions with law enforcement officers.

(Source: P.A. 100-770, eff. 1-1-19; 100-962, eff. 1-1-19; 101-174, eff. 1-1-20.)

(625 ILCS 5/6-107.5)

Sec. 6-107.5. Adult Driver Education Course.

(a) The Secretary shall establish by rule the curriculum and designate the materials to be used in an adult driver education course. The course shall be at least 6 hours in length and shall include instruction on traffic laws; highway signs, signals, and markings that regulate, warn, or direct traffic; and issues commonly associated with motor vehicle accidents including poor decision-making, risk taking, impaired driving, distraction, speed, failure to use a safety belt, driving at night, failure to yield the right-of-way, texting while driving, using wireless communication devices, and alcohol and drug awareness; and instruction on law enforcement procedures during traffic stops, including actions that a motorist should take during a traffic stop and appropriate interactions with law enforcement officers. The curriculum shall not require the operation of a motor vehicle.

(b) The Secretary shall certify course providers. The requirements to be a certified course provider, the process for applying for certification, and the procedure for decertifying a course provider shall be established by rule.

(b-5) In order to qualify for certification as an adult driver education course provider, each applicant must authorize an investigation that includes a fingerprint-based background check to determine if the applicant has ever been convicted of a criminal offense and, if so, the disposition of any conviction. This authorization shall indicate the scope of the inquiry and the agencies that may be contacted. Upon receiving this authorization, the Secretary of State may request and receive information and assistance from any federal, State, or local governmental agency as part of the authorized investigation. Each applicant shall submit his or her fingerprints to the Department of State Police in the form and manner prescribed by the Department of State Police. These fingerprints shall be checked against fingerprint records now and hereafter filed in the Department of State Police and Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal history record databases. The Department of State Police shall charge applicants a fee for conducting the criminal history record check, which shall be deposited into the State Police Services Fund and shall not exceed the actual cost of the State and national criminal history record check. The Department of State Police shall furnish, pursuant to positive identification, records of Illinois criminal convictions to the Secretary and shall forward the national criminal history record information to the Secretary. Applicants shall pay any other fingerprint-related fees. Unless otherwise prohibited by law, the information derived from the investigation, including the source of the information and any conclusions or recommendations derived from the information by the Secretary of State, shall be provided to the applicant upon request to the Secretary of State prior to any final action by the Secretary of State on the application. Any criminal conviction information obtained by the Secretary of State shall be confidential and may not be transmitted outside the Office of the Secretary of State, except as required by this subsection (b-5), and may not be transmitted to anyone within the Office of the Secretary of State except as needed for the purpose of evaluating the applicant. At any administrative hearing held under Section 2-118 of this Code relating to the denial, cancellation, suspension, or revocation of certification of an adult driver education course provider, the Secretary of State may utilize at that hearing any criminal history, criminal conviction, and disposition information obtained under this subsection (b-5). The information obtained from the investigation may be maintained by the Secretary of State or any agency to which the information was transmitted. Only information and standards which bear a reasonable and rational relation to the performance of providing adult driver education shall be used by the Secretary of State. Any employee of the Secretary of State who gives or causes to be given away any confidential information concerning any criminal convictions or disposition of criminal convictions of an applicant shall be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor unless release of the information is authorized by this Section.

(c) The Secretary may permit a course provider to offer the course online, if the Secretary is satisfied the course provider has established adequate procedures for verifying:

(1) the identity of the person taking the course online; and

(2) the person completes the entire course.

(d) The Secretary shall establish a method of electronic verification of a student's successful completion of the course.

(e) The fee charged by the course provider must bear a reasonable relationship to the cost of the course. The Secretary shall post on the Secretary of State's website a list of approved course providers, the fees charged by the providers, and contact information for each provider.

(f) In addition to any other fee charged by the course provider, the course provider shall collect a fee of $5 from each student to offset the costs incurred by the Secretary in administering this program. The $5 shall be submitted to the Secretary within 14 days of the day on which it was collected. All such fees received by the Secretary shall be deposited in the Secretary of State Driver Services Administration Fund.

(Source: P.A. 98-167, eff. 7-1-14; 98-876, eff. 1-1-15.)