PRIOR PRINTER'S NO. 2499 PRINTER'S NO. 3499
No. 1912 Session of 2003
INTRODUCED BY VANCE, MANDERINO, DAILEY, CAPPELLI, ARMSTRONG,
BARD, BEBKO-JONES, BUNT, COY, CRAHALLA, CREIGHTON, DALLY,
DeWEESE, DiGIROLAMO, FLEAGLE, FORCIER, FREEMAN, GEIST,
HENNESSEY, LAUGHLIN, MAHER, McGEEHAN, MUNDY, PAYNE, PICKETT,
REICHLEY, ROSS, SANTONI, SAYLOR, SEMMEL, SOLOBAY,
E. Z. TAYLOR, TRAVAGLIO, TRUE, WALKO, WANSACZ, WATSON, WEBER,
YOUNGBLOOD AND THOMAS, AUGUST 5, 2003
AS REPORTED FROM COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION, HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES, AS AMENDED, MARCH 22, 2004
AN ACT
1 Amending Title 75 (Vehicles) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
2 Statutes, further providing for the person with disability
3 plate and placard, for physical examinations by certified
4 registered nurse practitioners and physician assistants, for
5 reports on mental or physical disabilities or disorders and
6 for determination of incompetency.
7 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
8 hereby enacts as follows:
9 Section 1. Sections 1338, 1518 and 1519 of Title 75 of the
10 Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes are amended to read:
11 § 1338. Person with disability plate and placard.
12 (a) Person with disability plate.--On the application of any
13 person who:
14 (1) is blind;
15 (2) does not have full use of an arm or both arms;
16 (3) cannot walk 200 feet without stopping to rest;
17 (4) cannot walk without the use of, or assistance from,
1 a brace, cane, crutch, another person, prosthetic device,
2 wheelchair or other assistive device;
3 (5) is restricted by lung disease to such an extent that
4 the person's forced (respiratory) expiratory volume for one
5 second, when measured by spirometry, is less than one liter
6 or the arterial oxygen tension is less than 60 mm/hg on room
7 air at rest;
8 (6) uses portable oxygen;
9 (7) has a cardiac condition to the extent that the
10 person's functional limitations are classified in severity as
11 Class III or Class IV according to the standards set by the
12 American Heart Association;
13 (8) is severely limited in his or her ability to walk
14 due to an arthritic, neurological or orthopedic condition; or
15 (9) is a person in loco parentis of a person specified
16 in paragraph (1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), (7) or (8);
17 the department shall issue a special registration plate for one
18 passenger car or truck with a registered gross weight of not
19 more than 9,000 pounds, designating the vehicle so licensed as
20 being used by a person with a disability. Special plates for
21 persons with disabilities may also be issued for vehicles
22 operated exclusively for the use and benefit of persons with
23 disabilities. In the case of a motorcycle, the department shall
24 issue a decal containing the international symbol for access for
25 persons with disabilities for display on the registration plate.
26 (b) Person with disability parking placard.--On the initial
27 application or renewal application of any person who meets the
28 qualifications of subsection (a), the department shall issue one
29 special parking placard of such size and design as the
30 department shall specify, designating the vehicle in which it is
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1 displayed as being used for the transportation of persons with
2 disabilities. When parking the designated vehicle, the person
3 with disability parking placard shall be prominently displayed
4 in such a manner that it may be viewed from the front and rear
5 of the vehicle by hanging it from the front windshield rearview
6 mirror of a vehicle only when that vehicle is utilizing a
7 parking space reserved for persons with disabilities. When there
8 is no rearview mirror, or the placard is not designed in such a
9 manner to accommodate hanging from a rearview mirror, the
10 placard shall be displayed on the dashboard. Placards may also
11 be issued for use in vehicles when operated for the use and
12 benefit of persons with disabilities provided that a person with
13 a disability is being transported in the vehicle. Organizations
14 that transport persons with disabilities shall upon application
15 be issued not more than eight placards in the organization's
16 name. These placards may be used in a vehicle of the
17 organization or the personal vehicle of an employee or volunteer
18 of the organization when the employee or volunteer operates the
19 vehicle for the benefit and use of persons with disabilities
20 provided that a person with a disability is being transported in
21 the vehicle.
22 (c) [Physician's] Health care provider's statement.--
23 (1) Any person applying for a special plate or parking
24 placard for persons with disabilities must present a
25 statement, certified by a physician, certified registered
26 nurse practitioner or physician assistant licensed OR <--
27 CERTIFIED to practice in this Commonwealth or in a contiguous
28 state, that the person with a disability is disabled as
29 provided in subsection (a).
30 (2) Any person applying for a renewal of registration of
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1 a special plate for persons with disabilities must comply
2 with this subsection. Once a person with a disability has
3 been duly certified by a physician, certified registered
4 nurse practitioner or physician assistant as being disabled,
5 as provided in subsection (a), the applicant need not submit
6 a certification for subsequent renewals of registration for a
7 special plate for persons with disabilities. A person who was
8 issued a person with disability plate under this section and
9 no longer qualifies for one shall not be charged a
10 replacement fee for a regular registration plate upon payment
11 of the regular registration fee.
