CHAPTER 642

An Act to amend and reenact §§ 46.1-857, 46.1-868, 46.1-878, 46.1-875
and 46.1-879, as severally amended, of the Code of Virginia; to
amend the Code of Virginia by adding sections numbered 46.1-357.2,
46.1-865, 46.1-870.1, 46.1-875.1, 46.1-880.1 and 46.1-880.2; and to re-
peal § 46.1-880, as amended, of the Code of Virginia; relating gen-
erally to the Virginia Operators’ and Chauffeurs’ Licensing Act and
to the issuance and renewal of such licenses, examinations and re-
examinations in connection therewith, classifications of such licenses,
content and form of such licenses and applications therefor, and
penalties and fees in relation thereto.

[(S 150]

Approved April 5, 1968

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§ 46.1-357, 46.1-368, 46.1-373, 46.1-375 and 46.1-379, as sev-
erally amended, of the Code of Virginia be amended and reenacted; and
that the Code of Virginia be amended by adding sections numbered 46.1-
357.2, 46.1-365, 46.1-370.1, 46.1-375.1, 46.1-380.1 and 46.1-380.2; such
amended and new sections being set forth in numerical order as follows:

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

at:

(1) An operator’s license may be issued to a minor of the age of
sixteen years and under the age of eighteen years upon proper application
therefor and upon satisfactory evidence that the minor has successfully
completed a driver education course which has been approved by the State
Department of Education and is mentally, physically and otherwise quali-
fied to drive a motor vehicle with safety. The application 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 indi-
cated 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 resides. 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 discretion 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 appli-
cation 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 innocent of the offense alleged the Division
shall not issue a license without the written approval of the judge of the
juvenile and domestic relations 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 cancelled in
accordance with other provisions of law. The ‘absence of such evidence of
revalidation appearing on such license shall be considered sufficient 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 license.
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 appearance;
provided, however, the Division may waive this requirement for good
cause shown. The Division, upon receipt of application for revalidation,
shall examine the driving record of each such applicant and may revalidate
the license or take such other action as may be appropriate in accordance
with any other provision of law.

(3) The Division upon receiving from any person over the age of
fifteen years eight months, 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 highways for a period of ninety days * provided they are
students in a public, private or parochial or commercial school driver train-
ing course which has been approved by the State Department of Education,
for a period of one hundred and eighty days, when accompanied by a
aeensed operator or chauffeur who is actually occupying a seat by the

ver.

§ 46.1-857.2. (a) The Division shall not issue an operator’s or
chauffeur’s license or temporary instruction permit on and after January
one, nineteen hundred seventy, to any person otherwise qualified unless
such person demonstrates a visual acuity of at least 20/40 in one or both
eyes without or with corrective lenses or to any such person unless he
demonstrates at least a field of one hundred degrees of horizontal vision in
one or both eyes; except that a license permitting the operation of motor
vehicles during a period beginning one-half hour after sunrise and ending

one-half hour before sunset, may be issued to a person otherwise qualified
who demonstrates a visual acuity of at least 20/70 in one or both eyes
without or with corrective lenses provided such person demonstrates at
least a field of seventy degrees of horizontal vision and further provided
that if such person has vision in one eye only, he demonstrates at least a
field of forty degrees temporal and thirty degrees nasal horizontal vision.

(b) The Division shall not issue an operator’s or chauffeur’s
license or temporary instruction permit to any person authorizing the
operation of (1) passenger carrying buses equipped with more than thirty-
two passenger carrying seats, or (2) any vehicle or combination of vehicles
having three or more axles with an actual gross weight in excess of forty
thousand pounds, unless such person demonstrates a visual acuity of at
least 20/40 in each eye and at least a field of one hundred forty degrees of
horizontal vision.
(c) Every person making application as provided for by § 46.1-880.1
of this title to renew an operator’s license expiring on and after January
one, nineteen hundred seventy and required to be re-examined as a
prerequisite to the renewal of such license, shall (1) appear before a
license examiner of the Division of Motor Vehicles to demonstrate his
visual acuity and horizontal field of vision, or (2) accompany his applica-
tion with a report of such examination made within ninety days prior
thereto by an opthalmologist or optometrist.

(d) The test of horizontal visual fields made by license examiners of
the Division of Motor Vehicles shall be performed at 331% centimeters
with a 10 millimeter round white test object. The report of examination
of visual acuity and horizontal field of vision made by an opthalmologist
or optometrist shall have precedence over an examination made by a
license examiner of the Division of Motor Vehicles in administrative deter-
mination as to the issuance of a license to drive. Any such report may in
the discretion of the Commissioner of the Division of Motor Vehicles be
referred to a Medical Advisory Board if such be established, or to the
State Health Commissioner, for evaluation.

