CHAPTER 254

An Act to amend and reenact § 46.1-857, as amended, of the Code of
Virginia, relating to procedure and conditions for issuing operators’
and chauffeurs’ licenses to certain persons. rH 45)

Approved March 14, 1962

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That § 46.1-357, as amended, of the Code of Virginia, be amended
and reenacted as follows:

§ 46.1-357. (a) No operator’s license shall be issued to any person
under the age of eighteen years except as hereinafter provided and no
chauffeur’s license shall be issued to any person under the age of eighteen
years except that:

(1) An operator’s license may be issued to a minor over the age of
fifteen years and under the age of eighteen years upon proper application
therefor and upon satisfactory evidence that the minor is mentally, physi-
cally and otherwise qualified to drive a motor vehicle with safety. The ap-
plication must be signed by the father and the mother of the applicant
except that if there be only one surviving parent or one parent has sole
custody of the minor, as indicated by an appropriate statement on the
application, or if in any case the Commissioner determines that for good
cause it is not feasible to secure the signature of both parents, it shall be
sufficient that the application be signed by the surviving parent or parent
having sole custody of the minor, or the parent whose signature can be
obtained, otherwise by the guardian having custody of such minor or in
the event a minor under the age of eighteen years has no father, mother
or guardian, then an operator’s license shall not be issued to the minor
unless his application therefor is signed by the judge of the juvenile and
domestic relations court of the city or county in which the applicant re-
sides. If the minor making such application is married, in lieu of the
consent required in the preceding sentence, upon proper evidence of the
solemnization of the marriage, the spouse of such minor may sign the
application, if the spouse is over the age of eighteen years. Any father
and mother, surviving parent, parent having custody, or, in the discre-
tion of the Commissioner, either parent, in case both are not present
within the State, spouse or guardian, as the case may be, may thereafter
file with the Division a written request that the license of said minor so
granted be cancelled. Thereupon, the Division shall cancel the license of
said minor and such license shall not thereafter be reissued by the Division
until a period of six months has elapsed from the date of cancellation. The
minor shall be required to state in his application whether or not he has
been convicted of an offense triable by, or tried in, a juvenile and domestic
relations court. If it appears that such minor has been adjudged not in-
nocent of the offense alleged the Division shall not issue a license with-
out the written approval of the judge of the juvenile and domestic rela-
tions court making an adjudication as to such minor or the like approval
of a similar court of the county or city in which the parent, guardian,
spouse or employer respectively of the child resides.

(2) Each operator’s license issued pursuant to the provisions of
paragraph (1) hereof shall contain thereon a suitable legend that such
license must be revalidated by the Division of Motor Vehicles within
twelve months from the date of original issuance and each succeeding
twelve month period thereafter until the holder thereof attains the age of
eighteen years, unless such license is sooner revoked, suspended or can-
celled in accordance with other provisions of law. The absence of such evi-
dence of revalidation appearing on such license shall be considered suf-
ficient to prohibit and make unlawful the operation of any motor vehicle
in this State by the licensee if such operation occurs after twelve months
from the date of issue or last revalidation stamp appearing on such li-
cense. The holder of each such operator’s license issued pursuant to the
provisions of paragraph (1) hereof must apply in person to any point
designated by the Division for the examination of operator’s or chauffeur’s
licenses and must be accompanied by a parent, spouse or guardian from
whom the original consent for the issuance of such license was obtained
and such consent shall be reaffirmed by such person at the time of appear-
ance; provided, however, the Division may waive this requirement for
good cause shown. The Division, upon receipt of application for revalida-
tion, shall examine the driving record of each such applicant and may re-
validate the license or take such other action as may be appropriate in ac-
cordance with any other provision of law.

(3) The Division upon receiving from any person over the age of
fifteen years an application for a temporary instruction permit may in its
discretion issue such a permit entitling the applicant while having such a
permit in his immediate possession, to drive a motor vehicle upon the high-
ways for a period of ninety days and to students in a public or parochial
school driver training course which has been approved by the State De-
partment of Education, for a period of 180 days, when accompanied by
4 licensed operator or chauffeur who is actually occupying a seat by the

river.

(b) No minor under the age of eighteen years shall drive a motor
vehicle on the streets, roads, highways and alleys of any city or of any
county having a population greater than one hundred and thirty thousand
in this State if prohibited from so doing by a proper city or county ordi-
nance.