(a) Except as
provided in subsection (b), any person whose motor vehicle operator's license
or nonresident operating privilege is suspended pursuant to any provision of
chapter 246 or 248 of the Connecticut General Statutes may make application for
a special operator's permit.
(b)
The following persons shall not be eligible for a special operator's permit:
(1) A person whose motor vehicle operator's
license or nonresident operating privilege is under suspension pursuant to
section
14-215
of the Connecticut General Statutes;
(2) A person whose motor vehicle operator's
license or nonresident operating privilege is under suspension pursuant to
section
14-140
of the Connecticut General Statutes;
(3) A person whose motor vehicle operator's
license or nonresident operating privilege is under suspension pursuant to
subsection (i) of section
14-227b
of the Connecticut General Statutes, if such person's operator's license or
nonresident operating privilege has been suspended previously pursuant to
subsection (i) of section
14-227b
of the Connecticut General Statutes;
(4) A person whose motor vehicle operator's
license or nonresident operating privilege is suspended due to a second or
subsequent violation committed after a prior conviction pursuant to section
14-227a
of the Connecticut General Statutes or section
14-111n(b)(2)
of the Connecticut General Statutes.
(c) The commissioner shall not issue a
special operator's permit in the following situations unless the person has a
driving history, including motor vehicle violations, license suspensions and
accidents, which indicates in the sole discretion of the commissioner that the
person is a safe and responsible driver, and the commissioner finds that denial
of a special operator's permit will cause a significant hardship to such person
or his or her dependents:
(1) A person whose
motor vehicle operator's license or nonresident operating privilege is under
suspension for a violation of section
14-222 of the
Connecticut General Statutes, or for a violation of section
14-223(b)
of the Connecticut General Statutes, or for a violation of section
14-224
of the Connecticut General Statutes, and such person has on his or her official
driving history, as maintained at the department, either two or more moving
violations, as defined in section
14-111g
of the Connecticut General Statutes or included in section
14-137a-5
of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies, or any previous violation
resulting in an operator's license suspension, where such moving violation or
such suspension occurred prior to the violation which resulted in the
operator's license suspension of the person;
(2) A person whose motor vehicle operator's
license or nonresident operating privilege is under suspension for a violation
of 53a-56b of the Connecticut General Statutes, or for a violation of section
53a-60d
of the Connecticut General Statutes, or whose suspension has been specifically
recommended by a judge of the superior court pursuant to the provisions of
section
14-141
of the Connecticut General Statutes following the conviction of any other
violation related to the safe operation of a motor vehicle;
(3) A person to whom a special operator's
permit has previously been issued in connection with an alcohol-related
suspension of his or her operator's license or non-resident operating
privilege;
(4) A person who has on
his or her official driving history three (3) or more moving violations
included in section
14-111g
of the Connecticut General Statutes or section
14-137a-5
of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies;
(5) A person who, at the time of application
for the special operator's permit has on his or her official driving history an
operator's license suspension for an indefinite period, except that upon
resolution of such indefinite suspension, such person may be issued a special
operator's permit if he is otherwise qualified; or
(6) A person whose driving history indicates
that such person has been convicted of more than one alcohol related
offense.
(d) In
exercising the discretion granted in section (c) of this section, the
commissioner may consider a conviction of an offense in another state, if the
commissioner determines that the essential elements of such offense are
substantially the same as any of the offenses enumerated in section (c) of this
section.
