Chapter 115
2013 -- H 5119 SUBSTITUTE A AS
AMENDED
Enacted 06/18/13
A N A C T
RELATING TO
MOTOR AND OTHER VEHICLES -- PARKING FACILITIES PRIVILEGES
Introduced
By: Representatives Malik,
Date Introduced: January 22, 2013
It is enacted by the
General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Section 31-28-7 of the General Laws in Chapter
31-28 entitled "Parking
Facilities and
Privileges" is hereby amended to read as follows:
31-28-7. Motor
vehicle plates for persons with disabilities -- Entitlement --
Designated parking spaces --
Violations. -- (a) Persons, as defined in subsection (h) of this
section, upon application and proof of permanent or long-term
disability to the division of motor
vehicles, shall be issued one motor vehicle disability parking
privilege placard or in the case of a
motorcycle, one motor vehicle sticker, of blue which shall be
imprinted with the white
international symbol of access, certificate number, the words
"Rhode Island Disability Parking
Permit" and shall bear the expiration date upon
its face. A placard or motorcycle sticker issued to
a person whose disability is temporary shall be
substantially similar to that issued to a person with
a permanent or long term disability. The temporary
placard, however, shall be a red placard with
a white international symbol of access, certificate
number, the words "Rhode Island Disability
Parking Permit" and shall bear the expiration
dates upon its face. A preliminary placard shall be
similar to that issued to a person with a permanent,
long-term, or temporary disability. The
preliminary placard shall be effective for twenty-one (21) days,
and may be issued by an
applicant's licensed physician, if in the medical provider's opinion
the applicant's medical
condition merits the issuance of a preliminary placard while
the division considers the applicant's
qualifications for any type of disability parking permit. The
preliminary placard shall be an
orange placard with a white international symbol of access,
certificate number, the words "Rhode
Island disability parking permit" and shall bear
the expiration date upon its face and shall be
displayed on the dashboard of the vehicle in a manner that it
is clearly visible from the front. The
division of motor vehicles shall promulgate rules governing
the issuance and use of preliminary
placards. Applicants shall not be charged any fee associated
with the issuance of a preliminary
placard. Physicians submitting false information to the
division of motor vehicles to obtain a
preliminary placard on anyone's behalf may be subject to the
penalties set forth in section 11-18-
1.3. Persons
issued a placard or motorcycle sticker pursuant to this section shall be
entitled to the
immunities of sections 31-28-4 and 31-28-6. The placard shall
conform to the Uniform Parking
System for Disabled Drivers standard
issued by the United States Department of Transportation.
If an application for a placard or motorcycle sticker
is denied, the division of motor vehicles shall
promptly notify the applicant in writing, stating the specific
reason(s) for the denial, and advising
the applicant of the procedures for requesting a hearing
to appeal the denial. Prior to the appeal
hearing, the applicant shall be provided with any and all
documents relied upon by the division in
denying the application. If an application contains a
physician certification that the applicant is
sufficiently disabled to require a placard or motorcycle sticker,
and the division has not provided
specific reasons in its denial letter to the applicant, the
hearing officer shall summarily order that
a placard or motorcycle sticker be provided to the
applicant. At all other hearings of application
denials where a physician certification has been provided,
the division shall bear the burden of
proof that the individual is not entitled to a placard or
motorcycle sticker pursuant to this chapter.
(b) A placard issued
pursuant to this section shall be portable and used only when the
person is being transported. The placard is to be hung from
the rear view mirror so as to be seen
through the front or rear windshield of the motor vehicle. A
placard may be issued to a person
with a disability who does not own a motor vehicle, to be
used only when he or she is being
transported. A motorcycle sticker issued pursuant to this section
shall not be portable and shall be
affixed to the rear plate of the motorcycle.
(c) (1) The certificate of entitlement to the placard or motorcycle
sticker shall be
renewed every three (3) years for individuals with a
long-term disability, as defined in subsection
(d) of this section, and the
renewal application shall require a physician's certification that the
condition has not changed since the previous approval, and
three (3) years for individuals with a
permanent disability as defined in subsection (h) of this
section, in accordance with a schedule
prepared by the division of motor vehicles that uses the last
name of an individual to determine
the month of renewal. If an application or subsequent
renewal is accompanied by a physician's
certification that the applicant's condition is a chronic,
permanent impairment and that application
is approved, then any subsequent renewal shall be
authorized upon receipt of a notarized affidavit
from the applicant or applicant's, guardian or legal
representative or a certificate from the
applicant's physician that his or her condition has not changed
since the previous approval.
(2) The certificate of
entitlement to the placard or motorcycle sticker shall be covered
with plastic or similar material. The applicant shall,
upon timely renewal, receive a sticker
bearing the expiration date of the certificate of entitlement
to be affixed across the expiration date
of the disability parking privilege placard or in the
case of a motorcycle the applicant shall
receive a new motorcycle sticker. The division of motor
vehicles shall establish rules and
regulations allowing for the renewal of the certificates of
entitlement by mail.
