Legislature(2007 - 2008)CAPITOL 106
01/31/2008 08:00 AM House STATE AFFAIRS
| Audio | Topic |
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| Start | |
| HCR12 | |
| HB291 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | HCR 12 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 291 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
HB 291-PROVISIONAL DRIVER'S LICENSE; INSTRUCTION 8:40:55 AM VICE CHAIR ROSES announced that the last order of business was HOUSE BILL NO. 291, "An Act relating to requiring completion of a driver's education program for provisional driver's licensees." 8:41:45 AM REPRESENTATIVE KEVIN MEYER, Alaska State Legislature, presented HB 291 as prime sponsor. He said the genesis of the bill came from a constituent whose daughter, who had just turned 16, was driving and hit another vehicle. The person in the other vehicle died. He said several people have asked him why the state does not require a driver's education program for children to complete before getting their licenses to drive. He said he is not sure when schools stopped requiring students to take driver's education, but in talking to the superintendent of the Anchorage School District, he said he discovered that it has been some time since that school district has required driver's education as part of its high school curriculum, because it was a liability issue and because of the cost involved. REPRESENTATIVE MEYER said five percent of people age 16 create 30 percent of [motor vehicle-related] accidents. Insurance companies know this and raise the premiums of anyone covering a driver of that age; however, those companies will offer a reduction in the rate if the 16-year-old has completed a driver's education course. He said the cost of requiring such a program is a concern; however, he said it doesn't take long to recoup the money through the reduction in insurance rates. He said he knows a cost of $500 is a large expense to those in lower income areas, and those people cannot wait to recover that amount of money over a 12-month period. He also pointed out that 30 percent of people driving don't have insurance. However, the aforementioned statistic related to the 16-year-old driver is a significant public safety issue that needs to be factored into the cost. REPRESENTATIVE MEYER said the proposed legislation would require that before a young driver is able to get his/her provisional driver's license, he/she must complete a certified driver's education program. 8:45:53 AM REPRESENTATIVE MEYER said these programs are offered throughout the state. He indicated there is a question regarding how this would work for folks in Glennallen, "because they are able to get the provisional licenses ... because they're on the road system." Currently, [those in Glennallen] would have to go either to Fairbanks or Anchorage to get the training. The total time to complete the program would be eight hours and could be spent either all on a Saturday or split up two hours a day for four days. Representative Meyer relayed that insurance companies are interested in this program. He also acknowledged that the cost to constituents with lower incomes is a concern. 8:48:02 AM REPRESENTATIVE MEYER, in response to a question from Representative Johnson, confirmed that a youth who does not take the course and does not meet the requirements of a provisional license would have to wait until he/she is 18 to get a license. He indicated that [provisional licenses] were brought about by past legislation, and he reviewed the limitations of the provisional license. 8:49:08 AM MIKE PAWLOWSKI, Staff, Representative Kevin Meyer, Alaska State Legislature, on behalf of Representative Meyer, prime sponsor, noted that the language regarding provisional licenses can be found in AS 28.05.157. 8:49:29 AM MR. PAWLOWSKI, in response to questions from Representative Johansen, said the [Division] of Motor Vehicles has a list of locations where approved driver's education courses are available. He said for some, getting to the locations may be difficult. He indicated that a suggestion was made to expand the bill to include the Department of Education, "because they also approve driver training." 8:51:03 AM REPRESENTATIVE MEYER, in response to Representative Johansen, offered his understanding that those entities that offer the driving course must be approved by DMV. He said he thinks most of the driving schools are private entities. 8:52:09 AM REPRESENTATIVE DOLL recollected that driver's education was provided by the school when she was student, and she said she likes that idea, because it would provide the course to all students, no matter what their economic background. 8:53:29 AM REPRESENTATIVE MEYER said the state does give a lot of money to the school system, but it is always in need of more. Regarding cost, he said there is a liability concern. The schools' insurance rates would increase, and they would have to hire new teachers and buy cars. He told Representative Doll that he does not know what the exact cost would be for a school district. 8:54:49 AM MR. PAWLOWSKI related that one school district superintendent became scared when thinking about the cost of liability. 