08 LC 29
3369S
The
House Committee on Judiciary Non-civil offers the following substitute to SB
350:
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
amend Chapter 5 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating
to drivers´ licenses, so as to change certain provisions relating to
driver´s license requirement, surrender of prior licenses, and prohibition
of local licenses; to require the Department of Driver Services to maintain
records of convictions for driving without a license; to provide that courts
with jurisdiction over traffic offenses shall report convictions of driving
without a license to the Department of Driver Services; to change certain
provisions relating to driving while license suspended or revoked; to specify
punishments and exceptions for driving without being licensed; to amend Code
Section 42-4-14 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
determination of nationality of person charged with felony or driving under the
influence and confined in a jail facility, so as to provide for determination of
nationality of person convicted of driving without being licensed; to provide an
effective date; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
Chapter
5 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
drivers´ licenses, is amended by revising paragraph (3) of subsection (a)
of Code Section 40-5-2, relating to keeping of records of applications for
drivers´ licenses and information on licensees, to read as
follows:
"(3)
Records of all accident reports and abstracts of court records of convictions of
any offense listed in
subsection (a)
of Code Section 40-5-20, subsection (a) of
Code Section 40-5-54, Code Section 40-6-10, driving on a suspended license in
violation of Code Section 40-5-121, administrative license suspension pursuant
to Code Sections 40-5-67 through 40-5-67.2, Code Section 40-5-75, Chapter 9 of
this title, the 'Motor Vehicle Safety Responsibility Act,' and Chapter 34 of
Title 33, the 'Georgia Motor Vehicle Accident Reparations Act,' any felony
offense under this title, any offense committed while operating a commercial
motor vehicle, serious traffic offenses, or other offenses requiring the
assessment of points on the driving record that are received by it under the
laws of this state and in connection therewith maintain convenient records or
make suitable notations in order that an individual record of each licensee
or
individual showing the convictions of such
licensee or
individual and the traffic accidents in
which such licensee
or
individual has been involved shall be
readily ascertainable and available for the consideration of the department upon
any application for, or application for renewal of license and at other suitable
times. For purposes of issuing a driver´s operating record to the public as
provided in this Code section, the period of calculation for compilation of such
report shall be determined by the date of arrest."
SECTION
2.
Said
chapter is further amended by revising subsection (a) of Code Section 40-5-20,
relating to driver´s license requirement, surrender of prior licenses, and
prohibition of local licenses, as follows:
"(a)
No person, except those expressly exempted in this chapter, shall drive any
motor vehicle upon a highway in this state unless such person has a valid
driver´s license under this chapter for the type or class of vehicle being
driven. Any person who is a resident of this state for 30 days shall obtain a
Georgia driver´s license before operating a motor vehicle in this state.
Any violation
of this subsection, except the violation of driving with an expired license,
shall be punished as provided in Code Section 40-5-121. Any court having
jurisdiction over traffic offenses in this state shall report to the department
the name and other identifying information of any individual convicted of
driving without a
license."
SECTION
3.
Said
chapter is further amended by revising Code Section 40-5-121, relating to
driving while license suspended or revoked, as follows:
"40-5-121.
(a)
Except when a license has been revoked under Code Section 40-5-58 as a habitual
violator, any person who drives a motor vehicle on any public highway of this
state without
being licensed as required by subsection (a) of Code Section 40-5-20
or at a time when his or her privilege to
do
so
drive
is suspended, disqualified, or revoked shall be guilty of a misdemeanor for a
first conviction thereof and, upon a first conviction thereof or plea of nolo
contendere within five years, as measured from the dates of previous arrests for
which convictions were obtained to the date of the current arrest for which a
conviction is obtained
or a plea of
nolo contendere is accepted, shall be
fingerprinted
and shall be punished by imprisonment for
not less than two days nor more than 12 months, and there may be imposed in
addition thereto a fine of not less than $500.00 nor more than
$1,000.00;
provided, however, that at the time of the hearing such person shall not be
guilty of such offense if he or she presents the court with proof of a valid
driver´s license issued by this state. Such fingerprints, whether taken
upon conviction or upon arrest, shall be forwarded to the Georgia Crime
Information Center where an identification number shall be assigned to the
individual for the purpose of tracking any future violations by the same
offender. For the second
or
subsequent
and
third conviction within five years, as
measured from the dates of previous arrests for which convictions were obtained
or pleas of nolo contendere were accepted to the date of the current arrest for
which a conviction is obtained or a plea of nolo contendere is accepted, such
person shall be guilty of a high and aggravated misdemeanor and shall be
punished by imprisonment for not less than ten days nor more than 12
months,
and there may be imposed in addition thereto a fine of not less than $1,000.00
nor more than $2,500.00.
For the fourth
or subsequent conviction within five years, as measured from the dates of
previous arrests for which convictions were obtained or pleas of nolo contendere
were accepted to the date of the current arrest for which a conviction is
obtained or a plea of nolo contendere is accepted, such person shall be guilty
of a felony and shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than one year nor
more than five years, and there may be imposed in addition thereto a fine of not
less than $2,500.00 nor more than $5,000.00.
(b)
The department, upon receiving a record of the conviction of any person under
this Code section upon a charge of driving a vehicle while the license of such
person was suspended, disqualified, or revoked, including suspensions under
subsection (f) of Code Section 40-5-75, shall extend the period of suspension or
disqualification for six months. The court shall be required to confiscate the
license, if applicable, and attach it to the uniform citation and forward it to
the department within ten days of conviction. The period of suspension or
disqualification provided for in this Code section shall begin on the date the
person is convicted of violating this Code section.
(c)
For purposes of pleading nolo contendere, only one nolo contendere plea will be
accepted to a charge of driving
without being
licensed or with
a
suspended or disqualified license within a five-year period as measured from
date of arrest to date of arrest. All other nolo contendere pleas in this
period will be considered convictions. For the purpose of imposing a sentence
under this subsection, a plea of nolo contendere shall constitute a conviction.
There shall be no limited driving permit available for a suspension or
disqualification under this Code section.
(d)
Notwithstanding the limits set forth in Code Section 40-5-124 and in any
municipal charter, any municipal court of any municipality shall be authorized
to impose the punishment
for a
misdemeanor or misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature as applicable
and provided for in this Code section upon
a conviction of
a nonfelony
charge of violating this Code section or
upon conviction of violating any ordinance adopting the provisions of this Code
section."
SECTION
4.
Code
Section 42-4-14 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
determination of nationality of person charged with felony or driving under the
influence and confined in a jail facility, is amended by revising subsection (a)
as follows:
"(a)
When any person charged with a felony or with driving under the influence
pursuant to Code Section 40-6-391
or convicted
of driving without being licensed in violation of subsection (a) of Code Section
40-5-20 is confined, for any period, in
the jail of the county, any municipality or a jail operated by a regional jail
authority, a reasonable effort shall be made to determine the nationality of the
person so confined."
SECTION
5.
This
Act shall become effective on July 1, 2008.
SECTION
6.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.