12 (3) In lieu of a [physician's] health care provider's
13 statement, a person applying for a special plate or parking
14 placard may present a statement from a police officer
15 certifying that the person does not have full use of a leg,
16 or both legs, or is blind.
17 (4) The department shall phase out existing handicapped
18 placards as soon as practicable and issue a new series to
19 persons who comply with this section.
20 (c.1) Return of plates and placard.--Upon the death of a
21 person to whom a plate or placard has been issued under this
22 section, the plate or placard shall be void 30 days after death
23 and shall not be displayed on any vehicle. The personal
24 representative of the deceased shall return the plate to the
25 department. If there is no personal representative, the spouse
26 or, if there is no spouse, the next of kin of the deceased shall
27 return the plate or placard to the department.
28 (c.2) Authorized use.--This section shall not preclude the
29 operation of a vehicle which bears a person with disability
30 plate when the vehicle is not being used for the benefit of the
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1 person with a disability or when the person with a disability is
2 not present in the vehicle, provided the driver does not use or
3 attempt to use any special privilege or benefit otherwise
4 accorded to vehicles displaying the plate.
5 (d) Penalty.--Any person violating this section commits a
6 summary offense and shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay
7 a fine of not more than $100.
8 § 1518. Reports on mental or physical disabilities or
9 disorders.
10 (a) Definition of disorders and disabilities.--The Medical
11 Advisory Board shall define disorders characterized by lapses of
12 consciousness or other mental or physical disabilities affecting
13 the ability of a person to drive safely for the purpose of the
14 reports required by this section.
15 (b) Reports by [medical] health care personnel.--All
16 physicians, certified registered nurse practitioners, physician
17 assistants and other persons authorized to diagnose or treat
18 disorders and disabilities defined by the Medical Advisory Board
19 shall report to the department, in writing, the full name, date
20 of birth and address of every person over 15 years of age
21 diagnosed as having any specified disorder or disability within
22 ten days.
23 (c) Responsibility of institution heads.--The person in
24 charge of every mental hospital, institution or clinic, or any
25 alcohol or drug treatment facility, shall be responsible to
26 assure that reports are filed in accordance with subsection (b).
27 (d) Confidentiality of reports.--The reports required by
28 this section shall be confidential and shall be used solely for
29 the purpose of determining the qualifications of any person to
30 drive a motor vehicle on the highways of this Commonwealth.
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1 (e) Use of report as evidence.--No report forwarded under
2 the provisions of this section shall be used as evidence in any
3 civil or criminal trial except in any proceeding under section
4 1519(c) (relating to determination of incompetency).
5 (f) Immunity from civil and criminal liability.--No civil or
6 criminal action may be brought against any person or agency for
7 providing the information required under this system.
8 § 1519. Determination of incompetency.
9 (a) General rule.--The department, having cause to believe
10 that a licensed driver or applicant may not be physically or
11 mentally qualified to be licensed, may require the applicant or
12 driver to undergo one or more of the examinations authorized
13 under this subchapter in order to determine the competency of
14 the person to drive. The department may require the person to be
15 examined by a physician, a certified registered nurse
16 practitioner, a physician assistant or a licensed psychologist
17 designated by the department or may require the person to
18 undergo an examination by a physician, a certified registered
19 nurse practitioner, a physician assistant or a licensed
20 psychologist of the person's choice. If the department
21 designates the physician, a certified registered nurse
22 practitioner, a physician assistant or licensed psychologist,
23 the licensed driver or applicant may, in addition, cause a
24 written report to be forwarded to the department by a physician,
25 a certified registered nurse practitioner, a physician assistant
26 or a licensed psychologist of the driver's or applicant's
27 choice. Vision qualifications may be determined by an
28 optometrist or ophthalmologist. The department shall appoint one
29 or more qualified persons who shall consider all medical reports
30 and testimony in order to determine the competency of the driver
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1 or the applicant to drive.
2 (b) Confidentiality of reports and evidence.--Reports
3 received by the department for the purpose of assisting the
4 department in determining whether a person is qualified to be
5 licensed and reports of examinations authorized under this
6 subchapter are for the confidential use of the department and
7 may not be divulged to any person or used as evidence in any
8 trial except that the reports and statistics and evaluations
9 used by the department in determining whether a person should be
10 required to be examined under this subchapter shall be admitted
11 in proceedings under section 1550 (relating to judicial review).
12 (c) Recall or suspension of operating privilege.--The
13 department shall recall the operating privilege of any person
14 whose incompetency has been established under the provisions of
15 this chapter. The recall shall be for an indefinite period until
16 satisfactory evidence is presented to the department in
17 accordance with regulations to establish that such person is
18 competent to drive a motor vehicle. The department shall suspend
19 the operating privilege of any person who refuses or fails to
20 comply with the requirements of this section until that person
21 does comply and that person's competency to drive is
22 established. Any person aggrieved by recall or suspension of the
23 operating privilege may appeal in the manner provided in section
24 1550. The judicial review shall be limited to whether the person
25 is competent to drive in accordance with the provisions of the
26 regulations promulgated under section 1517 (relating to Medical
27 Advisory Board).
28 Section 2. Any regulations of the Department of
29 Transportation that are inconsistent with this act are hereby
30 abrogated to the extent of that inconsistency.
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1 Section 3. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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