A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to require all drivers who are issued limited permits or limited provisional licenses have a decal placed on both the front and rear of the vehicle being operated to show the driver to be a new driver providing safety for the new driver and the motoring public.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  Article 2 of Chapter 20 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:
"§ 20‑11.2.  New Driver decal.
The Division shall develop standards for a New Driver decal that will alert operators of motor vehicles on the public streets and highways and public vehicular areas of this State that a new driver is operating a vehicle and thereby instilling confidence in the new driver and allowing an experienced driver to give the new driver a safe distance for vehicle operation. The New Driver decal shall be designed to integrate bright optical colors that alert passing motorists in the daytime and an LED light system that will alert passing motorists during the nighttime. The Division shall determine the standards for shape and size based on visibility and weather conditions that may occur during the daytime and nighttime. The colors used in the New Driver decal shall not be amber, blue, red, or white. A person required to have a New Driver decal on a vehicle shall bear the cost of the New Driver decal. "  
SECTION 2.  G.S. 20‑11(c) reads as rewritten:
"(c)	Level 1 Restrictions. – A limited learner's permit authorizes the permit holder to drive a specified type or class of motor vehicle only under the following conditions:
(1)	The permit holder must be in possession of the permit.
(2)	A supervising driver must be seated beside the permit holder in the front seat of the vehicle when it is in motion. No person other than the supervising driver can be in the front seat.
(3)	For the first six months after issuance, the permit holder may drive only between the hours of 5:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m.
(4)	After the first six months after issuance, the permit holder may drive at any time.
(5)	Every person occupying the vehicle being driven by the permit holder must have a safety belt properly fastened about his or her body, or be restrained by a child passenger restraint system as provided in G.S. 20‑137.1(a), when the vehicle is in motion.
(6)	The permit holder shall not use a mobile telephone or other additional technology associated with a mobile telephone while operating the motor vehicle on a public street or highway or public vehicular area.
(7)	The permit holder has affixed to the front and rear of the motor vehicle being operated by the permit holder a decal that meets the requirements of G.S. 20‑11.2."
SECTION 3.  G.S. 20‑11(e) reads as rewritten:
"(e)	Level 2 Restrictions. – A limited provisional license authorizes the license holder to drive a specified type or class of motor vehicle only under the following conditions:
(1)	The license holder shall be in possession of the license.
(2)	The license holder may drive without supervision in any of the following circumstances:
a.	From 5:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
b.	When driving to or from work.
c.	When driving to or from an activity of a volunteer fire department, volunteer rescue squad, or volunteer emergency medical service, if the driver is a member of the organization.
(3)	The license holder may drive with supervision at any time. When the license holder is driving with supervision, the supervising driver shall be seated beside the license holder in the front seat of the vehicle when it is in motion. The supervising driver need not be the only other occupant of the front seat, but shall be the person seated next to the license holder.
(4)	When the license holder is driving the vehicle and is not accompanied by the supervising driver, there may be no more than one passenger under 21 years of age in the vehicle. This limit does not apply to passengers who are members of the license holder's immediate family or whose primary residence is the same household as the license holder. However, if a family member or member of the same household as the license holder who is younger than 21 years of age is a passenger in the vehicle, no other passengers under 21 years of age, who are not members of the license holder's immediate family or members of the license holder's household, may be in the vehicle.
(5)	Every person occupying the vehicle being driven by the license holder shall have a safety belt properly fastened about his or her body, or be restrained by a child passenger restraint system as provided in G.S. 20‑137.1(a), when the vehicle is in motion.
(6)	The license holder shall not use a mobile telephone or other additional technology associated with a mobile telephone while operating the vehicle on a public street or highway or public vehicular area.
(7)	The permit holder has affixed to the front and rear of the motor vehicle being operated by the permit holder a decal that meets the requirements of G.S. 20‑11.2."
SECTION 4.  Section 1 of this act is effective when it becomes law. The remainder of this act becomes effective December 1, 2011, and applies to offenses committed on or after that date.