RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – On Tuesday, October 13th, President Jair Bolsonaro sanctioned, with vetoes, the law that changes the Brazilian Traffic Code, announced the General Secretariat of the Presidency. Among other changes, the bill extends the validity and number of points in the driver’s license.
The parts of the text vetoed by Bolsonaro will be reexamined by the National Congress, which may restore them by overriding the vetos.
The Chamber passed the project’s final version on September 22nd, and Bolsonaro had until October 14th to complete his review. The new rules will come into force 180 days after the law is published.
During a social media broadcast, Bolsonaro commented on the version of the law that was passed in Congress and anticipated a veto on the rules that restricted the circulation of motorcyclists.
“It is in the bill that motorcyclists could only overtake in traffic lines, stopped cars and low speed. We vetoed it. A higher speed for motorcyclists to get to their destination remains valid,” he declared.
“Some things have been changed [in Congress]. It wasn’t what we wanted, but there was some progress. Surely, next year we will submit a new bill trying to correct something else. Our intention is to make life easier for drivers,” he said.
The text was sent to Congress by the Jair Bolsonaro government, but it was changed during the process. The President wanted to change the rules for the transportation of children in booster seats, for instance – the passage was removed by legislators.
Among the changes passed in Congress are an increase in the number of points for infractions before suspension of the National Driver’s License and compulsory use of a booster seat for the transportation of children up to 10 years old who have not yet reached 1.45 meters in height.
One of the main changes made in Congress foresees that in cases of bodily injury and homicide caused by an intoxicated driver, even if unintentionally, a prison sentence must be imposed rather than milder penalties such as suspension of driving permission. Current legislation says that imprisonment can be replaced by penalties restricting rights if the crime is involuntary.
Some measures in the bill sent by the government, such as the removal of fines for those who carry children without a booster seat, were not passed by deputies and senators.
The bill was considered a priority by the government. In June last year, President Jair Bolsonaro personally visited the Chamber to deliver the text.
Driver’s License validity
The bill extends the validity before renewing a driver’s license according to the age of the driver: ten years for drivers under 50 years of age; five years for drivers aged 50 years or older and under 70 years of age; and
three years for drivers 70 years of age or older.
The text also provides that in the event of evidence of physical or mental disability or progressive illness that impairs driving ability, the examiner may shorten the time limits for renewal of the license.
Currently, the Traffic Code provides for renewal every five years for most drivers and every three years for drivers over 65. The text sent by the government provided for renewal every ten years and, for people over 65, every five years.
Driver’s License score
The bill also provides for higher minimum scoring limits on the driver’s license, within a 12 month period, as follows: 40 points for those with no very serious infraction; 30 points for those who have one very serious infraction; 20 points for those who have two or more such violations.
Professional drivers will have 40 maximum points, irrespective of the violations committed. These drivers must attend a preventive recycling course when they reach 30 points. The current legislation provides for suspending the license once the offender reaches 20 points.
The Congress also included the requirement for a psychological assessment when the driver: is involved in a serious accident to which he/she has contributed; is legally convicted for a traffic violation; or is endangering traffic safety, by decision of the traffic authority.
Booster seats
The bill as passed also determines the obligatory use of booster seats for children up to ten years of age who have not yet reached 1.45 m in height. The seat must be adapted to the child’s age, weight and height. Non-compliance with this rule will result in a fine corresponding to a very serious violation.
The government’s original proposal was that the punishment for non-compliance would be a simple written admonition, without a fine. Moreover, the booster seat would only have been required for children up to seven and a half years of age.
Toxicological tests
With respect to the renewal of a driver’s license, the text also maintains the obligation of toxicological tests for drivers of professional categories C, D and E.
According to the proposal, those under 70 years of age will also have to undergo the test every two and a half years, irrespective of the driver’s license expiration date. The goal is to prevent that a change in the duration of the license should lead to changes in the periodicity of the test.
Recall
The project renders the recall by dealers – calling owners to repair any faults found in vehicles – a prerequisite for annual licensing of the vehicle from the second year after the recall.
According to the rapporteur, there are common cases of non-compliance with the procedure, endangering the safety of drivers of these vehicles and other people.
Positive registration
The proposal creates the National Drivers’ Positive Register (RNPC), in which drivers who have not committed a traffic violation subject to points in the past 12 months will be entered.
The positive register will allow states and municipalities to grant tax and tariff benefits to registered drivers.
Traffic schools
The bill provides for the creation of “public traffic schools” for children and adolescents with theoretical and practical classes on legislation, signage and behavior in traffic.
Public consultation
The regulatory standards proposals to be issued by CONTRAN must now be submitted to public consultation before coming into force. The aim is to provide greater transparency to the board’s decisions.
Administrative fines
The opinion proposes the exemption of points in the driver’s license in some administrative violations cases, for instance:driving a vehicle with a changed color or feature; driving a vehicle not bearing the required documents; carrying plates on the vehicle which do not comply with the specifications and models established by CONTRAN; or failing to update the vehicle registration or the driver’s license.
Warning
The text further defines that for minor or moderate violations a written warning penalty should be imposed rather than a fine if the offender has not committed any other violation in the preceding 12 months. Currently, the law already allows this option if the traffic authority “understands this provision as more educational” and as long as the driver has not committed the same violation in the preceding 12 months.
Headlights
The text determines the obligation to keep the lights on during the day, in tunnels and in rain, mist or fog, and at night.
The Senate introduced a change, upheld in the Chamber, to restrict the mandatory use of dimmers during the day on single carriageways only to those outside urban perimeters.
The proposal amends a section of the Traffic Code that deals with the mandatory wearing of helmets on motorcycles or scooters, removing the mention of the visor – which is currently considered a very serious violation. The failure to wear a helmet with a visor or goggles has been included in a separate article of the law, thereby rendering it only a moderate violation;
Source: G1