ARTICLE 8. COMMERCIAL DRIVER'S LICENSES
SECTION 8.01. Section 522.003(25), Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(25) "Serious traffic violation" means:
(A) a conviction arising from the driving of a
commercial motor vehicle, other than a parking, vehicle weight, or
vehicle defect violation, for:
(i) [(A)] excessive speeding, involving a
single charge of driving 15 miles per hour or more above the posted
speed limit;
(ii) [(B)] reckless driving, as defined by
state or local law;
(iii) [(C)] a violation of a state or local
law related to motor vehicle traffic control, including a law
regulating the operation of vehicles on highways, arising in
connection with a fatal accident;
(iv) [(D)] improper or erratic traffic lane
change;
(v) [(E)] following the vehicle ahead too
closely; or
(vi) [(F) operating] a [commercial motor
vehicle in] violation of Sections [Section] 522.011 or 522.042; or
(B) a violation of Section 522.015.
SECTION 8.02. Section 522.081, Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 522.081. DISQUALIFICATION. (a) This subsection
applies [only] to a violation committed while operating any motor
vehicle, including a commercial motor vehicle. A person who holds a
commercial driver's license is disqualified from driving a
commercial motor vehicle for:
(1) 60 days if convicted of:
(A) two serious traffic violations that occur
within a three-year period; or
(B) one violation of a law that regulates the
operation of a motor vehicle at a railroad grade crossing; or
(2) 120 days if convicted of:
(A) three serious traffic violations arising
from separate incidents occurring within a three-year period; or
(B) two violations of a law that regulates the
operation of a motor vehicle at a railroad grade crossing that occur
within a three-year period[; or
[(3) one year if convicted of three violations of a law
that regulates the operation of a motor vehicle at a railroad grade
crossing that occur within a three-year period].
(b) This subsection applies to a violation committed while
operating any motor vehicle, including a commercial motor vehicle,
except as provided by this subsection. A person who holds a
commercial driver's license is disqualified from driving a
commercial motor vehicle for one year:
(1) if convicted of three violations of a law that
regulates the operation of a motor vehicle at a railroad grade
crossing that occur within a three-year period;
(2) on first conviction of:
(A) [(1)] driving a [commercial] motor vehicle
under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance, including
a violation of Section 49.04 or 49.07, Penal Code;
(B) [(2) driving a commercial motor vehicle
while the person's alcohol concentration was 0.04 or more;
[(3) intentionally] leaving the scene of an accident
involving a [commercial] motor vehicle driven by the person;
(C) [(4)] using a [commercial] motor vehicle in
the commission of a felony, other than a felony described by
Subsection (d)(2);
(D) [(5) refusing to submit to a test to
determine the person's alcohol concentration or the presence in the
person's body of a controlled substance or drug while driving a
commercial motor vehicle;
[(6)] causing the death of another person through the
negligent or criminal operation of a [commercial] motor vehicle; or
(E) [(7)] driving a commercial motor vehicle
while the person's commercial driver's license is revoked,
suspended, or canceled, or while the person is disqualified from
driving a commercial motor vehicle, for an action or conduct that
occurred while operating a commercial motor vehicle;
(3) for refusing to submit to a test under Chapter 724
to determine the person's alcohol concentration or the presence in
the person's body of a controlled substance or drug while operating
a motor vehicle in a public place; or
(4) if an analysis of the person's blood, breath, or
urine under Chapter 724 determines that the person:
(A) had an alcohol concentration of 0.04 or more,
or that a controlled substance or drug was present in the person's
body, while operating a commercial motor vehicle in a public place;
or
(B) had an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more
while operating a motor vehicle, other than a commercial motor
vehicle, in a public place.