_ § 46.1-365. The Division shall not issue any permit or license under
this title to any person who has been convicted of violating § 46.1-385,
which violation was based on the taking of any examination under §§
46.1-357.2, 46.1-369, 46.1-3883 or 46.1-3883.1 for another person, or the
appearance for another for renewal of a license under this chapter, for a
period of ten years from the date of conviction; or if such person has a
license or permit issued pursuant to this title, the Commissioner shall
cancel and revoke such license or permit for a period of ten years from the
date of such conviction.

_ § 46.1-368. (a) Every application for an operator’s or chauffeur’s
license or temporary or instruction permit shall be made upon a form
approved and furnished by the Division and the applicant shall write his
usual signature in ink in the space provided.

(b) Every application shall state the name, year, month and date
of birth, Social Security number, sex and residence address of the appli-
cant, whether or not the applicant has theretofore been licensed as an
operator or chauffeur and, if so, when and by what state and whether or
not such license has ever been suspended or revoked and, if so, the date of
and reason for such suspension or revocation. The Division may as a
condition for the issuance of any operator’s or chauffeur’s license or tem-
porary or instruction permit require the surrender of any license to oper-
ate a motor vehicle issued by another state and held by such applicant
upon adoption by Virginia of the Driver License Compact. Such applicant
shall also answer any and all questions constituting a part of the form of
application used or otherwise propounded by the Division incidental to
the examination of such applicant for operator’s or chauffeur’s license.

(c) Every application for an operator’s or chauffeur’s license shall,
on and after July one, nineteen hundred sixty-nine, include a color photo-
graph, front face view, of the applicant supplied under arrangements made
therefor by the Division. Such photograph shall be processed by the Divi-
sion so that the photograph may be made part of the issued license and so
that the year the photograph was taken is indicated thereon.

§ 46.1-370.1. No person shall operate any motorcycle upon a high-
way in this State unless such person shall have passed a special examina-
tion, including written material and a road test, pertaining to the ability
of such person to operate a motorcycle with reasonable competence and
with safety to other persons using the highways. The Division of Motor
Vehicles shall adopt such rules and regulations as may be necessary to
provide for the special examination under § 46.1-869 of persons desiring
to qualify to operate such motorcycles in this State and for the granting of
licenses or permits suitably endorsed for qualified applicants.

§ 46.1-373. The Division shall issue to every person licensed as an
operator, an operator’s license and to every person licensed as a chauffeur,
a chauffeur’s license. Every such license applied for and issued or renewed,
on and after * January one, nineteen hundred sixty-*nine, shall contain
the appropriate endorsement or indication where applicable that the li-
censee has been licensed (1) to operate passenger carrying buses equipped
with more than thirty-two passenger seats or, (2) to operate any vehicle
or combination of vehicles having three or more axles with an actual gross
weight in excess of forty thousand pounds, or (3) to operate a motorcycle,
as defined in paragraph (14) of § 46.1-1 excluding fowr-wheeled vehicles.

Every applicant intending to operate one or more of the motor vehicles
described in categories (1) or (2) above, when applying for an operator’s
or chauffeur’s license, shall state in his application, if applicable, that he
has driven at least five hundred miles in the vehicle of the classification
which he intends to operate and for which he seeks to be licensed, or such
person shall submit to, and pass, the examination provided for in § 46.1-
369, using the type of vehicle for which he seeks to be licensed.

Every applicant intending to operate a motorcycle as defined in cate-
gory (3) above, when applying for a license endorsed to authorize the
operation of a motorcycle, shall submit to and pass the examination pro-
vided for in § 46.1-870.1. An endorsement on any license to operate such
motorcycle shall indicate that such license is endorsed for the purpose of
authorizing such licensee to operate only motorcycles; provided, however,
that if such applicant has a valid operator’s or chauffeur’s license at the
time of application for an endorsement to operate a motorcycle or if such
applicant at the time of such application applies for a regular operator’s
or chauffeur’s license and submits to and passes the examination provided
for in § 46.1-869, he shall be granted an endorsement on his operator’s or
chauffeur’s license to operate motorcycles in addition to such other vehicles
as his operator’s or chauffeur’s license may authorize him to operate.

The Division shall be vested with authority to effect such changes in
the endorsements during the validity of the license as may be appropriate.

The provisions of this section shall be applicable to persons applying
for temporary instruction permits as otherwise provided for in this title.

