2023 Montana Code Annotated › Title 61. Motor Vehicles › Chapter 8. Traffic Regulation › Part 10. Driving Under Influence of Alcohol or Drugs › 61-8-1032. Mandatory suspension of license following certain implied consent action

61-8-1032. Mandatory suspension of license following certain implied consent action.
(1) The department shall suspend an individual's driver license if the department receives a report for an implied consent violation from law enforcement or another reporting jurisdiction that, pursuant to 61-8-1016, an individual has refused a test or tests of the person's blood, breath, oral fluid, urine, or other bodily substance for determining any measured amount or detected presence of alcohol or drugs in the person's body.
(2) (a) Except as permitted by law, a person whose license or privilege to drive a motor vehicle on the public highways has been suspended may not have the license or privilege renewed or restored until the revocation or suspension duration has been completed.
(b) The department shall apply the appropriate sanction to the driver based on the reported conviction and prior offenses.
(c) The driver shall pay all reinstatement and administrative fees owed to the department before a driver's license or privilege to drive is restored.
(d) The duration of the suspension commences from the date of violation.
(e) If a person refuses tests for the same incident, the department may not consider each a separate refusal for purposes of suspension.
(f) The department may not issue a probationary license during the suspension issued under this part.
(3) (a) A person who has an implied consent violation shall pay the department an administrative fee of $300, which must be deposited in the state special revenue account established pursuant to subsection (3)(b).
(b) There is a blood-draw search warrant processing account in the state special revenue fund established pursuant to 17-2-102(1)(b). Money provided to the department of justice pursuant to this subsection (3) must be deposited in the account and may be used only for providing forensic analysis of a driver's blood or breath to determine the presence of alcohol or drugs.
(4) (a) Upon receiving a report of an implied consent violation, the department shall:
(i) for a first violation, suspend the driver's license or driving privilege for 6 months with no provision for a restricted probationary license; or
(ii) for a second or subsequent violation within 5 years of a previous refusal, as determined from the records of the department, suspend the driver's license or driving privilege for 1 year with no provision for a restricted probationary license.
(b) If a person who refuses to submit to one or more tests under this section is the holder of a commercial driver's license, in addition to any action taken against the driver's noncommercial driving privileges, the department shall:
(i) upon a first refusal, suspend the person's commercial driver's license for 1 year; and
(ii) upon a second or subsequent refusal, suspend the person's commercial driver's license for life, subject to department rules adopted to implement federal rules allowing for license reinstatement, if the person is otherwise eligible, upon completion of a minimum suspension period of 10 years. If the person has a prior conviction of a major offense listed in 61-8-802(2) arising from a separate incident, the conviction has the same effect as a previous testing refusal.
(5) A nonresident driver's license seized under this section must be sent by the department to the licensing authority of the nonresident's home state with a report of the nonresident's refusal to submit to one or more tests.
(6) The department may recognize the seizure of a license of a tribal member by a peace officer acting under the authority of a tribal government or an order issued by a tribal court suspending, revoking, or reinstating a license or adjudicating a license seizure if the actions are conducted pursuant to tribal law or regulation requiring alcohol or drug testing of motor vehicle operators and the conduct giving rise to the actions occurred within the exterior boundaries of a federally recognized Indian reservation in this state. Action by the department under this subsection is not reviewable under 61-8-1017.
History: En. Sec. 16, Ch. 498, L. 2021; amd. Sec. 2, Ch. 373, L. 2021; amd. Sec. 6, Ch. 151, L. 2023.