8:55:12 AM REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSON suggested that the legislature could take the burden of liability off the schools and put it on the person who makes the mistake. He recognized that the schools want to put their money into No Child Left Behind in order to qualify for federal money. He recalled that when he took driver's education, it was in school, considered an after-hours activity, cost the student a fee to cover the cost of a teacher, and the car used was donated by a local auto dealer. He said he thinks the legislature could get creative with this issue and not spend a lot of money to make it happen. For example, he said there would be teachers who want to make an extra few thousand dollars to teach a driver's education course. He stated that he likes the concept of the program. 8:57:32 AM REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL said he thinks the bill brings forth a worthy discussion. He suggested a need to inventory what is being offered in the major cities of Alaska. He pointed out that many young drivers will end up in a large city, and thus should be taught to drive in urban situations. Conversely, he said he doesn't "want to put a hurdle over them that they just cannot manage." He observed that the bill is really asking that young drivers prove that they have become proficient after the 40 hours they have driven under supervision. 9:00:05 AM CINDY CASHEN, Administrator, Alaska Highway Safety Office (AHSO), Department of Transportation & Public Facilities (DOT&PF), told the committee that AHSO "administers federal funding to effective programs aimed at savings lives and preventing injuries on Alaska's roads." She said the proposed bill would not qualify Alaska for new funding, but neither would it exclude Alaska from future funding. Ms. Cashen reported that the federal National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) supports states which enact new and improved existing graduated driver licensing laws and ordinances pertaining to the licensing of young, novice drivers. She said NHTSA also supports states that develop appropriate training tools and procedures to reduce risk-taking and improve safety decision- making for those drivers, as well as develop standards for driver's education instructors and a standardized driver's education curriculum. MS. CASHEN related that DOT&PF unveiled the Alaska Strategic Highway Safety plan in September [2007] and thus fulfilled a new federal requirement under the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU). She explained that SAFETEA-LU requires all states to address highway safety through a comprehensive, strategic plan. Ms. Cashen noted that she was one of the stakeholders who participated in the related meetings throughout 2007, along with other stakeholders, representatives from state and local agencies, private businesses, and the public. She stated, "The plan provides a comprehensive framework and specific goals and objectives for reducing highway fatalities and serious injuries on all public roads." She said a lot of data was used in creating the plan. 9:03:11 AM MS. CASHEN said three groups were formed during the planning process. She said the group that dealt with driver's education was called the driver behavior group. Ms. Cashen reported that Alaska, like every other state, faces a problem with the number of crashes caused by young drivers. She said young drivers are less likely to recognize and adjust for hazards on the road, because in general they lack experience and the maturity necessary for good judgment. Furthermore, they have a lower safety belt use rate than other segments of the population and often drive too fast or are impaired. She said AHSO is responsible for collecting all the [traffic related] fatality reports for the state, and she indicated that it is the younger group of drivers who consistently do not wear their safety belts. Those young drivers - ages 16-20 - are "overrepresented in fatal and major injury crashes in Alaska." In 2005, Ms. Cashen said, approximately 5 percent of Alaskan drivers were young drivers; however, the percentage of fatalities and major injuries involving these young drivers was 15 percent for fatalities and 29 percent for major injuries. Furthermore, the proportion of fatalities and major injuries from crashes involving young drivers has remained relatively consistent over the past five years. The numbers could be worse, if not for the fact that young drivers tend to recuperate better than older drivers. MS. CASHEN stated that in the Alaska Strategic Highway Safety plan, one of the "action items" is the coordination of a statewide driver's education study to review and evaluate the quality, quantity, and accessibility of driver's education in Alaska. Ms. Cashen said she was excited to hear the comments made thus far during the bill hearing. She noted that AHSO would be coordinating with DMV. 9:05:21 AM MS. CASHEN told the committee that Texas has a unique law, in that the state recognizes parent-taught driver's education. She said NHTSA sponsored a study by the Texas Transportation Institute to evaluate the parent-taught driver's education