Every person issued an operator’s or chauffeur’s license on or after
* January one, nineteen hundred sixty-*nine, who operates any motor
vehicle of the classifications herein described, and whose operator’s or
chauffeur’s license does not carry an endorsement or indication that such
licensee is licensed as herein provided shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.

§ 46.1-375. Every such license shall bear thereon the distinguishing
number assigned to the licensee and his Social Security number which
may be the distinguishing number assigned to the licensee and shall con-
tain the name, year, month and date of birth, residence address and a
brief description of the licensee for the purpose of identification and also
a space for the signature of the licensee. Every license shall also contain
a dated color photograph of the licensee and shall consist of laminated
plastic with the information concerning the distinguishing or Social Secur-
ity numbers, the name, year, month and date of birth and residence
address, including county or city of actual residence, embossed thereon.

§ 46.1-875.1. It shall be the duty of each law enforcement agency,
including the Department of State Police, charged with the duty to enforce
those provisions of this title or parallel and conforming local ordinances
which cover violations reportable to the Division of Motor Vehicles under
§ 46.1-4138 to provide its personnel with imprinting equipment of a type
which will permit the transfer, without handwriting, of information em-
bossed on operators’ and chauffeurs’ licenses to summonses and which
shall be approved by and may be made available at cost to other agencies
by the Department of State Police.

§ 46.1-379. In the event that an operator’s or chauffeur’s license or
a chauffeur’s badge issued under the provisions of this chapter shall be
lost or destroyed, the person to whom it was issued may obtain a duplicate
or substitute thereof upon furnishing proof satisfactory to the Division
that such license or badge has been lost or destroyed or that there are good
reasons why such duplicate should be issued and upon the payment of a
fee of * one dollar for each such duplicate license or badge.

§ 46.1-380.1. (a) Any operator’s license issued in accordance with
the provisions of this chapter on and after January one, nineteen hundred
seventy, shall be issued to expire four years from the birthday month of
the applicant nearest to the month in which the license is issued. There-
after any such operator’s license shall be renewed in the birthday month
of the licensee and shall be valid for four years.

Any chauffeur’s license issued in accordance with the provisions of
this chapter on and after January one, nineteen hundred seventy, shall
be issued to expire one year from the ‘birthday month of the applicant
nearest to the month in which the license 1s issued. Thereafter, any such
chauffeur’s license shall be renewed in the birthday month of the licensee
and shall be valid for one year.

Any operator’s or chauffeur’s license issued prior to January one,
nineteen hundred seventy shall expire upon the date shown thereon and
upon such expiration shall be renewed so as to expire thereafter in the
month and year as provided above.

(b) Within ninety days prior to the date shown on the operator's
license as the date of expiration, the Division shall mail notice, to the
holder thereof, at the address shown on the records of the Division in its
operators’ license file, that such license will expire on a date related
therein, whether the holder must be re-examined and when he may be
re-examined. Nonreceipt of such notice shall not serve to extend the
period of validity of such operator’s license beyond the expiration date
shown thereon.

Any operator’s license issued in accordance with the provisions of this
chapter may thereafter be renewed only upon proper application and, in
the cases enumerated below, upon the applicant’s having taken and suc-
cessfully completed those parts of the examination provided for in §§
46.1-857.2 and 46.1-869, including visual and written tests, other than the
parts of such examination requiring the applicant to operate a motor
vehicle. All operators applying for renewal of a license shall be required to
take and successfully complete such examination in the following cases:
(i) in the renewal year most immediately prior to the year of his thir-
tieth birthday; (ii) in the renewal year most immediately prior to the
year of his thirty-eighth birthday; (tii) in the renewal year most wmme-
diately prior to his forty-second birthday; and (iv) each renewal year
thereafter.

(c) Any chauffeur’s license issued in accordance with the provisions
of this chapter may thereafter be renewed only upon proper application
and, in the cases enumerated below, upon the applicant’s taking and
successfully completing those parts of the examination provided for in
8§ 46.1-357.2 and 46.1-869, including visual and written tests, other than
the parts of such examination requiring the applicant to operate a motor
vehicle. All chauffeurs applying for renewal of a license shall be required
to take and successfully complete such examination in the following cases:
(1) 1n the renewal year of his thirtieth birthday; (11) in the renewal year
of his thirty-eighth birthday; (vii) in the renewal year of his forty-second
birthday; and (iv) each fourth renewal year thereafter.

(d) Any operator or chauffeur applying for renewal of his license
who must be re-examined shall be required to obtain an appointment for
re-examination in his birthday month in accordance with rules and regu-
lations adopted by the Division.

