Compilation of Rules and Regulations of the State of Georgia › Department 375 - RULES OF DEPARTMENT OF DRIVER SERVICES › Chapter 375-5 - DRIVER TRAINING AND DRIVER IMPROVEMENT › Subject 375-5-1 - DRIVER IMPROVEMENT › Rule 375-5-1-.10 - Driver Improvement Clinic Office Requirements

Current through Rules and Regulations filed through June 27, 2024
(1) The clinic shall permit authorized
				representatives of the Department to make periodic, scheduled or unscheduled
				inspections of all clinic facilities. During each inspection each owner,
				partner, associate, corporate director, office manager or employee of the
				clinic shall cooperate with the Departments representative and upon demand
				shall exhibit all records, instructional aides or such other materials as may
				be called for to be inspected.
(2)
				The telephone must be used exclusively for the operation of the clinic. The
				telephone may be used in conjunction with an Alcohol Program licensed by the
				Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, or with
				a driver training school or ignition interlock provider licensed by the
				Department. The clinic must notify the Department in writing within ten (10)
				days of any telephone number changes for the clinic.
(3) Sufficient indoor space must be provided
				for the purpose of instruction, to include individual desks or tables with
				chairs to accommodate students comfortably. Classes of instruction are limited
				to a maximum number of forty (40) students per class unless the Department
				determines that the space is inadequate for that number of students. In those
				situations, the maximum number will be calculated on twenty square feet per
				student with a minimum number of fifteen students per class. The minimum square
				feet of an indoor classroom must be at least 300 square feet of useable
				classroom space. Programs licensed prior to the enactment of the 300 square
				foot minimum may continue to utilize existing classrooms that satisfied the
				prior requirement of 250 square feet. Such programs may not add new classrooms
				that are less than 300 square feet in size. The maximum number of students per
				class determined by the Department does not supersede the occupancy load or
				maximum for the building determined by the local governing entity (i.e. county
				or city fire marshal, inspector, or agent). A copy of the Certificate of
				Occupancy must be submitted during the certification application
				process.
(4) A clinic shall
				maintain business hours of at least fifteen (15) hours per week, half of which
				must fall within the Department's normal business hours. An employee of the
				clinic must be available during this time to furnish information of operation,
				verify attendance to a class, or to produce the necessary records or documents
				whenever requested by a member of the Department. The clinic may close for a
				lunch hour at a set time, upon notice to the Department of the scheduled lunch
				hour. Each clinic is responsible for notifying the Department of times during
				which the business office of the clinic will be closed for lunch or vacation
				and of the regularly scheduled hours of operation of the business
				office.
(5) Each clinic must have a
				principal office. The principal office cannot be located in a private residence
				unless a separate public outside entrance is provided.
(6) Any school, office, or classroom facility
				utilized for or approved for the purposes of a Driver Improvement Clinic shall
				comply with the requirements set forth by the Americans with Disabilities Act
				of 1990, before a permit is issued. The owner shall certify to the Department
				that the office and/or classroom complies with the Act, its implementing
				regulations, and Georgia laws governing access for the handicapped.
(7) Any school, office, or classroom facility
				utilized for or approved for the purpose of a Driver Improvement Clinic shall
				be clean and safe from health hazards such as rodents, pest infestation, and
				mold.
(8) Any driver improvement
				clinic which is to be closed on a weekday other than for federal or state
				holidays must give the Department written notice of the closure two weeks in
				advance. Confirmation of the receipt of the notice will be issued by the
				Department. The clinic is not relieved of its obligations to make records and
				documents available for inspection unless it has received confirmation of
				receipt of the notice of proposed closure from the Department.
O.C.G.A. §§
											40-5-80,
				  40-5-83.