Changes to VT Hands-Free Law, Effective July 1, 2015

Please note changes to the VT Hands-Free Law that, effective July 1, 2015, now prohibits use of your phone or texting while temporarily stationary due to traffic, traffic control devices or other temporary delays.

http://dmv.vermont.gov/…/files/pdf/LE%20Bulletin%2015-06.pdf

dmv.vermont.gov

dmv.vermont.gov

 

LAW ENFORCEMENT BULLETIN # 15-06

Changes to Motor Vehicle Laws

There were a few changes to motor vehicle laws this past legislative session law enforcement officers should be aware of. These changes are in Act 50 (S.122), which is referred to as the “DMV Miscellaneous bill.”

The Act has 34 sections covering 63 pages. The following information highlights the sections of the Act we feel would be of most interest to law enforcement officers. These sections become law on July 1, 2015. You can view the bill in its entirety on the legislative home page.

Section 7: Parking for Persons with Disabilities - 23 V.S.A. § 304a is amended as follows:
A “removable windshield placard” was previously described as a two-sided, hanger style placard which includes on each side the International Symbol of Access, which is at least three inches in height, centered on the placard, and is white on a blue shield. The law has been changed to indicate the symbol must be “a color that contrasts with the placard’s background color.”

This section now defines an “eligible person” as a person who is blind or has an ambulatory disability and has been issued a special registration plate or a windshield placard by this State or another state; a person who is transporting a person described in subdivision (A) of this subdivision; or a person transporting a person who is blind or has an ambulatory disability on behalf of an organization that has been issued a special registration plate or a windshield placard by this State, or another state, for the purpose of transporting a person who is blind or has an ambulatory disability.

An eligible person may park vehicles with special registration plates or removable windshield placards, issued by any state, in special parking spaces, or in a State or municipally operated parking garage, without fee, for at least 24 continuous hours.

Section 8: Multifunction School Activity Buses - 23 V.S.A. § 1072(a) is amended to include a multifunction school activity bus as a vehicle that must stop within 50 feet, but not less than 15 feet, from the nearest rail of a railroad crossing. The driver must look and listen for any approaching train and for signals indicating the approach of a train, and may
not proceed until he or she can do so safely.
 

Section 11: Distracted Driving - 23 V.S.A. § 1095a is amended to read:
A person under 18 years of age shall not use any portable electronic device as defined in subdivision 4(82) of this title while operating a moving motor vehicle in a place open temporarily or permanently to public or general circulation of vehicles. In addition, a person under 18 years of age shall not use any portable electronic device while operating a motor vehicle on a public highway, including while the vehicle is stationary unless otherwise provided in this section.

As used in this subsection: “Public highway” means a State or municipal highway as defined in 19 V.S.A. § 1(12) as follows:
 

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Changes to Motor Vehicle Laws

(12) "Highways" are only such as are laid out in the manner prescribed by statute; or roads which have been constructed for public travel over land which has been conveyed to and accepted by a municipal corporation or to the State by deed of a fee or easement interest; or roads which have been dedicated to the public use and accepted by the city or town in which such roads are located; or such as may be from time to time laid out by the Agency or town. However, the lack of a certificate of completion of a State or town highway shall not alone constitute conclusive evidence that the highway is not public. The term "highway" includes rights-of-way, bridges, drainage structures, signs, guardrails, areas to accommodate utilities authorized by law to locate within highway limits, areas used to mitigate the environmental impacts of highway construction, vegetation, scenic enhancements, and structures. The term "highway" does not include State Forest highways, management roads, easements, or rights-of-way owned by or under the control of the Agency of Natural Resources, the Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation, the Department of Fish and Wildlife, or the Department of Environmental Conservation.

Section 12: Handheld Use of Portable Electronic Device Prohibited- 23 V.S.A. § 1095b is amended to read:

Definition: As used in this section, “hands-free use” means the use of a portable electronic device without use of either hand by employing an internal feature of, or an attachment to, the device.

A person shall not use a portable electronic device while operating a moving motor vehicle in a place open temporarily or permanently to public or general circulation of vehicles.

In addition, a person shall not use a portable electronic device while operating a motor vehicle on a public highway in Vermont, including while the vehicle is stationary unless otherwise provided in this section.

As used in this subdivision, “Public highway” means a State or municipal highway as defined in 19 

V.S.A. § 1(12). SEE DEFINITION IN SECTION 11.

“Operating” means operating a motor vehicle on a public highway, including while temporarily stationary because of traffic, a traffic control device, or other temporary delays.
“Operating” does not include operating a motor vehicle with or without the motor running when the operator has moved the vehicle to the side of or off the public highway and has halted in a location where the vehicle can safely and lawfully remain stationary.

The prohibitions of this subsection shall not apply: to hands-free use; to activation or deactivation of hands-free use, as long as any accessory for securely mounting the device is not affixed to the windshield in violation of section 1125 of this title. When use of a portable electronic device is necessary for a person to communicate with law enforcement or emergency service personnel under emergency circumstances. To use an ignition interlock device, as defined in section §1200 of this title. To use a global positioning or navigation system if it is installed by the manufacturer or securely mounted in the vehicle in a manner that does not violate section 1125 of this title. As used in this 

 

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Changes to Motor Vehicle Laws

subdivision, “securely mounted” means the device is placed in an accessory or location in the vehicle, other than the operator’s hands, where the device will remain stationary under typical driving conditions.