(e) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the Com-
missioner in his discretion may require any applicant for renewal be fully
examined as provided in §§ 46.1-857.2 and 46.1-869. Furthermore, the
Commissioner shall waive the requirement or the taking of the written
test as provided in subsections (b) and (c) hereof and § 46.1-869 for any
applicant for renewal if the applicant’s operator’s or chauffeur’s license
record on file at the Division contains, for the four years prior to the
expiration date of the license being renewed, a record of no more than one
conviction for any offense reportable under §§ 46.1-412 and 46.1-418; pro-
vided, that in no case shall there be any waiver of the visual examination
required by said subsections or § 46.1-857.2.

Every applicant for renewal of a license under the provisions
of this chapter, whether renewal shall or shall not be dependent on any
examination of the applicant, shall appear in person before the Division
to make application for renewal, unless specifically exempted from this
requirement by administrative regulations duly adopted by the Commis-
stoner. Such regulations shall exempt only those persons, such as service-
men and out-of-State students, whose prolonged absence from the State
makes such personal appearance a hardship.

(g) The provisions of this section shall take effect on and after
January one, nineteen hundred seventy, provided, however, that on and
after July one, nineteen hundred seventy-five the examinations provided
for in paragraph (b) hereof shall be required in each renewal year and
the examinations required in paragraph (c) hereof shall be required in
each fourth renewal year.

(h) The provisions of this section shall not be deemed to modify the
provisions of § 46.1-882.

§ 46.1-880.2. (a) On and after July one, nineteen hundred sixty-
eight, for each operator’s license issued under the provisions of this chap-
ter, the fee shall be seven dollars, and for each operator’s license renewed
under such provisions the fee shall be seven dollars. On and after July one,
nineteen hundred sixty-eight, for each chauffeur’s license issued under the
provisions of this chapter, the fee shall be four dollars, and for each chauf-
feur’s license renewed under such provisions the fee shall be four dollars.

(b) Onand after January one, nineteen hundred sixty-nine, for each
operator’s license issued with an endorsement to operate motorcycles and
other vehicles under the provisions of this chapter, the fee shall be ten
dollars, and for each such license renewed under such provisions, the fee
shall be nine dollars. On and after January one, nineteen hundred sixty-
nine, for each chauffeur’s license issued with an endorsement to operate
motorcycles and other vehicles under the provisions of this chapter, the fee
shall be five dollars, and for each such license renewed under such pro-
visions the fee shall be four dollars.

(c) On and after January one, nineteen hundred seventy, for each
operator's license issued under the provisions of this chapter, the fee shall
be nine dollars, and for each operator's license renewed under such pro-
visions the fee shall be nine dollars. On and after January one, nineteen
hundred seventy, for each chauffeur’s license issued under the provisions
of this chapter, the fee shall be six dollars. and for each chauffeur’s license
renewed under such provisions the fee shall be siz dollars.

On and after January one, nineteen hundred seventy, for each oper-
ator’s license issued with an endorsement to operate motorcycles and other
vehicles under the provisions of this chapter, the fee shall be twelve
dollars, and for each such license renewed under such provisions the fee
shall be eleven dollars. On and after January one, nineteen hundred sev-
enty, for each chauffeur’s license issued with an endorsement to operate
motorcycles and other vehicles under the provisions of this chapter, the
fee shall be seven dollars, and for each such license renewed under such
provisions the fee shall be six dollars.

(d) One dollar of such fees shall be paid into the Driver Education
Fund of the State treasury, and expended as provided for in § 22-235.1;
provided, however, that on and after January one, nineteen hundred sev-
enty, one dollar and thirty-three cents of all such fees shall be paid into
the Driver Education Fund of the State treasury, and expended as provided
for wn § 22-235.1. Unexpended funds from the Driver Education Fund
shall be retained in such Fund and be available for expenditure in ensuing
years as provided therein.

(e) The provisions of this section shall be deemed to supersede any
other provision of this chapter to the contrary.

2. That § 46.1-380, as amended is repealed effective January one, nine-
teen hundred seventy.

That provisions of this act shall take effect as follows: §§ 46.1-357.2
and 46.1-380.1, on and after January one, nineteen hundred seventy; §§
46.1-357, 46.1-375 and 46.1-375.1, on and after July one, nineteen hundred
sixty-nine; §§ 46.1-370.1 and 46.1-373, on and after January one, nineteen
hundred sixty-nine; and §§ 46.1-365, 46.1-368, 46.1-379 and 46.1-380.2,
on and after July one, nineteen hundred sixty-eight.