option in Texas - to evaluate how well parents really teach their children to drive. The criteria used: focus groups, a statewide survey of the young drivers, and Texas driver records. Based on the 1.4 million Texas driver records, the drivers taught by parents were convicted of more traffic offenses than commercial or drivers trained in public school. Based on the self-reporting of novice drivers, the incidents of crashes involving parent-taught drivers was not greater than the incidents of those youth trained commercially or through public school. She said, "So, if the parents are teaching the kids, ... they commit more traffic offenses, but they also are in worse crashes." In conclusion, NHTSA, based on the aforementioned data, decided there is evidence to suggest that the parent-taught driver's education program has a negative influence on the overall safety of novice drivers in Texas - especially in terms of young driver crash involvement. Ms. Cashen stated that this information could support driver's education through public [schools] or the DMV. 9:07:45 AM MS. CASHEN, in response to a question from Representative Roses, explained that a study to determine the availability of driver's education around the state is addressed in the Alaska Strategic Highway Safety plan and "is one we hope to implement." She said requiring children to have a driver's education program across the state, whether online or behind the wheel, is "a basic foundation." In response to a follow-up question from Representative Roses as to what may be holding up the study, Ms. Cashen explained that the plan has not existed long, and to implement the study now is a matter or three conditions: who can be involved, funding, and - more importantly - time. Volunteers will need to be gathered to put together a proposal for the study, and AHSO will need to work with DMV. 9:10:31 AM REPRESENTATIVE JOHANSEN asked who will be paying for the plan that AHSO has created. MS. CASHEN responded that the beauty of the plan is that because stakeholders from state and private entities are involved, there is a whole new way of financing. She said AHSO is responsible for federal transportation dollars specifically aimed at highway safety - in particular, driver behavior, which is encouraged through awareness and enforcement. Ms. Cashen said when AHSO creates a highway safety plan each year, it puts aside money for driver's education. She indicated that although [the program] is not in schools, AHSO continues to work with schools. REPRESENTATIVE JOHANSEN said it sounds as though the money to be used is federal, but regardless, the issue should be addressed by the committee. 9:12:42 AM REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSON noted that Ms. Cashen had previously stated that HB 291 would not reduce or increase the money coming from the federal government. He asked if there is any way in which the proposed legislation could be modified so that the state could get federal money. MS. CASHEN answered that she is not aware of any means by which to do so. 9:13:20 AM REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL acknowledged Ms. Cashen's work and passion for the subject. He said he is not interested in mandating one agency to take care of this issue, because there are a lot of people involved with public safety. He spoke of the destructive nature of [the 16-20] age group coupled with its sense of immortality. He said he would like to know what the timeline for the aforementioned survey would be, because whatever the plan calls for, the survey must precede that. Representative Coghill talked about the idea of contracting with someone outside of DMV to conduct the practice test. He asked, "Have you contemplated what a department might approve under this law?" 9:15:37 AM MS. CASHEN responded that it would probably be the Department of Administration and possibly be the Department of Education that would certify "these programs." It would not be DOT&PF. REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL commented that [AHSO] would certainly want to have input. He reiterated his question about the timeline for the survey. 9:16:10 AM MS. CASHEN said the Alaska Strategic Highway Safety plan is brand new, but will have to be updated at least annually. She continued: So, our driver behavior group was very careful, because we recognize that it takes a lot of time to set up a study that's done correctly. Like you said, we want to make sure all the stakeholders have a chance to participate in this. Because it can become controversial. And a lot of us are personal stakeholders, as well as through our jobs. So, what we did was we came up with a timeline that gave us through May to set up an RFP [request for proposals] to hire an agency to conduct the study. And then I believe it was late fall - September, October ... - when my office has to come out with a highway safety plan to see where the ... consulting agency would be on the study - what they would have gathered by then - and incorporate that into our plan. And that would allow us to begin setting aside and formulating a more specific driver's education plan. 9:17:30 AM REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL recognized that Ms. Cashen is not in the position to really offer him the answer he is looking for, and he suggested that the committee hear from "a department person who might contemplate the actual verbiage and how they might put that plan together." He added, "Her plan is obviously not going to work in the timeline that the sponsor has in mind." VICE CHAIR ROSES remarked that once the bill is in committee, the committee controls the timeline. 