An Act To Modernize and Reduce the Cost of Driver Education
Maine Legislature, Session 125, LD 0201
Committee: Transportation
Sponsors: HINCK, ALFOND, CEBRA, CRAY, KAENRATH, MAZUREK, ROSEN, WAGNER, THIBODEAU, THOMAS
Amends: 29-A MRSA §1354

Legislative Document 
No. 201 
H.P. 178 
House of Representatives, January 27, 2011 
An Act To Modernize and Reduce the Cost of Driver Education 
Reference to the Committee on Transportation suggested and ordered printed. 
HEATHER J.R. PRIEST 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative HINCK of Portland. 
Cosponsored by Senator ALFOND of Cumberland and 
Representatives: CEBRA of Naples, CRAY of Palmyra, KAENRATH of South Portland, 
MAZUREK of Rockland, ROSEN of Bucksport, WAGNER of Lewiston, Senators: 
THIBODEAU of Waldo, THOMAS of Somerset. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  29-A MRSA §1354, sub-§1, ¶B-1 is enacted to read: 
B-1.  "Communications technology" means any method or component, or both, that is 
used for driver education by a driver education school to carry out or facilitate the 
transmission of information and reception of information by computer data networks, 
including, but not limited to, the Internet or its successor and intranet services. 
Sec. 2.  29-A MRSA §1354, sub-§3, as amended by PL 1997, c. 776, §39, is 
further amended to read: 
3.  Driver education school license requirements.  With assistance from the 
Technical Review Panel established in subsection 6, the Secretary of State shall adopt 
rules governing the curriculum, facilities, and operations, including record-keeping 
requirements and issuance and renewal of licenses, for noncommercial driver education 
schools and commercial driver education schools and for driver education teachers and 
instructors. These rules must allow that the portion of a course of training provided by a 
driver education school that would consist of classroom instruction may be taught 
interactively through the use of communications technology so that persons taking the 
course need not be physically present in a classroom. 
A.    The Secretary of State may not issue a license for a driver education school until 
the applicant has filed with the Secretary of State a certificate showing that the 
applicant is covered by an automobile bodily injury and property damage liability 
insurance policy insuring against any legal liability in accordance with the terms of 
the policy for personal injury or death of any one person in the sum of $100,000 and 
for any number of persons in the sum of $300,000 and against property damage in the 
sum of $100,000 arising from the operation of any vehicle being used in a 
commercial driver education school.  In lieu of that insurance, the applicant may file 
with the Secretary of State a bond or bonds issued by a surety company authorized to 
do business in the State in the amount of at least $100,000 on account of injury to or 
death of one person and subject to such limits as respects injury to or death of one 
person, of at least $300,000 on account of any one accident resulting in injury to or 
death of more than one person and of at least $100,000 for damage to property of 
others.  Failure to comply with this subsection is grounds for suspension or 
revocation of a driver education school license. 
B.    A vehicle used as a training vehicle must be maintained in safe mechanical 
condition at all times.  Each vehicle must be equipped with dual-control foot brakes 
and, if the vehicle is not equipped with an automatic transmission, dual-control clutch 
pedals.  While being used in actual instruction, a vehicle must be equipped with an 
identification sign listing the name of the school and a student driver sign. 
The following vehicles are not required to have dual controls and an identification 
sign listing the name of the school and a student driver sign: 
 (1)  A vehicle that is being used to instruct a person with a disability and is 
specially equipped for use by a person with a disability; and 
 (2)  A vehicle that is being used to instruct a person in possession of a valid 
Maine driver's license or instruction permit when the vehicle is not provided by 
the driver education school. 
Sec. 3.  Secretary of State directed to amend rules governing driver 
education.  Before July 1, 2012, the Secretary of State shall amend rules authorized by 
the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 29-A, section 153 and section 1354, subsection 3 
governing minimum qualifications, standards and procedures for the licensure of driver 
education schools to permit the use of communications technology for driver education 
instruction. 
Sec. 4.  Effective date.  Those sections of this Act that amend the Maine Revised 
Statutes, Title 29-A, section 1354 take effect July 1, 2012. 
SUMMARY 
This bill provides that classroom instruction provided by a driver education school 
licensed in this State may be taught interactively through the use of communications 
technology, including the Internet, so that persons taking the classroom portion of the 
driver education requirement need not be physically present in a classroom.  The effective 
date for this change in law is July 1, 2012.  This bill does not alter current requirements in 
rule for behind-the-wheel instruction. 
This bill directs the Secretary of State, before July 1, 2012, to amend current rules 
governing the licensure of driver education schools to permit the use of communications 
technology for driver education instruction.