Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, March 1, 2024
RELATES TO:
KRS
186.480(1)(b),
186.576,
186.577(4),
186.578,
186.579,
189A.010
NECESSITY, FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY:
KRS
186.578(7) requires the
Office of Vocational Rehabilitation to promulgate administrative regulations
setting the standards for a certified driver training program to serve persons
with a visual impairment. This administrative regulation establishes standards
and procedures for the certified driver training program.
Section 1. Definitions.
(1) "Applicant" is defined by
KRS
186.576(1).
(2) "Bioptic telescopic device" is defined by
KRS
186.576(3).
(3) "Certified driver rehabilitation
specialist" means a person who has met basic professional criteria, passed a
written test, and maintained continuing education requirements to be certified
by the Association for Driver Rehabilitation Specialists, ADED, for the purpose
of evaluating, educating, and training persons with disabilities to operate or
drive motor vehicles and to prepare for a driving skills test.
(4) "Office" means the Office of Vocational
Rehabilitation.
Section
2. Certified Driver Training Program Requirements.
(1) Any person or entity may apply to the
office to become a certified driver training program that satisfies the
following requirements:
(a) At least one (1)
instructor is a certified driver rehabilitation specialist or is supervised by
a certified driver rehabilitation specialist;
(b) All instructors meet the requirements of
subsection (4) of this section;
(c)
Any vehicle utilized:
1. Has a valid
registration;
2. Is in sound
mechanical order;
3. Has one (1)
operable instructor brake;
4. Has
signage indicating student driver on two (2) sides and rear of vehicle;
and
5. Has adaptive equipment
suitable for functional limitations of students;
(d) Maintains liability coverage that meets
the minimum Kentucky insurance limits; and
(e) Uses a curriculum which meets the
requirements of subsection (3) of this section.
(2) The following shall be submitted to the
office:
(a) Business name, address, telephone
number, and office hours;
(b) Copy
of the certifications and resumes of each proposed instructor;
(c) Description of the equipment, vehicles
with adaptive devices, and facilities to be used in the certified driver
training program;
(d) Copy of the
valid vehicle registration;
(e)
Copy of the liability insurance policy that includes a mandatory ten (10) day
written cancellation notice by the insurer to the office;
(f) A detailed copy of the curriculum used;
and
(g) The fees charged per hour,
per lesson, or per course.
(3) The curriculum to be used shall consist
of the following sections:
(a) A theoretical
course of instruction that shall include:
1.
Subject matter contained in the Kentucky Drivers Manual;
2. Safe driving practices and traffic
laws;
3. The "SCAN, Identify,
Predict, Decide, Execute" (SIPDE) approach to perceptive driving;
4. Signs, signals, highway markings, and
highway design features required for the safe operation of a motor
vehicle;
5. Driving emergencies
such as brake or tire failure, skidding, stuck accelerator, and running off the
roadway;
6. Potential crash
locations and situations such as intersections, hydroplaning, railroad
crossings, multiple vehicle types in the traffic mix, and pedestrian
traffic;
7. Seatbelt
usage;
8. Speeding as a major
contributing factor in vehicle crashes; and
9. Driver responsibility and accident
reporting.
(b) A
practical course instruction that shall include:
1. Demonstration, instruction, and practice
in the use of the bioptic telescopic device; and
2. Behind the wheel demonstration,
instruction, and practice:
a. For a minimum of
thirty (30) hours for applicants who have never had an operator's license and
fifteen (15) hours for applicants who have had an operator's license;
and
b. Consisting of:
(i) Stopping;
(ii) Starting;
(iii) Shifting;
(iv) Turning;
(v) Backing;
(vi) Parallel parking;
(vii) Steering; and
(viii) Driving in residential, medium city,
and highway traffic.
(4) Any instructor in an approved certified
driver training program shall:
(a) Be at least
twenty-one (21) years of age;
(b)
Have a four (4) year college degree. Experience as a professional driver
education instructor shall substitute year-for-year for the college education
if the individual is a high school graduate or equivalent;
(c) Never have been convicted of a
felony;
(d) Never have been
convicted of a violation of
KRS
189A.010 or its equivalent from another
jurisdiction;
(e) Never have been
convicted or administratively found guilty of refusing to submit to a test to
determine blood alcohol content or drugs in the system;
(f) Possess a valid driver's license and have
fewer than six (6) points assigned pursuant to
601 KAR 13:025 on
his driving history record;
(g) Not
have had a suspended or terminated driving privilege for any reason in the past
five (5) years;
(h) Successfully
complete the bioptic driving instructor training course offered by the office;
and
(i) Obtain at least five (5)
hours of continuing education in low vision rehabilitation each year.
(5) The certified driver training
program shall review the driving history record and continuing education
requirements of its instructors annually.
Section 3. Certification.
(1) The office shall issue a certificate to a
certified driver training program as established in Section 5 of this
administrative regulation.
(2) Each
certificate shall be valid for three (3) years from the date of issue.
Certificates shall not be transferable. If there is a change of ownership, a
new application shall be submitted.
Section 4. Performance Inspections.
(1) The office may conduct a random or
routine performance inspection of a certified driver training
program.
(2) The certified driver
training program shall be notified in writing of any deficiency discovered in
the performance inspection.
(3) The
deficiency shall be corrected prior to the next scheduled student or the
certified driver training program's approval shall be withdrawn by the
office.
Section 5.
Acceptance Into a Certified Driver Training Program.
(1) An eligible applicant shall:
(a) Meet the minimum visual requirements of
KRS
186.578(1);
(b) Obtain the bioptic telescopic device;
and
(c) Successfully complete a
functional visual assessment by the office.
(2) An eligible applicant shall be accepted
into a certified driver training program.
STATUTORY AUTHORITY:
KRS
186.578(7)