(c) A person who holds a commercial driver's license is
disqualified from operating a commercial motor vehicle for three
years if:
(1) the person:
(A) is convicted of an offense [If a violation]
listed in Subsection (b)(2) and the vehicle being operated by the
person was transporting a hazardous material required to be
placarded; or
(B) refuses to submit to a test under Chapter 724
to determine the person's alcohol concentration or the presence in
the person's body of a controlled substance or drug while operating
a motor vehicle in a public place and the vehicle being operated by
the person was transporting a hazardous material required to be
placarded; or
(2) an analysis of the person's blood, breath, or urine
under Chapter 724 determines that while transporting a hazardous
material required to be placarded the person:
(A) while operating a commercial motor vehicle in
a public place had an alcohol concentration of 0.04 or more, or a
controlled substance or drug present in the person's body; or
(B) while operating a motor vehicle, other than a
commercial motor vehicle, in a public place had an alcohol
concentration of 0.08 or more [(b) occurred while the person was
transporting a hazardous material required to be placarded, the
person is disqualified for three years].
(d) A person is disqualified from driving a commercial motor
vehicle for life:
(1) if the person [:
[(1)] is convicted [of] two or more times [violations]
of an offense specified by Subsection (b)(2) [(b)], or a
combination of those offenses, arising from two or more separate
incidents; [or]
(2) if the person uses a [commercial] motor vehicle in
the commission of a felony involving:
(A) the manufacture, distribution, or dispensing
of a controlled substance; or
(B) possession with intent to manufacture,
distribute, or dispense a controlled substance; or
(3) for any combination of two or more of the
following, arising from two or more separate incidents:
(A) a conviction of the person for an offense
described by Subsection (b)(2);
(B) a refusal by the person described by
Subsection (b)(3); and
(C) an analysis of the person's blood, breath, or
urine described by Subsection (b)(4).
(e) A person may not be issued a commercial driver's license
and is disqualified from operating a commercial motor vehicle if,
in connection with the person's operation of a commercial motor
vehicle, the person commits an offense or engages in conduct that
would disqualify the holder of a commercial driver's license from
operating a commercial motor vehicle, or is determined to have had
an alcohol concentration of 0.04 or more or to have had a controlled
substance or drug present in the person's body. The period of
prohibition under this subsection is equal to the appropriate
period of disqualification required by Subsections (a)-(d).
(f) In this section, "felony" means an offense under state
or federal law that is punishable by death or imprisonment for a
term of more than one year.
SECTION 8.03. Section 522.087, Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 522.087. PROCEDURES APPLICABLE TO DISQUALIFICATION.
(a) A person is automatically disqualified under Section
522.081(a)(1)(B), Section 522.081(b)(2) [522.081(b)(1), (3), (4),
(6), or (7)], or Section 522.081(d)(2). An appeal may not be taken
from the disqualification.
(b) Disqualifying a person under Section 522.081(a), other
than under Subdivision (1)(B) of that subsection, Section
522.081(b)(1), or Section 522.081(d)(1) or (3) is subject to the
notice and hearing procedures of Sections 521.295-521.303. An
appeal of the disqualification is subject to Section 521.308.
SECTION 8.04. Section 543.202(b), Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(b) The record must be made on a form or by a data processing
method acceptable to the department and must include:
(1) the name, address, physical description,
including race or ethnicity, date of birth, and driver's license
number of the person charged;
(2) the registration number of the vehicle involved;
(3) whether the vehicle was a commercial motor vehicle
as defined by Chapter 522 or was involved in transporting hazardous
materials;
(4) the person's social security number, if the person
was operating a commercial motor vehicle or was the holder of a
commercial driver's license or commercial driver learner's permit;
(5) the date and nature of the offense, including
whether the offense was a serious traffic violation as defined by
Chapter 522;
(6) whether a search of the vehicle was conducted and
whether consent for the search was obtained;
(7) the plea, the judgment, whether the individual was
adjudicated under Article 45.0511, Code of Criminal Procedure, and
whether bail was forfeited;
(8) the date of conviction; and
(9) the amount of the fine or forfeiture.
SECTION 8.05. Section 543.101, Transportation Code, is
repealed.
SECTION 8.06. (a) This article takes effect June 1, 2005.
(b) Sections 522.081 and 522.087, Transportation Code, as
amended by this article, apply only to conduct that is engaged in or
to an offense that is committed on or after the effective date of
this article. Conduct that is engaged in or an offense committed
before the effective date of this article is governed by Sections
522.081 and 522.087, Transportation Code, as those sections existed
immediately before the effective date of this article, and the
former law is continued in effect for that purpose.