08 LC 25
5059
House
Bill 961
By:
Representatives Sims of the
169th
and Lewis of the
15th
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
amend Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to motor
vehicles, so as to change certain provisions relating to special parking permits
and license plates for persons with disabilities; to provide for suspension of
drivers´ licenses upon conviction of certain offenses related to such
special parking permits and license plates; to repeal conflicting laws; and for
other purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
Title
40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to motor vehicles, is
amended in Code Section 40-2-74.1, relating to special parking permits for
persons with disabilities, by revising subsections (a), (b), and (c) as
follows:
"(a)
The department shall issue parking permits for persons with disabilities and may
delegate to county tag agents the responsibility for issuance of such permits to
residents of the county served by the tag agent. The department shall receive
applications for and issue parking permits by mail to persons with disabilities
upon presentation of an affidavit of a practitioner of the healing arts stating
that such person is a disabled person, the specific disability that limits or
impairs the person´s ability to walk, and that he or she is a person with
disabilities as specified in paragraph (5) of Code Section 40-6-221. Permits
shall be in such form as the department prescribes but shall be of sufficient
size and sufficiently distinctively marked to be easily visible when placed on
or affixed to the driver´s side of the dashboard or hung from the rearview
mirror of the parked vehicle. Permits shall be made of plastic or heavyweight
cardboard and shall be of sufficient quality to ensure that the coloring of the
permit and the ink used thereon will resist fading for a period of at least four
years. The
front and back surfaces of the permit shall be laminated to prevent alteration
of the information printed underneath on the
permit. Permits shall be issued to
individuals, and the name of the individual and an identification number shall
appear on the permit. The individual to whom a permit is issued may use the
permit for any vehicle he or she is operating or in which he or she is a
passenger. Permits shall also be issued to institutions when the primary
purpose of a vehicle operated by the institution is to transport individuals
with disabilities. The name of the institution, the license number of the
particular vehicle, and an identification number shall appear on the permit.
The institution shall use such permit only for a vehicle which is operated by
the institution and which is used primarily to transport individuals with
disabilities.
(b)
The department shall issue a temporary permit to any temporarily disabled person
upon presentation of an affidavit of a practitioner of the healing arts stating
that such person is a temporarily disabled person, the specific disability that
limits or impairs the person´s ability to walk, that he or she is a person
with disabilities as specified in paragraph (5) of Code Section 40-6-221, and a
date until which such person is likely to remain disabled. The temporary permit
shall be predominantly
red in
color
of a color
other than blue and shall show prominently
on its face an expiration date the same as the date specified by the
physician
practitioner
of the healing arts for the likely
termination of the disability, which date shall not be more than 180 days after
the date the permit is issued. The expiration date shall be
machine
printed, not
handwritten, in
a
boldface type
of sufficient size
of print
that is
to
be legible when the permit is displayed on
the driver´s side of the dashboard or hung from the rearview mirror.
The department
shall periodically change the color of new temporary permits.
(c)
The department shall issue a permanent permit to any permanently disabled person
upon presentation of an affidavit of a practitioner of the healing arts stating
that such person is a permanently disabled person. The affidavit shall further
state the specific disability that limits or impairs the person´s ability
to walk or that he or she is a person with disabilities as specified in
subparagraph
(G) of paragraph (5) of Code Section
40-6-221. The department shall also issue a permanent permit to an institution
which operates vehicles used primarily for the transportation of individuals
with disabilities upon presentation of a certification from the institution
regarding use of its vehicles. The institution shall receive permits only for
the number of vehicles so used and shall affix the permits to the driver´s
side of the dashboards of such vehicles. The permanent permit shall be
predominantly blue in color and shall show prominently on its face an expiration
date four years from the date it is issued. The expiration date shall be
machine
printed, not
handwritten, in
a
boldface type
of sufficient size
of print
that is
to
be legible when the permit is displayed on
the driver´s side of the dashboard or hung from the rearview
mirror."
SECTION
2.
Said
title is further amended in said Code Section 40-2-74.1 by adding a new
subsection to read as follows:
"(h)
Any person who parks a motor vehicle in a parking place for persons with
disabilities without having a valid temporary or permanent parking permit for
persons with disabilities displayed on the driver´s side of the dashboard
or hung from the rearview mirror of the motor vehicle or a without having a
valid special license plate for persons with disabilities properly displayed on
the motor vehicle shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall upon
conviction:
(1)
For the first such offense be punished by a fine of not less than $100.00;
(2)
For a second such offense be punished by a fine a fine of not less than $200.00;
and
(3)
For a third or subsequent such offense be punished by a fine of not less than
$500.00."
SECTION
3.
Said
title is further amended by adding a new Code section to read as
follows:
"40-5-57.3.
(a)
The driver´s license of any person convicted for a third or subsequent
offense under subsection (h) of Code Section 40-2-74.1 shall be suspended for
one year. The person shall submit the driver´s license to the court upon
conviction and the court shall forward the driver´s license to the
department.
(b)
After the suspension period and when the person pays a restoration fee of $60.00
or, when processed by mail, $50.00, the suspension shall terminate and the
department shall return the person´s driver´s license to such
person."
SECTION
4.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.