Florida Senate - 2012                                     SB 244
       
       
       
       By Senator Bennett
       
       
       
       
       21-00166-12                                            2012244__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to motor vehicles; creating the
    3         “Highway Safety Act”; providing legislative intent
    4         relating to road rage and aggressive careless driving;
    5         amending s. 316.003, F.S.; defining the term “road
    6         rage”; amending s. 316.083, F.S.; requiring an
    7         operator of a motor vehicle to yield the left lane
    8         when being overtaken on a multilane highway; providing
    9         exceptions; amending s. 316.1923, F.S.; revising the
   10         number of specified acts necessary to qualify as an
   11         aggressive careless driver; providing specified
   12         punishments for aggressive careless driving, including
   13         imposition of an increased fine; amending s. 318.121,
   14         F.S.; revising the preemption of additional fees,
   15         fines, surcharges, and court costs to allow imposition
   16         of the increased fine for aggressive careless driving;
   17         amending s. 318.18, F.S.; specifying the amount of the
   18         fine and the allocation of moneys received from the
   19         increased fine imposed for aggressive careless
   20         driving; amending s. 318.19, F.S.; providing that a
   21         second or subsequent infraction as an aggressive
   22         careless driver requires attendance at a mandatory
   23         hearing; requiring the Department of Highway Safety
   24         and Motor Vehicles to provide information about the
   25         Highway Safety Act in driver’s license educational
   26         materials; reenacting s. 316.650(1)(a), F.S., relating
   27         to traffic citations, to incorporate the amendments
   28         made to s. 316.1923, F.S., in a reference thereto;
   29         providing an effective date.
   30  
   31  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   32  
   33         Section 1. This act may be cited as the “Highway Safety
   34  Act.”
   35         Section 2. The Legislature finds that road rage and
   36  aggressive careless driving are a growing threat to the health,
   37  safety, and welfare of the public. The intent of the Legislature
   38  is to reduce road rage and aggressive careless driving, reduce
   39  the incidence of drivers’ interfering with the movement of
   40  traffic, minimize crashes, and promote the orderly, free flow of
   41  traffic on the roads and highways of the state.
   42         Section 3. Subsection (89) is added to section 316.003,
   43  Florida Statutes, to read:
   44         316.003 Definitions.—The following words and phrases, when
   45  used in this chapter, shall have the meanings respectively
   46  ascribed to them in this section, except where the context
   47  otherwise requires:
   48         (89) ROAD RAGE.—The act of a driver or passenger to
   49  intentionally or unintentionally, due to a loss of emotional
   50  control, injure or kill another driver, passenger, or
   51  pedestrian, or to attempt or threaten to injure or kill another
   52  driver, passenger, or pedestrian.
   53         Section 4. Present subsection (3) of section 316.083,
   54  Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (4), and a new
   55  subsection (3) is added to that section, to read:
   56         316.083 Overtaking and passing a vehicle.—The following
   57  rules shall govern the overtaking and passing of vehicles
   58  proceeding in the same direction, subject to those limitations,
   59  exceptions, and special rules hereinafter stated:
   60         (3)(a) On roads, streets, or highways having two or more
   61  lanes that allow movement in the same direction, a driver may
   62  not continue to operate a motor vehicle in the furthermost left
   63  hand lane if the driver knows, or reasonably should know, that
   64  he or she is being overtaken in that lane from the rear by a
   65  motor vehicle traveling at a higher rate of speed.
   66         (b) Paragraph (a) does not apply to a driver operating a
   67  motor vehicle in the furthermost left-hand lane if:
   68         1. The driver is driving the legal speed limit and is not
   69  impeding the flow of traffic in the furthermost left-hand lane;
   70         2. The driver is in the process of overtaking a slower
   71  motor vehicle in the adjacent right-hand lane for the purpose of
   72  passing the slower moving vehicle so that the driver may move to
   73  the adjacent right-hand lane;
   74         3. Conditions make the flow of traffic substantially the
   75  same in all lanes or preclude the driver from moving to the
   76  adjacent right-hand lane;
   77         4. The driver’s movement to the adjacent right-hand lane
   78  could endanger the driver or other drivers;
   79         5. The driver is directed by a law enforcement officer,
   80  road sign, or road crew to remain in the furthermost left-hand
   81  lane; or
   82         6. The driver is preparing to make a left turn.
   83         (c)A driver who violates s. 316.183 and this subsection
   84  simultaneously shall receive a uniform traffic citation solely
   85  under s. 316.183.
   86         Section 5. Section 316.1923, Florida Statutes, is amended
   87  to read:
   88         316.1923 Aggressive careless driving.—
   89         (1) “Aggressive careless driving” means committing three
   90  two or more of the following acts simultaneously or in
   91  succession:
   92         (a)(1) Exceeding the posted speed as defined in s.
   93  322.27(3)(d)5.b.
   94         (b)(2) Unsafely or improperly changing lanes as defined in
   95  s. 316.085.
   96         (c)(3) Following another vehicle too closely as defined in
   97  s. 316.0895(1).
   98         (d)(4) Failing to yield the right-of-way as defined in s.
   99  316.079, s. 316.0815, or s. 316.123.
  100         (e)(5) Improperly passing or failing to yield to overtaking
