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SPONSOR: |
Cravens |
DATE TYPED: |
02/03/02 |
HB |
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SHORT TITLE: |
DWI Implied Consent Hearings |
SB |
421 |
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|
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ANALYST: |
Wilson |
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APPROPRIATION
|
Appropriation
Contained |
Estimated
Additional Impact |
Recurring or Non-Rec |
Fund Affected |
||
|
FY02 |
FY03 |
FY02 |
FY03 |
|
|
|
|
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$0.1 Indeterminate |
Recurring |
General Fund |
|
(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate
Expenditure Decreases)
Duplicates HB 399
Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC)
Taxation and Revenue Department (TRD)
Attorney General’s Office (AG)
Public Defender Department (PDD)
Department of Public Safety (DPS)
SUMMARY
Synopsis
of Bill
SB
421 provides that implied consent hearings may be conducted by telephone at the
discretion of the TRD, places the powers of the hearing officer into the
statutory law and provides that the officer’s statement would provide prima
facie evidence of the elements required to sustain the revocation or denial of
the person’s license.
Significant
Issues
Placing
the hearing officer’s powers in the statute, as opposed to in the current TRD
regulations, makes it easier for the public to access those powers.
Making
the officer’s statement prima facie evidence of the elements required to
sustain the revocation or denial of the person’s license shifts the burden to
the driver to provide testimony or evidence to dispute the officer’s
allegation.
The PDD states that SB
421 legislation streamlines and enhances the process by which the Motor Vehicles
Division of TRD can revoke a driver’s license.
The obvious result of this bill will be a significant increase in the
number of licenses that are revoked each year since SB 421 cuts down on the
amount of “process” a person facing revocation of a driver’s license is due.
SB 421 decrees that
the existing Rules of Evidence and Rules of Civil Procedure are not
to be followed, but leaves it totally unclear what procedures are
to be followed, leaving it up to each individual hearing officer at each
individual hearing.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
TRD states that the cost of
completely replacing and distributing all the existing inventory of DWI books
across the state would be substantial, but this should be offset by not
incurring the expense of sending hearing officers to outlying areas to conduct
hearings.
The PDD believes that its
caseload will increase since a greater number of license revocations will
result in an increased number of individuals driving with a revoked license and
needing the PDD to defend them.
ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS
DPS believes that SB 421 will have a positive
administrative impact as it allows officer to submit documents and make
appearances in a simplified manner.
TRD
notes that not all the field officers are equipped with a dedicated phone line
for the hearings. TRD would need to
adequately equip those offices. TRD would also need to rework the Notice of
Revocation issued by the police officers and then reissue them to all offices.
[1]Begin typing on the * in replace mode. Do not add or delete spaces.