9:18:01 AM REPRESENTATIVE JOHANSEN asked how many provisional licensees have participated in the aforementioned course for the insurance benefits. MS. CASHEN replied that the answer to that has alluded her office, even though they are trying to pin down that information. Because there is no statute that requires a statewide driver's education program, there are "little pockets of programs," and the numbers of participants are unknown. She reported that there is a program in Kenai that she had not even heard of until its managers heard about AHSO and contacted her. 9:19:14 AM9:19:14 AM WHITNEY H. BREWSTER, Director, Division of Motor Vehicles, Department of Administration, stated that she agrees with HB 291 philosophically, but has some of the same concerns that have been raised by the committee. Regarding DMV-approved driving schools, she referred to 2 AAC 91.010, which has information pertaining to the requirements in an application for someone who wants to start a driving school. She said "the following regulations" address instructors and how to go about improving those schools. She noted that currently there are 15 schools statewide, in Anchorage, Fairbanks, North Pole, Juneau, Kenai, Ketchikan, and Palmer. She said the division's concern is how to give those folks who do not have driving schools in their communities the opportunity to have access to such schools. Another concern is the cost of the courses. 9:21:10 AM KERRY HENNINGS, Driver Licensing, Division of Motor Vehicles, Department of Administration, noted that the other "piece" that was approved by DMV is defensive driving courses. Those are eight-hour classroom courses, five of which are taken over the Internet. 9:21:40 AM VICE CHAIR ROSES asked if either Ms. Brewster or Ms. Henning know how many young adults are applying for provisional licenses who have actually taken a driver's education course. MS. HENNING responded that DMV does not track that information. She said, "A parent certifies that their young person has completed the 40 hours, with 10 hours of it being in increment weather." In response to a follow-up question from Vice Chair Roses, she said it would be possible to add another question on the application to assess that information. She added, "It would also be self-certification." VICE CHAIR ROSES said he understands that, but opined that at least that would be better than no information at all. MS. HENNING said that could be done at the request of the legislature. She said she would also research other avenues for obtaining that information without putting that query on the application, and she would supply her answer to the committee. In response to Vice Chair Roses, she said she would ensure that Ms. Cashen receives the information, as well. 9:23:01 AM REPRESENTATIVE JOHANSEN suggested that DMV could collect the information from the 15 driver education facilities, rather than asking the youth. 9:23:34 AM MS. HENNING confirmed that was the alternative means to gather the information that she had been considering. 9:23:47 AM REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL asked if there has been any proof as to the effectiveness of the aforementioned 8-hour driving course that is available on the Internet. MS. HENNING answered no. She said the course is normally taken by those who are trying to reduce the number of driving violation points from their licenses in order to avoid having their licenses suspended. Seniors take courses for a reduction in insurance, which is described under Title 21. The behind the wheel driving school gives the same eight-hour defensive driving course as part of its program. REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL said using "that particular course" may be a better solution than what is suggested in the bill. He asked what the actual process of operation is for these courses. 9:25:21 AM MS. HENNING replied that defensive driving courses are approved by DMV, there are at least 20 classroom courses and five online courses, and the cost for the course is $35-$50. REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL stated, "I think adding that to a provisional license may very well be a move in the right direction. It may not get exactly where the sponsor wants to go." He noted that his son took the course to lower the points on his license. He said he knows the impact it had on his son, because "he was forced to deal with things that he had not previously dealt with." 9:26:48 AM VICE CHAIR ROSES closed public testimony. 9:27:13 AM REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL said he may contemplate an amendment to HB 291. [HB 291 was heard and held.]
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