§ 32:853 — Commissioner to furnish operating records; other information; fees; withdrawal of

§853. Commissioner to furnish operating records; other information; fees; withdrawal of
forms or information
A.(1)(a) The commissioner shall, upon request, furnish any person a certified
abstract of the operating record of any person subject to the provisions of this Chapter. The
operating record of an individual driver shall include only those offenses where an individual
has pled guilty and been sentenced thereupon, forfeited bond resulting in a final judgment
of forfeiture, or been found guilty by a court of competent jurisdiction of violating a law in
the operation of a motor vehicle, or civil actions in which an individual has been adjudged
at fault, and any accident in which the driving privileges of the person are suspended for
failure to provide liability security or proof of financial security.
(b) On accidents occurring after December 31, 1984, it shall be noted on the record
whether or not such person was issued a citation, or whether an individual has pled guilty,
forfeited bond, or been found guilty by a court of competent jurisdiction of violating a law
in the operation of a motor vehicle, or civil actions in which an individual has been adjudged
at fault.
(c) The operating record of a person shall not include those arrests for a first or
second violation of any state, local, parish, city, municipal, or other government ordinance,
statute, or legal provision making criminal the operating of a motor vehicle while intoxicated
or under the influence of alcoholic beverages, including but not limited to R.S. 14:98, nor
shall it include any record of any civil sanction imposed, including the suspension of a
license, as a result of such an arrest when any of the following occurs:
(i) The person submitted to an approved chemical test and the test resulted in a blood
alcohol reading of less than 0.08 percent by weight, or of less than 0.02 percent by weight,
if the person was under the age of twenty-one years on the date of the test, and the person is
found not guilty.
(ii) The person was found not guilty whether or not he submitted to a test.
(iii) The person was convicted or entered a plea, and the court, clerk, or district
attorney subsequently reports that the person achieved a final dismissal under the provisions
of Code of Criminal Procedure Article 894. Unless and until such notice is received, the
department shall add a conviction entered under Article 894 to the person's operating record
and suspend or revoke the license in accordance with law after issuance of proper notice to
the person.
(d) The operating record shall not include those arrests or convictions for a first or
second violation of R.S. 14:98.1, if at least two years have elapsed since the date of
conviction and the offender has not been convicted of an additional offense for violation of
R.S. 14:98 or 98.1. If he has been convicted of one or more of these additional offenses
during the two-year period, then the earlier offense shall remain on his record for a period
of four years from the date of that conviction.
(e) The operating record of an individual shall not include citations for violation of
any statute or ordinance requiring use of a seatbelt or wearing a motorcycle helmet.
(2) The commissioner shall also, upon request, advise as to whether any person
subject to the provisions of this Chapter has complied with the requirements concerning the
deposit of security, and, if so, shall designate the manner of compliance, the nature and
amount of security deposited, or the name and address of the liability insurance company
insuring such person.
(3)(a) No insurance company shall use the certified abstract of the operating record
to increase an insured's premium without complying with the following conditions:
(i) Furnish a copy of the abstract to the insured.
(ii) Determine that the insured is over fifty percent at fault in any accident shown on
the abstract.
(iii) Provide to the insured a notice in writing that the insured has a right to appeal
the determination of fault by requesting a hearing before the Department of Public Safety and
Corrections. The notice shall contain the procedure for requesting the hearing and the
address to which the request is to be transmitted.
(b) Should the insured not agree that the insured is over fifty percent at fault, the
insured may appeal the matter to the Department of Public Safety and Corrections for
determination. The department shall provide notice of the hearing to the insured, to the
insurance company of the insured, and to each person who suffered personal injury or
property damage as a result of the accident. The notice shall be transmitted by first class
mail to the last known address of the person.
(c) The Department of Public Safety and Corrections shall notify the insured and
insurance company of their findings. If the Department of Public Safety and Corrections
finds the insured not over fifty percent at fault in the accident, the insurance company shall
remove any additional premium charged to the insured for that accident.
(4) Whenever it is determined that the person is not over 50% at fault, the
department shall note such finding on the person's operating record.
(5) No insurance company shall increase an insured's premium for an accident in
which he was not over 50% at fault.
(6)(a) The provisions of this Subsection shall not apply to accidents involving
publicly owned emergency vehicles operated by any public safety or law enforcement officer,
whether fulltime, parttime, or volunteer, including but not limited to firefighters in the
employ of any municipality, parish or fire protection district; deputy sheriffs; municipal
police officers; officers of the Louisiana State Police; officers of the enforcement division
of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries; and emergency medical vehicle operators with
respect to accidents in which these persons are involved while engaged in the operation of
a publicly owned emergency vehicle in the course and scope of their employment.
(b) No accident involving the operation of a publicly owned emergency vehicle by
any of the persons described in this Paragraph shall be included on the individual officer's
operating record nor shall any insurance company increase the premium on that person's
privately owned vehicle because of that accident.
B. The commissioner shall be entitled to charge and collect a fee of sixteen dollars
for each copy of a certified abstract and for each copy of any information furnished upon
request of any person from the files of the financial responsibility division of the Department
of Public Safety and Corrections. Notwithstanding any other fees as stipulated herein, the fee
for furnishing motor vehicle reports that are derived from computer generated requests shall
not exceed sixteen dollars for records from all sources.
C. When any person files a form, or furnishes information, which is provided for
under this Chapter, and the person was not at that time required by law to file the form or
furnish the information, that person may request that the form, and all of the information
contained in the form, and any other information furnished by him be withdrawn from the
files maintained by the commissioner. If the commissioner determines that the law as it
existed at that time did not require the form to be filed, or the information to be submitted,
he shall return the form to the person who filed it and shall delete from the files of the
commissioner any information concerning the form and any other information furnished by
that person.
NOTE: Section 6 of Acts 2001, No. 781, provides that the provisions of the
Act shall become null and of no effect if and when Section 351 of P.L. 106-346 regarding the withholding of federal highway funds for failure to enact
a 0.08 percent blood alcohol level is repealed or invalidated for any reason.

Legislative History

Added by Acts 1952, No. 52, §3. Amended by Acts 1958, No. 87, §1; Acts 1958, No. 511, §1; Acts 1977, No. 421, §1, eff. July 1, 1977; Acts 1982, No. 702, §1; Acts 1983, 1 st Ex. Sess., No. 33, §2, eff. Jan 19, 1983; Acts 1983, No. 231, §1; Acts 1984, No. 212, §2, eff. Sept. 1, 1984; Acts 1984, No. 718, §1; Acts 1985, No. 414, §1, eff. July 10, 1985; Acts 1985, No. 188, §1, eff. July 6, 1985; Acts 1986, No. 679, §1; Acts 1987, No. 616, §1, eff. July 9, 1987; Acts 1988, No. 611, §1, eff. July 14, 1988; Acts 1990, No. 871, §1; Acts 1991, No. 980, §1; Acts 1992, No. 984, §18; Acts 1994, 3rd Ex. Sess., No. 20, §2; Acts 1997, No. 1296, §3, eff. July 15, 1997; Acts 1997, No. 1343, §1; Acts 2001, No. 456, §1; Acts 2001, No. 781, §4, eff. Sept. 30, 2003; Acts 2005, No. 507, §1; Acts 2009, No. 366, §1; Acts 2014, No. 458, §1; Acts 2015, No. 111, §1, July 1, 2015.