Uniform Commercial Driver's License Act - § 46.25.010

Chapter 46.25. Uniform Commercial Driver's License Act

Current through 2012 Second Special Session

§ 46.25.010. Definitions

The definitions set forth in this section apply throughout this chapter.

(1) "Alcohol" means any substance containing any form of alcohol, including but not limited to

ethanol, methanol, propanol, and isopropanol.

(2) "Alcohol concentration" means:

(a) The number of grams of alcohol per one hundred milliliters of blood; or

(b) The number of grams of alcohol per two hundred ten liters of breath.

(3) "Commercial driver's license" (CDL) means a license issued to an individual under chapter

46.20 RCW that has been endorsed in accordance with the requirements of this chapter to

authorize the individual to drive a class of commercial motor vehicle.

(4) The "commercial driver's license information system" (CDLIS) is the information system

established pursuant to 49 U.S.C. Sec. 31309 to serve as a clearinghouse for locating information

related to the licensing and identification of commercial motor vehicle drivers.

(5) "Commercial driver's instruction permit" means a permit issued under RCW 46.25.060(5).

(6) "Commercial motor vehicle" means a motor vehicle or combination of motor vehicles used in

commerce to transport passengers or property if the motor vehicle:

(a) Has a gross vehicle weight rating of 11,794 kilograms or more (26,001 pounds or more)

inclusive of a towed unit with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 4,536 kilograms (10,000

pounds or more); or

(b) Has a gross vehicle weight rating of 11,794 kilograms or more (26,001 pounds or more); or

(c) Is designed to transport sixteen or more passengers, including the driver; or

(d) Is of any size and is used in the transportation of hazardous materials as defined in this

section; or

(e) Is a school bus regardless of weight or size.

(7) "Conviction" means an unvacated adjudication of guilt, or a determination that a person has

violated or failed to comply with the law in a court of original jurisdiction or by an authorized

administrative tribunal, an unvacated forfeiture of bail or collateral deposited to secure the

person's appearance in court, a plea of guilty or nolo contendere accepted by the court, the

payment of a fine or court cost, entry into a deferred prosecution program under chapter 10.05

RCW, or violation of a condition of release without bail, regardless of whether or not the penalty is

rebated, suspended, or probated.

(8) "Disqualification" means a prohibition against driving a commercial motor vehicle.

(9) "Drive" means to drive, operate, or be in physical control of a motor vehicle in any place open

to the general public for purposes of vehicular traffic. For purposes of RCW 46.25.100, 46.25.110,

and 46.25.120, "drive" includes operation or physical control of a motor vehicle anywhere in the

state.

(10) "Drugs" are those substances as defined by RCW 69.04.009, including, but not limited to,

those substances defined by 49 C.F.R. Sec. 40.3.

(11) "Employer" means any person, including the United States, a state, or a political subdivision

of a state, who owns or leases a commercial motor vehicle, or assigns a person to drive a

commercial motor vehicle.

(12) "Gross vehicle weight rating" (GVWR) means the value specified by the manufacturer as the

maximum loaded weight of a single vehicle. The GVWR of a combination or articulated vehicle,

commonly referred to as the "gross combined weight rating" or GCWR, is the GVWR of the power

unit plus the GVWR of the towed unit or units. If the GVWR of any unit cannot be determined, the

actual gross weight will be used. If a vehicle with a GVWR of less than 11,794 kilograms (26,001

pounds or less) has been structurally modified to carry a heavier load, then the actual gross weight

capacity of the modified vehicle, as determined by RCW 46.44.041 and 46.44.042, will be used as

the GVWR.

(13) "Hazardous materials" means any material that has been designated as hazardous under 49

U.S.C. Sec. 5103 and is required to be placarded under subpart F of 49 C.F.R. Part 172 or any

quantity of a material listed as a select agent or toxin in 42 C.F.R. Part 73.

(14) "Motor vehicle" means a vehicle, machine, tractor, trailer, or semitrailer propelled or drawn by

mechanical power used on highways, or any other vehicle required to be registered under the laws

of this state, but does not include a vehicle, machine, tractor, trailer, or semitrailer operated

exclusively on a rail.

(15) "Out-of-service order" means a declaration by an authorized enforcement officer of a federal,

state, Canadian, Mexican, or local jurisdiction that a driver, a commercial motor vehicle, or a motor

carrier operation is out-of-service pursuant to 49 C.F.R. Secs. 386.72, 392.5, 395.13, 396.9, or

compatible laws, or the North American uniform out-of-service criteria.

(16) "Positive alcohol confirmation test" means an alcohol confirmation test that:

(a) Has been conducted by a breath alcohol technician under 49 C.F.R. Part 40; and

(b) Indicates an alcohol concentration of 0.04 or more.

