Public Act 102-0455
 
HB3097 EnrolledLRB102 16168 RAM 21546 b

    AN ACT concerning transportation.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section
27-24.1 as follows:
 
    (105 ILCS 5/27-24.1)  (from Ch. 122, par. 27-24.1)
    Sec. 27-24.1. Definitions. As used in the Driver Education
Act unless the context otherwise requires:
    "State Board" means the State Board of Education. ;
    "Driver education course" and "course" means a course of
instruction in the use and operation of cars, including
instruction in the safe operation of cars and rules of the
road, and the laws of this State relating to motor vehicles,
and law enforcement procedures during traffic stops, including
appropriate interactions with law enforcement officers, which
meets the minimum requirements of this Act and the rules and
regulations issued thereunder by the State Board and has been
approved by the State Board as meeting such requirements. ;
    "Car" means a motor vehicle of the first division as
defined in the Illinois Vehicle Code. ;
    "Motorcycle" or "motor driven cycle" means such a vehicle
as defined in the Illinois Vehicle Code. ;
    "Driver's license" means any license or permit issued by
the Secretary of State under Chapter 6 of the Illinois Vehicle
Code.
    "Distance learning program" means a program of study in
which all participating teachers and students do not
physically meet in the classroom and instead use the Internet,
email, or any other method other than the classroom to provide
instruction.
    With reference to persons, the singular number includes
the plural and vice versa, and the masculine gender includes
the feminine.
(Source: P.A. 101-183, eff. 8-2-19; revised 9-26-19.)
 
    Section 10. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended by
changing Sections 2-112 and 6-107.5 as follows:
 
    (625 ILCS 5/2-112)  (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 2-112)
    Sec. 2-112. Distribution of synopsis laws.
    (a) The Secretary of State may publish a synopsis or
summary of the laws of this State regulating the operation of
vehicles and may deliver a copy thereof without charge with
each original vehicle registration and with each original
driver's license.
    (b) The Secretary of State shall make any necessary
revisions in its publications including, but not limited to,
the Illinois Rules of the Road, to accurately conform its
publications to the provisions of the Pedestrians with
Disabilities Safety Act.
    (c) The Secretary of State shall include, in the Illinois
Rules of the Road publication, information advising drivers to
use the Dutch Reach method when opening a vehicle door after
parallel parking on a street (checking the rear-view mirror,
checking the side-view mirror, then opening the door with the
right hand, thereby reducing the risk of injuring a bicyclist
or opening the door in the path a vehicle approaching from
behind).
    (d) The Secretary of State shall include, in the Illinois
Rules of the Road publication, information advising drivers to
use the zipper merge method when merging into a reduced number
of lanes (drivers in merging lanes are expected to use both
lanes to advance to the lane reduction point and merge at that
location, alternating turns).
    (e) The Secretary of State, in consultation with the
Illinois State Police, shall include in the Illinois Rules of
the Road publication a description of law enforcement
procedures during traffic stops and the actions that a
motorist should take during a traffic stop, including
appropriate interactions with law enforcement officers.
(Source: P.A. 100-770, eff. 1-1-19; 100-962, eff. 1-1-19;
101-174, eff. 1-1-20.)
 
    (625 ILCS 5/6-107.5)
    Sec. 6-107.5. Adult Driver Education Course.
    (a) The Secretary shall establish by rule the curriculum
and designate the materials to be used in an adult driver
education course. The course shall be at least 6 hours in
length and shall include instruction on traffic laws; highway
signs, signals, and markings that regulate, warn, or direct
traffic; and issues commonly associated with motor vehicle
accidents including poor decision-making, risk taking,
impaired driving, distraction, speed, failure to use a safety
belt, driving at night, failure to yield the right-of-way,
texting while driving, using wireless communication devices,
and alcohol and drug awareness; and instruction on law
enforcement procedures during traffic stops, including actions
that a motorist should take during a traffic stop and
appropriate interactions with law enforcement officers. The
curriculum shall not require the operation of a motor vehicle.
    (b) The Secretary shall certify course providers. The
requirements to be a certified course provider, the process
for applying for certification, and the procedure for
decertifying a course provider shall be established by rule.
    (b-5) In order to qualify for certification as an adult
driver education course provider, each applicant must
authorize an investigation that includes a fingerprint-based
background check to determine if the applicant has ever been
convicted of a criminal offense and, if so, the disposition of
any conviction. This authorization shall indicate the scope of
the inquiry and the agencies that may be contacted. Upon
receiving this authorization, the Secretary of State may
request and receive information and assistance from any
federal, State, or local governmental agency as part of the
authorized investigation. Each applicant shall submit his or
her fingerprints to the Department of State Police in the form
and manner prescribed by the Department of State Police. These
fingerprints shall be checked against fingerprint records now
and hereafter filed in the Department of State Police and
Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal history record
databases. The Department of State Police shall charge
applicants a fee for conducting the criminal history record
check, which shall be deposited into the State Police Services
Fund and shall not exceed the actual cost of the State and
national criminal history record check. The Department of
State Police shall furnish, pursuant to positive
identification, records of Illinois criminal convictions to
the Secretary and shall forward the national criminal history
record information to the Secretary. Applicants shall pay any
other fingerprint-related fees. Unless otherwise prohibited by
law, the information derived from the investigation, including
the source of the information and any conclusions or
recommendations derived from the information by the Secretary
of State, shall be provided to the applicant upon request to
the Secretary of State prior to any final action by the
Secretary of State on the application. Any criminal conviction
information obtained by the Secretary of State shall be
confidential and may not be transmitted outside the Office of
the Secretary of State, except as required by this subsection
(b-5), and may not be transmitted to anyone within the Office
of the Secretary of State except as needed for the purpose of
evaluating the applicant. At any administrative hearing held
under Section 2-118 of this Code relating to the denial,
cancellation, suspension, or revocation of certification of an
adult driver education course provider, the Secretary of State
may utilize at that hearing any criminal history, criminal
conviction, and disposition information obtained under this
subsection (b-5). The information obtained from the
investigation may be maintained by the Secretary of State or
any agency to which the information was transmitted. Only
information and standards which bear a reasonable and rational
relation to the performance of providing adult driver
education shall be used by the Secretary of State. Any
employee of the Secretary of State who gives or causes to be
given away any confidential information concerning any
criminal convictions or disposition of criminal convictions of
an applicant shall be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor unless
release of the information is authorized by this Section.
    (c) The Secretary may permit a course provider to offer
the course online, if the Secretary is satisfied the course
provider has established adequate procedures for verifying:
        (1) the identity of the person taking the course
    online; and
        (2) the person completes the entire course.
    (d) The Secretary shall establish a method of electronic
verification of a student's successful completion of the
course.
    (e) The fee charged by the course provider must bear a
reasonable relationship to the cost of the course. The
Secretary shall post on the Secretary of State's website a
list of approved course providers, the fees charged by the
providers, and contact information for each provider.
    (f) In addition to any other fee charged by the course
provider, the course provider shall collect a fee of $5 from
each student to offset the costs incurred by the Secretary in
administering this program. The $5 shall be submitted to the
Secretary within 14 days of the day on which it was collected.
All such fees received by the Secretary shall be deposited in
the Secretary of State Driver Services Administration Fund.
(Source: P.A. 98-167, eff. 7-1-14; 98-876, eff. 1-1-15.)