Section 13: Texting Prohibited - 23 V.S.A. § 1099 is amended to read:
As used in this section, “texting” means the reading or the manual composing or sending of electronic communications, including text messages, instant messages, or e-mails, using a portable electronic device as defined in subdivision 4(82) of this title. Use of a global positioning or navigation system shall be governed by section 1095b of this title.

A person shall not engage in texting while operating a moving motor vehicle in a place open temporarily or permanently to public or general circulation of vehicles.

In addition, a person shall not engage in texting while operating a motor vehicle on a public highway in Vermont, including while the vehicle is stationary unless otherwise provided under this section.
As used in this subdivision: “Public highway” means a State or municipal highway as defined in 19 

 

V.S.A. § 1(12). SEE DEFINITION IN SECTION 11.

“Operating” means operating a motor vehicle on a public highway, including while temporarily stationary because of traffic, a traffic control device, or other temporary delays. “Operating” does not include operating a motor vehicle with or without the motor running when the operator has moved the vehicle to the side of or off the public highway and has halted in a location where the vehicle can safely and lawfully remain stationary.

A person who violates this section commits a traffic violation as defined in section 2302 of this title and shall be subject to a penalty of not less than $100.00 and not more than $200.00 for a first violation, and of not less than $250.00 and not more than $500.00 for a second or subsequent violation within any two-year period.

Section 14: LEGISLATIVE INTENT - Obstructing Windshields, Windows
In State v. Hurley, 2015 VT 46 (March 6, 2015), the Vermont Supreme Court held that the prohibition of 23 V.S.A. § 1125 on objects hanging behind a windshield extends only to an object that “materially obstructs the driver’s view.”

In adding the second sentence to 23 V.S.A. § 1125(a) as provided in Sec. 15 of this bill, the General Assembly intends to codify the holding of the Hurley decision and to codify the logical extension of the Court’s holding to objects hanging behind a vent or side window immediately to the left or right of the driver. In only addressing hanging objects in 23 V.S.A. § 1125(a), the General Assembly takes no position on whether the Court’s reasoning should extend further to the statute’s prohibition on painting or adhering material or items to such windows or the windshield.

Refer to DMV Law Enforcement Bulletin 15-03, issued on March 18, 2015, for further information on this issue. 

 

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Changes to Motor Vehicle Laws

Section 15: Obstructing Windshields, Windows - 23 V.S.A. § 1125 is amended to read:
No person shall paste, stick, or paint advertising matter or other things; except as otherwise provided in this section, a person shall not operate a motor vehicle on which material or items have been painted or adhered on or over, or hung in back of, any transparent part of a motor vehicle windshield, vent windows, or side windows located immediately to the left and right of the operator, nor hang any object, other than a rear view mirror, in back of the windshield except as follows. The prohibition of this section on hanging items shall apply only when a hanging item materially obstructs the driver’s view.

Notwithstanding subsection (a) of this section, a person may operate a motor vehicle with material or items painted or adhered on or over, or hung in back of, the windshield, vent windows, or side windows: In a space not over four inches high and 12 inches long in the lower right-hand corner of the windshield.; In such space as the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles may specify for location of any sticker required by governmental regulation; in a space not over two inches high and two and one-half inches long in the upper left-hand corner of the windshield; by persons if the operator is a person employed by the federal, state, or local government and or a volunteer emergency responder operating an authorized emergency vehicle, who may place any necessary equipment in back of the windshield of the vehicle, provided the equipment does not interfere with the operator’s control of the driving mechanism of the vehicle; on a motor vehicle that is for sale by a licensed automobile dealer prior to the sale of the vehicle, in a space not over three inches high and six inches long in the upper left-hand corner of the windshield, and in a space not over four inches high and 18 inches long in the upper right-hand corner of the windshield; or if the object is a rearview mirror, or is an electronic toll-collection transponder located either between the roof line and the rearview mirror post or behind the rearview mirror.

Section 16: Total Abstinence Program; Application Requirements - 23 V.S.A. § 1209a (b) (1) is amended to read: The application shall include the applicant’s authorization for a urinalysis examination to be conducted prior to reinstatement under this subdivision.

Section 25: All-terrain Vehicles - 23 V.S.A. § 3501(5) is amended to read: “All-terrain vehicle” or “ATV” means any non-highway recreational vehicle, except snowmobiles, having no less than two low pressure tires (10 pounds per square inch, or less), not wider than 64 inches with two-wheel ATVs having permanent, full-time power to both wheels, and having a dry weight of less than 1,700 pounds, when used for cross-country travel on trails or on any one of the following or a combination thereof: land, water, snow, ice, marsh, swampland, and natural terrain.

Section 26: ATV Registration -23 V.S.A. § 3502 is amended to read: By a person who possesses a completed TAD form processed electronically and either printed out or displayed on a portable electronic device. The printed or electronic TAD form shall be valid for 10 days after the electronic transaction. Use of a portable electronic device to display a completed TAD form does not in itself constitute consent for an enforcement officer to access other contents of the device.
This section took effect upon passage.

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Changes to Motor Vehicle Laws

Section 28: Lists of Registrations and Suspensions - 23 V.S.A. § 109 is amended to read: A list of all persons whose operating license, nonresident operating privileges, or privilege of an unlicensed operator to operate a vehicle is suspended or revoked in this State shall be available on request in such form as the Commissioner may determine. The list shall be available in an electronic format for law enforcement officers with computer access through the Department of Public Safety.
 

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