Sponsor: Senator White Subject: An Act amending Title 20 V.I.C., chapter 35, section 374, relating to the limitations on the issuances of driver’s licenses to persons under 18 years of age and for other purposes.

1. COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY, HOMELAND
SECURITY AND JUSTICE
BILL NO. 28-0040
Twenty-Eighth Legislature of the Virgin Islands
APRIL 22, 2009
An Act amending title 20 V.I.C., chapter 35, section 374 relating to limitations on the
issuance of driver’s licenses to persons under 18 years of age and for other purposes
PROPOSED BY: Senator Celestino A. White, Sr.
1 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the Virgin Islands:
2 SECTION 1. Title 20 Virgin Islands Code, chapter 35, section 374, is amended by
3 designating the exiting paragraphs as subsections (a) and (b) respectively, and adding
4 subsections (c) and (d) to read:
5 “(c) No license shall be issued under this section to any person under 18 years of
6 age who has dropped out of or was expelled from any private, public, parochial or
7 denominational school in the United States, as defined under title 17 V.I.C., § 1, whether or
8 not the person holds a bona fide unexpired or expired license issued by any state, territory or
9 possession of the United States or foreign country or has completed an approved Driver

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1 Education Program of the Virgin Islands. For purposes of this section, the term “dropout”
2 means the following, a student who:
3 1. was enrolled in school at some time during the school year and was
4 not enrolled on October 1 of the following school year, or
5 2. was not enrolled on October 1 of the school year although was
6 expected to be in membership (i.e., was not reported as a dropout the year before),
7 and
8 3. has not graduated from high school or completed a state, territory or
9 possession of the United States high school equivalency program, or
10 4. did not meet any of the following exclusionary conditions:
11 (a) transfer to another public, private, parochial or denominational
12 school in the United States;
13 (b) has completed any continuing education or high school
14 equivalency program or is a student or vocation education or rehabilitation
15 program or any education program in any state, territory or possession of the
16 United States; or
17 (c) was absent due to suspension for less than three months or
18 illness.
19 The term “expelled” means any person barred from further attendance or terminated
20 by the Commissioner of Education, the principal of a primary, junior or high school or any
21 person expulsed or suspended from any primary, junior or high school for a period in excess
22 of three months.
23 (d) The Director of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles shall establish rules and
24 procedures to effectuate the purposes of this section.”
25 SECTION 2. This Act shall take effect 6 months subsequent to enactment.

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1 BILL SUMMARY
2 Section 1 of this Act designates the existing paragraphs as subsections (a) and (b)
3 respectively and adds subsections (c) and (d).
4 Subsection 1(c) prohibits the issuance of a driver’s license to any person under the
5 age of 18 years who dropped out of or was expelled from school. This prohibition is not
6 limited to citizens of the Virgin Islands, but also to persons expelled from or who dropped
7 out of any private, public, parochial or denominational school in the United States and
8 persons holding an unexpired or expired bona fide driver’s license issued by a place other
9 than the Virgin Islands. This expansion attempts to keep the Act within the laws of the
10 Virgin Islands and the United States. In addition, this subsection provides the respective
11 definition for the terms “dropout” and “expelled”.
12 Lastly, subsection 1(c) recognizes that the issuance of a driver’s license is not a
13 fundamental right. It is also a legitimate government interest to discourage student dropout
14 and expulsion from school by limiting the issuing of licenses to persons under 18 years of
15 age who dropped out or was expelled from school.
16 Section 1(b) requires the Director of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles to adopt rules and
17 procedures necessary to effectuate the purposes of the Act.
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19 BR09-0353/March 5, 2009/ STJ
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