1999 Legislation
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SENATE BILL NO. 1004 – MV/minor under 16 negligent/liablty

SENATE BILL NO. 1004

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Daily Data Tracking History



S1004................................................by JUDICIARY AND RULES
MOTOR VEHICLES - Amends existing law to clarify that any person who gives
or furnishes a motor vehicle to a minor under sixteen years of age is
liable for the negligence of the minor.

01/19    Senate intro - 1st rdg - to printing
01/20    Rpt prt - to Jud
02/08    Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
02/09    2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
02/10    3rd rdg - PASSED - 33-0-2
      AYES--Andreason, Branch, Bunderson, Burtenshaw, Cameron, Crow,
      Danielson, Darrington, Deide, Dunklin, Frasure, Geddes, Hawkins,
      Ingram, Ipsen, Keough, King, Lee, McLaughlin, Noh, Parry, Richardson,
      Riggs, Risch, Sandy, Schroeder, Sorensen, Stegner, Stennett, Thorne,
      Twiggs, Wheeler, Whitworth
      NAYS--None
      Absent and excused--Boatright, Davis
    Floor Sponsor - King
    Title apvd - to House
02/11    House intro - 1st rdg - to Jud
03/10    Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
03/11    2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
03/16    3rd rdg - PASSED - 60-0-10
      AYES -- Alltus, Barrett, Bell, Black, Boe, Bruneel, Callister,
      Campbell, Chase, Clark, Crow, Cuddy, Deal, Ellsworth, Field(13),
      Field(20), Gagner, Geddes, Gould, Hadley, Hammond, Hansen(23),
      Hansen(29), Henbest, Hornbeck, Jaquet, Judd, Kellogg, Kempton,
      Kendell, Kunz, Lake, Linford, Loertscher, Mader, Marley, McKague,
      Meyer(Duncan), Moyle, Pischner, Pomeroy, Reynolds, Ridinger, Ringo,
      Robison, Sali, Schaefer, Sellman, Smith, Smylie, Stevenson,
      Stoicheff, Stone, Taylor, Tilman, Tippets, Watson, Wheeler, Williams,
      Zimmermann
      NAYS -- None
      Absent and excused -- Barraclough, Bieter, Denney, Jones, Limbaugh,
      Montgomery, Mortensen, Trail, Wood, Mr Speaker
    Floor Sponsor - Jaquet
    Title apvd - to Senate
03/17    To enrol - Rpt enrol - Pres signed
03/18    Sp signed
03/19    To Governor
03/23    Governor signed
         Session Law Chapter 144
         Effective: 07/01/99

Bill Text


S1004


                                                                        
 ||||              LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO             ||||
Fifty-fifth Legislature                 First Regular Session - 1999
                                                                        

                                      IN THE SENATE

                                   SENATE BILL NO. 1004

                             BY JUDICIARY AND RULES COMMITTEE

 1                                        AN ACT
 2    RELATING TO THE LIABILITY OF AN OWNER OF A MOTOR VEHICLE  FOR  DRIVING  NEGLI-
 3        GENCE  OF  A  MINOR  UNDER SIXTEEN YEARS OF AGE; AMENDING SECTION 49-2416,
 4        IDAHO CODE, TO CLARIFY THAT THE TERM "MINOR" MEANS A PERSON UNDER  SIXTEEN
 5        YEARS OF AGE.

 6    Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:

 7        SECTION  1.  That  Section 49-2416, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
 8    amended to read as follows:

 9        49-2416.  OWNER LIABLE FOR NEGLIGENCE OF MINOR UNDER SIXTEEN. Every  owner
10    of  a  motor  vehicle causing or knowingly permitting a minor under the age of
11    sixteen (16) years to drive the vehicle upon a highway,  and  any  person  who
12    gives  or  furnishes a motor vehicle to a minor  under the age of sixteen
13    (16) years , shall be jointly and severally liable with  the  minor  for
14    any damage caused by the negligence of the minor in driving the vehicle.

Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Impact


                       .STATEMENT OF PlTRpOSF

                              RS 08532

This bill is one of a series of bills that the Justices of the
Supreme Court transmitted to the Governor in their annual "defects
in the law" report under Art. 5, Sec. 25 of the Idaho
Constitntion.

Idaho Code  49-2416 establishes the financial responsibility
of owners or other persons who turn over control of a motor
vehicle to a person under sixteen years of age who negligently
causes damage to a third party.

The first part of section 49-2416 makes an owner of a motor
vehicle liable to injured third parties when the owner permits a
minor under sixteen years of age to drive the vehicle. A second
part of 49-2416 also makes any person who furnishes a motor
vehicle to a "minor" liable for that minor's negligent driving,
but this part of the statute fails to identify the "minor" as a
person under sixteen years of age. The term "minor" ordinarily
includes persons under eighteen years of age rather than just
those under sixteen years of age, which creates an ambiguity as to
whether two different age groups are intended to be included
within the statute.

When the predecessor of I.C.  49-2416 was originally enacted
it was clear that the term "minor" referred to a minor under
sixteen years of age, but the present ambiguity was created when a
key word was inadvertently removed from the statute when it was
recodified as 49-2416 in 1988.

This bill adds language to I.C.  49-2416 which clarifies that
a minor under sixteen years of age is the age standard to be
applied throughout the statute as originally intended.

                             FISCAL NOTE

It is not anticipated that this bill will have an impact on
state or local funds.

Contact Person:
Patricia Tobias 
Administrative Director of the Courts 
Idaho Supreme Court 
(208) 334-2246

                                                  Statement of Purpose/Fiscal Note    S1004