COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS
			LEW EVANGELIDIS
			STATE REPRESENTATIVE
			1ST DISTRICT OF WORCESTER
		Room 473B, State House		Phone:(617) 722-2263
		Boston, MA 02133		Fax:    (617) 722-2837
		Email: Rep.LewisEvangelidis@hou.state.ma.us

 

Dear Parents,

It has come to my attention through correspondence to my office that many of you have questions regarding the changes to the new laws that affect our young drivers. I hope to enlighten you of the new law and the ramifications that it will have as we move forward on trying to protect our sons and daughters.

As you know, the Legislature passed sweeping changes to the Junior Operator Laws (JOL) back in December of 2006. These changes were made after many discussions with public safety officials, parents, young drivers and various driving schools. These changes were necessitated due to the increase of deaths that were appearing on our highways and byways across the Commonwealth.

Now, let me explain the changes that were implemented as part of the new law. First, were the changes that were made to the penalties one would incur if found in violation of speeding laws, passenger restriction laws and others.

• Passenger Restriction: When driving for the first six months of one getting his or her license to operate a motor vehicle, only parents, guardians, siblings or any one over 21 may be in the car with a junior operator. FRIENDS ARE NOT ALLOWED!!
  1. 1^st offense of this violation will result in a 60 day suspension of license and a $100 reinstatement fee
  2. 2^nd offense of this violation will result in a 180 day suspension, a driver attitudinal retraining course and a $100 reinstatement fee
  3. 3^rd offense of this violation will result in a one year suspension, a driver attitudinal retraining course and a $100 reinstatement fee
• Time Restriction: When driving for the first six months of one getting his or her license to operate a motor vehicle, that individual cannot drive between the hours of 12:30 A.M. and 5:00 A.M.
  1. 1^st offense of this violation will result in a 60 day suspension of license and a $100 reinstatement fee
  2. 2^nd offense of this violation will result in a 180 day suspension, a driver attitudinal retraining course and a $100 reinstatement fee
  3. 3^rd offense of this violation will result in a one year suspension, a driver attitudinal retraining course and a $100 reinstatement fee
• Speeding: The number one reason that we saw so many fatalities among this age group was due to excessive speeding. The Legislature felt strongly that a message needed to be sent to our young drivers that if you are caught speeding that there will be dire consequences.
  1. 1^st offense of this violation will result in a 90 day suspension, driver attitudinal retraining course, a $500 reinstatement fee and that individual will have to take a new exam.
  2. 2^nd and subsequent offense of this violation will result in a 1 year suspension, driver attitudinal retraining course, a $500 reinstatement fee and that individual will have to take a new exam.

Other violations like drag racing and operating to endanger also carry hefty fines and suspensions. These can be viewed at the Registry of Motor Vehicles Web site.

Second, were the changes that we made to the driver education phase and also to the amount of driving one must do before receiving his or her JOL.

• Basic Driver’s education
  1. 30 Hours of Class room instruction
  2. 12 Hours of on-road driving (up from six hours)
  3. 6 Hours of on-road observation ( this stayed status quo)
  4. 2 Hours of parental participation including instruction on driver’s education curriculum, junior operator restriction and penalties and tips for teaching your child to drive during the 40 hours of parental supervision.
• Supervised driving to obtain a junior operators license
  1. 40 Hours of parent/guardian supervised driving ( up from 12 hours)
  2. Allows for 30 hours of parent/ guardian supervised driving in child completes advanced driver training course.

As you can see there were many changes to this law that will affect not only your child but you as well. I felt strongly that there were still some people who did not know of the changes and I did not want to see you get blindsided. As always, if you have any further questions regarding these changes please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Lew Evangelidis
State Representative
1st District of Worcester

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