  101  vehicles as defined in s. 316.083, s. 316.084, or s. 316.085.
  102         (f)(6) Violating traffic control and signal devices as
  103  defined in ss. 316.074 and 316.075.
  104         (2) Any person convicted of aggressive careless driving
  105  shall be cited for a moving violation and punished as provided
  106  in chapter 318, and by the accumulation of points as provided in
  107  s. 322.27, for each act of aggressive careless driving.
  108         Section 6. Section 318.121, Florida Statutes, is amended to
  109  read
  110         318.121 Preemption of additional fees, fines, surcharges,
  111  and costs.—Notwithstanding any general or special law, or
  112  municipal or county ordinance, additional fees, fines,
  113  surcharges, or costs other than the additional fees, fines,
  114  court costs, and surcharges assessed under s. 318.18(11), (13),
  115  (18), and (19), and (22) may not be added to the civil traffic
  116  penalties assessed in this chapter.
  117         Section 7. Subsection (22) is added to section 318.18,
  118  Florida Statutes, to read:
  119         318.18 Amount of penalties.—The penalties required for a
  120  noncriminal disposition pursuant to s. 318.14 or a criminal
  121  offense listed in s. 318.17 are as follows:
  122         (22)(a)In addition to any penalties or points imposed
  123  under s. 316.1923, a person convicted of aggressive careless
  124  driving shall also pay:
  125         1. Upon a first violation, a fine of $100.
  126         2. Upon a second or subsequent conviction, a fine of not
  127  less than $250 but not more than $500 and be subject to a
  128  mandatory hearing under s. 318.19.
  129         (b) The clerk of the court shall remit the moneys collected
  130  from the increased fine imposed by this subsection to the
  131  Department of Revenue for deposit into the Department of Health
  132  Administrative Trust Fund. Of the funds deposited into the
  133  Department of Health Administrative Trust Fund, $200,000 in the
  134  first year after October 1, 2012, and $50,000 in the second and
  135  third years, shall be transferred into the Highway Safety
  136  Operating Trust Fund to offset the cost of providing educational
  137  materials related to this act. Funds deposited into the
  138  Department of Health Administrative Trust Fund under this
  139  subsection shall be allocated as follows:
  140         1. Twenty-five percent shall be allocated equally among all
  141  Level I, Level II, and pediatric trauma centers in recognition
  142  of readiness costs for maintaining trauma services.
  143         2. Twenty-five percent shall be allocated among Level I,
  144  Level II, and pediatric trauma centers based on each center’s
  145  relative volume of trauma cases as reported in the Department of
  146  Health Trauma Registry.
  147         3. Twenty-five percent shall be transferred to the
  148  Emergency Medical Services Trust Fund and used by the department
  149  for making matching grants to emergency medical services
  150  organizations as defined in s. 401.107.
  151         4. Twenty-five percent shall be transferred to the
  152  Emergency Medical Services Trust Fund and made available to
  153  rural emergency medical services as defined in s. 401.107, and
  154  shall be used solely to improve and expand prehospital emergency
  155  medical services in this state. Additionally, these moneys may
  156  be used for the improvement, expansion, or continuation of
  157  services provided.
  158         Section 8. Section 318.19, Florida Statutes, is amended to
  159  read:
  160         318.19 Infractions requiring a mandatory hearing.—Any
  161  person cited for the infractions listed in this section shall
  162  not have the provisions of s. 318.14(2), (4), and (9) available
  163  to him or her but must appear before the designated official at
  164  the time and location of the scheduled hearing:
  165         (1) Any infraction which results in a crash that causes the
  166  death of another;
  167         (2) Any infraction which results in a crash that causes
  168  “serious bodily injury” of another as defined in s. 316.1933(1);
  169         (3) Any infraction of s. 316.172(1)(b);
  170         (4) Any infraction of s. 316.520(1) or (2); or
  171         (5) Any infraction of s. 316.183(2), s. 316.187, or s.
  172  316.189 of exceeding the speed limit by 30 m.p.h. or more; or.
  173         (6) A second or subsequent infraction of s. 316.1923(1).
  174         Section 9. The Department of Highway Safety and Motor
  175  Vehicles shall provide information about the Highway Safety Act
  176  in all driver’s license educational materials newly printed on
  177  or after October 1, 2012.
  178         Section 10. For the purpose of incorporating the amendments
  179  made by this act to section 316.1923, Florida Statutes, in a
  180  reference thereto, paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section
  181  316.650, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read:
  182         316.650 Traffic citations.—
  183         (1)(a) The department shall prepare and supply to every
  184  traffic enforcement agency in this state an appropriate form
  185  traffic citation that contains a notice to appear, is issued in
  186  prenumbered books, meets the requirements of this chapter or any
  187  laws of this state regulating traffic, and is consistent with
  188  the state traffic court rules and the procedures established by
  189  the department. The form shall include a box that is to be
  190  checked by the law enforcement officer when the officer believes
  191  that the traffic violation or crash was due to aggressive
  192  careless driving as defined in s. 316.1923. The form shall also
  193  include a box that is to be checked by the law enforcement
  194  officer when the officer writes a uniform traffic citation for a
  195  violation of s. 316.074(1) or s. 316.075(1)(c)1. as a result of
  196  the driver failing to stop at a traffic signal.
  197         Section 11. This act shall take effect October 1, 2012.