(3) Whenever the
division of motor vehicles proposes to suspend, revoke or fail to renew
the certificate of entitlement for noncompliance with the
requirements of this section or for
violation of subsection (h) of this section, the individual
shall first be entitled to a hearing before
the division of motor vehicles to contest the proposed
action. At the hearing, the division of motor
vehicles shall bear the burden of proof that the individual is
not entitled to the placard or
motorcycle sticker pursuant to this chapter. There shall be no
renewal fee charged for the placards
or motorcycle sticker. The division of motor vehicles
shall be authorized to issue a temporary
disability parking privilege placard or motorcycle sticker
immediately upon receipt of an
application for individuals with a temporary impairment, as
defined in subsection (h) of this
section. A temporary placard or motorcycle sticker shall be
valid for sixty (60) days from the date
of issuance. Temporary placards or motorcycle stickers
may be renewed for a period of one year
or less, as determined by the medical advisory board
upon application if the disability persists.
The division of motor vehicles shall subsequently
review the applications in accordance with the
procedures currently in effect as to applications from persons
whose disability is long term. Any
issuance which, after subsequent review, shall be found to be
inappropriate shall be revoked and
notice of the revocation shall be sent to the applicant.
(d) A person, other
than a person with a disability, who for his or her own purposes uses
the parking privilege placard, shall be fined five
hundred dollars ($500) for each violation. A
person issued a special placard who uses the placard after
expiration, or who shall allow
unauthorized use of the disability parking placard or sticker, may
be subject to immediate
revocation of the use of the placard by the division of motor
vehicles, and subject to a fine of five
hundred dollars ($500).
(e) Disability parking
spaces shall be designated and identified by the posting of signs
above ground level incorporating the international symbol
of access of white on blue, and the
words "Handicapped Parking", "Disability
Parking," "Disabled Parking," or "Reserved Parking"
at each space, at both ends of a row or series of
adjacent disability parking spaces, or at the
entrance to a parking lot restricted to only disability
parking.
(f) A person, other
than a person issued a special placard or motorcycle sticker pursuant
to this section, who parks a vehicle in a parking space
designated for persons with disabilities,
shall be fined: (1) one hundred dollars ($100) for a first
violation, (2) one hundred seventy-five
dollars ($175) for a second violation, and (3) three hundred
twenty-five dollars ($325) for a third
or subsequent violation. The vehicle may be subject to
towing at the owner's expense. Provided
further, that it shall not be unlawful for a person to park a
vehicle in a space designated for person
with disabilities if that person is transporting a person
who has been issued a special placard and
is properly displaying the placard on the vehicle.
(g) Enforcement of the
parking provisions of this section shall be enforced by the local
or state authorities on public or private property when
the location of the parking spaces is within
the purview of the State Building Code, chapter 27.3 of
title 23.
(h) Definitions. - For
the purpose of this section:
(1)
"Disabled" or "disability" means a permanent or long-term
impairment which
prevents or impedes walking, which shall include but not be
limited to: (i) an impairment which
prevents walking and requires use of a wheelchair; (ii) an
impairment which involuntarily causes
difficulty or insecurity in walking or climbing stairs with or
without the need to use braces,
crutches, canes or artificial support; (iii) an impairment caused
by amputation, arthritis, blindness
(including legally blind), or
orthopedic condition; (iv) an impairment in respiratory, circulatory,
or neurological health which limits the person's walking
capability; or (v) disabled veteran,
pursuant to section 31-6-8 after certification of eligibility
from the Veterans' Administration or
other satisfactory documentation of eligibility is
presented. Persons with disabilities may be
capable of working or may be presently working.
(2) "Long-term
disability" means an impairment which is potentially reversible or may
improve with appropriate medical treatment. At the time of
application and or renewal, the
impairment should not be expected to improve prior to the
expiration of the certification, to a
point where the individual does not meet the provisions of
subdivision (1) of this subsection.
(3) "Permanent
disability" means an impairment which is non-reversible.
(4) "Temporary
impairment" means an impairment which is expected to improve to a
point where the individual does not meet the provisions of
subdivision (1) of this subsection,
within two (2) years of the application.
(i)
The department of revenue shall inform each licensed driver of the certificate
procedures and parking restrictions of this section and sections
31-28-4 and 31-28-6, and a
facsimile of the portable placards and motorcycle stickers
issued under this section shall be sent
to the enforcing authority of each state, and each
enforcing authority shall be informed of the
parking restrictions of this section and sections 31-28-4 and
31-28-6. Recipients of disability
parking privilege placards shall also receive instructions on
their use and the penalties for misuse,
when the placard is initially issued.
(j) Any person who
makes, manufactures, offers for sale or knowingly uses a counterfeit
parking privilege placard shall be fined up to five hundred
dollars ($500) and/or forty (40) hours
of community restitution.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect on January 1, 2014.
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LC00206/SUB A/2
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