Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 6, March 26, 2024
A. Hours
requirement.
(1) A private driver education
school which provides behind-the-wheel training as part of the course shall
provide a minimum of seven (7) hours of behind-the-wheel training to each
student, with no more than thirty (30) days between the end of the classroom
course and the beginning of the behind-the-wheel training. At least four (4) of
the seven (7) hours shall be on-street training.
(2) A private driver education school may
meet up to three (3) hours of the behind-the-wheel training requirement:
(a) with on-range training; or
(b) with prior written approval from the
bureau, by using a driving simulator approved by the bureau, provided that two
(2) hours of instruction using a driving simulator shall be equivalent to one
(1) hour of on-street training.
(3) On days when educational institution
classes are held, a licensee shall provide no more than one (1) hour per day of
behind-the-wheel training per student. On days when educational institution
classes are not held, a licensee shall provide no more than two (2) hours per
day of behind-the-wheel training per student.
(4) Driving time shall not include time spent
driving to pick up or drop off students unless the route meets the objective of
the driving lesson.
B.
Pre-driving classroom instruction. Before a licensee schedules students for
on-street training, the licensee shall provide a minimum of nine (9) hours of
classroom instruction on:
(1) approaching the
vehicle with awareness;
(2)
orientation to controls;
(3) basic
rules of the road;
(4) use of
vision to control the vehicle;
(5)
proper use of the steering wheel, accelerator, and brake;
(6) turning left and right; and
(7) signs, signals, and road
markings.
C. Hourly
behind-the-wheel course. A school may offer hourly behind-the-wheel training to
any student requesting such training up to the maximum rate provided in
Subsection C of 18.20.3.12 NMAC, provided that the requirements of Subsections
C , D, E, F and G of this section shall apply.
D. Vehicle insurance required. A licensee
shall provide to the bureau a certificate of insurance showing the issuance of
an insurance policy with the required uniform endorsement by a company
authorized to transact insurance business in New Mexico evidencing bodily
injury and public liability insurance on all vehicles used for behind-the-wheel
driving instruction, pursuant to Section
66-10-3
NMSA 1978, including hired vehicles and non-owned vehicles. The certificate
shall list the make, model, and year of each vehicle and shall include a
statement from the insurance company that it will notify the bureau thirty (30)
days before canceling the insurance. The licensee shall provide a copy of the
policy to the bureau upon the bureau's request. The insurance shall have the
following minimum limits of coverage:
(1)
$500,000 per occurrence for bodily injury to or death of all persons injured or
killed;
(2) $250,000 per person for
bodily injury to or death of a person injured or killed;
(3) $10,000 per person for medical
payments;
(4) $100,000 per
occurrence for property damage; and
(5) $50,000 per person for uninsured motorist
coverage.
E. Other
requirements.
(1) The number of occupants in
a motor vehicle being used for behind-the-wheel instruction shall not exceed
the number of operational seatbelts in the vehicle. Only the instructor, bureau
monitor and driver education student may occupy the front seat. Only a student,
parent or guardian of a student, instructor, translator, licensee, bureau
monitor or person training to become a driver education instructor may occupy a
rear seat.
(2) A private driver
education school shall maintain a driving log for each student. The driving log
shall be maintained in the vehicle during the training and shall be completed
at the end of each training. The driving log shall include the student's name,
permit number, home telephone number, the name and telephone number of an
emergency contact person, the instructor's name, the date and start and end
time of each drive, the skills taught that day, the instructor remarks, the
student's final behind-the-wheel grade, total driving time for the student, and
the student's initials indicating that the student has reviewed the information
in the log.
(3) No instructor or
student shall use a cell phone during behind-the-wheel training except in an
emergency, unless otherwise restricted by law or local ordinance.
(4) The instructor shall ensure that each
student participating in behind-the-wheel training has in his or her immediate
possession an instructional permit or provisional license issued by the New
Mexico motor vehicle division or driver's license from any state before the
student may participate in behind-the-wheel training.
F. Disabled and other students in need of
specialized instruction or equipment.
(1)
When providing behind-the-wheel driving instruction to disabled students and
other students in need of specialized instruction or equipment, a private
driver education school shall provide individualized instruction for each
student based on the nature and severity of the student's disability or special
needs.
(2) When providing
behind-the-wheel driving instruction to disabled students and other students in
need of specialized instruction or equipment, a private driver education school
shall:
(a) determine whether the driver
education school can provide a reasonable accommodation for the disabled
student or the specialized instruction or equipment required by a non-disabled
student; and
(b) if the driver
education school cannot provide a reasonable accommodation or specialized
instruction or equipment, refer the student to an instructor certified by the
bureau who also holds the certified driver rehabilitation specialist (CDRS)
credential from the association of driver rehabilitation specialists, or an
equivalent credential from an organization recognized by the bureau, unless the
driver education school currently has a CDRS instructor in its
employ.
G.
Car and equipment specifications. A private driver education school shall
maintain all motor vehicles it uses for behind-the-wheel training in safe
operating condition and shall equip them with the following:
(1) a passenger side brake (on-street
training only) ;
(2) right and left
side mirrors;
(3) an inside rear
view mirror for the instructor;
(4)
operational seatbelts for all occupants;
(5) adjustable front seats;
(6) a first aid kit;
(7) safe tires; and
(8) signs on both sides and on the rear of
the vehicle indicating the name of the driver education school, "student
driver" or "driver education vehicle;" the background and letters of the sign
shall be in contrasting colors, the letters shall be at least three inches (3")
high, and the sign shall be safely secured to the vehicle, but shall not be
placed on any window of the vehicle.
H. Reports of moving violations and crashes.
A private driver education school shall report to the bureau:
(1) within twenty-four (24) hours of the
occurrence, all crashes that result in injury or death that involve students
driving driver education school vehicles;
(2) within ten (10) working days of their
occurrence, all other crashes and all moving violations that involve students
driving driver education school vehicles; and
(3) the date, time, location, names of all
persons involved, name of law enforcement agency and officer handling the
investigation for each crash or moving violation.