A report that a person has refused an alcohol test, under circumstances that constitute the refusal

of an alcohol test under 49 C.F.R. Part 40, will be considered equivalent to a report of a positive

alcohol confirmation test for the purposes of this chapter.

(17) "School bus" means a commercial motor vehicle used to transport preprimary, primary, or

secondary school students from home to school, from school to home, or to and from schoolsponsored

events. School bus does not include a bus used as a common carrier.

(18) "Serious traffic violation" means:

(a) Excessive speeding, defined as fifteen miles per hour or more in excess of the posted limit;

(b) Reckless driving, as defined under state or local law;

(c) A violation of a state or local law relating to motor vehicle traffic control, other than a parking

violation, arising in connection with an accident or collision resulting in death to any person;

(d) Driving a commercial motor vehicle without obtaining a commercial driver's license;

(e) Driving a commercial motor vehicle without a commercial driver's license in the driver's

possession; however, any individual who provides proof to the court by the date the individual

must appear in court or pay any fine for such a violation, that the individual held a valid CDL on the

date the citation was issued, is not guilty of a "serious traffic offense";

(f) Driving a commercial motor vehicle without the proper class of commercial driver's license

endorsement or endorsements for the specific vehicle group being operated or for the passenger

or type of cargo being transported; and

(g) Any other violation of a state or local law relating to motor vehicle traffic control, other than a

parking violation, that the department determines by rule to be serious.

(19) "State" means a state of the United States and the District of Columbia.

(20) "Substance abuse professional" means an alcohol and drug specialist meeting the

credentials, knowledge, training, and continuing education requirements of 49 C.F.R. Sec. 40.281.

(21) "Tank vehicle" means a vehicle that is designed to transport a liquid or gaseous material

within a tank that is either permanently or temporarily attached to the vehicle or the chassis. Tank

vehicles include, but are not limited to cargo tanks and portable tanks. However, this definition

does not include portable tanks having a rated capacity under one thousand gallons.

(22) "Type of driving" means one of the following:

(a) "Nonexcepted interstate," which means the CDL holder or applicant operates or expects to

operate in interstate commerce, is both subject to and meets the qualification requirements under

49 C.F.R. Part 391 as it existed on January 30, 2012, or such subsequent date as may be

provided by the department by rule, consistent with the purposes of this section, and is required to

obtain a medical examiner's certificate under 49 C.F.R. Sec. 391.45 as it existed on January 30,

2012, or such subsequent date as may be provided by the department by rule, consistent with the

purposes of this section;

(b) "Excepted interstate," which means the CDL holder or applicant operates or expects to operate

in interstate commerce, but engages exclusively in transportation or operations excepted under 49

C.F.R. Secs. 390.3(f), 391.2, 391.68, or 398.3, as they existed on January 30, 2012, or such

subsequent date as may be provided by the department by rule, consistent with the purposes of

this section, from all or parts of the qualification requirements of 49 C.F.R. Part 391 as it existed

on January 30, 2012, or such subsequent date as may be provided by the department by rule,

consistent with the purposes of this section, and is therefore not required to obtain a medical

examiner's certificate under 49 C.F.R. Sec. 391.45 as it existed on January 30, 2012, or such

subsequent date as may be provided by the department by rule, consistent with the purposes of

this section;

(c) "Nonexcepted intrastate," which means the CDL holder or applicant operates only in intrastate

commerce and is therefore subject to state driver qualification requirements; or

(d) "Excepted intrastate," which means the CDL holder or applicant operates in intrastate

commerce, but engages exclusively in transportation or operations excepted from all or parts of

the state driver qualification requirements.

(23) "United States" means the fifty states and the District of Columbia.

(24) "Verified positive drug test" means a drug test result or validity testing result from a laboratory

certified under the authority of the federal department of health and human services that:

(a) Indicates a drug concentration at or above the cutoff concentration established under 49 C.F.R.

Sec. 40.87; and

(b) Has undergone review and final determination by a medical review officer.

A report that a person has refused a drug test, under circumstances that constitute the refusal of a

federal department of transportation drug test under 49 C.F.R. Part 40, will be considered

equivalent to a report of a verified positive drug test for the purposes of this chapter.

Cite as RCW 46.25.010

History.

Amended by 2011 c 227, §1, eff. 1/30/2012.

2009 c 181 § 2. Prior: 2006 c 327 § 2; 2006 c 50 § 1; 2005 c 325 § 2; 2004 c 187 § 2; 1996 c 30 § 1; 1989 c 178 § 3.

Note:

Effective date -- 2011 c 227 §§1 - 3 :

See note following RCW 46.25.075.