State Codes and Statutes
Statutes > Connecticut > Title14 > Chap246 > Sec14-37aSec. 14-37a. Special operator's permit for employment purposes. (a) Any person whose operator's license has been suspended pursuant to any provision of this chapter or chapter 248, except pursuant to section 14-215 for operating under suspension or pursuant to section 14-140 for failure to appear for any scheduled court appearance, and any person identified in subsection (g) of this section may make application to the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles for a special permit to operate a motor vehicle to and from such person's place of employment or, if such person is not employed at a fixed location, to operate a motor vehicle only in connection with, and to the extent necessary, to properly perform such person's business or profession.
(b) The commissioner may, in the commissioner's discretion upon a showing of significant hardship, grant each such application that is submitted in proper form and contains such information and attestation by the applicant as the commissioner may require. In determining whether to grant such application, the commissioner may also consider the driving record of the applicant and shall ascertain that the suspension is a final order that is not under appeal pursuant to section 4-183. A special operator's permit shall not be issued pursuant to this section to any person for the operation of a motor vehicle for which a public passenger transportation permit or commercial driver's license is required or to any person whose operator's license has been suspended previously pursuant to section 14-227a or 14-227b. A special operator's permit shall not be issued pursuant to this section to any person whose operator's license has been suspended pursuant to subparagraph (C) of subdivision (1) of subsection (i) of section 14-227b for refusing to submit to a blood, breath or urine test or analysis until such operator's license has been under suspension for a period of not less than ninety days. A person shall not be ineligible to be issued a special operator's permit under this section solely on the basis of being convicted of two violations of section 14-227a unless such second conviction is for a violation committed after a prior conviction.
(c) A special operator's permit issued pursuant to this section shall be of a distinctive format and shall include the expiration date and the legend "work only".
(d) Any person issued a special operator's permit pursuant to this section who operates a motor vehicle during the period of the permit for a purpose not authorized by the conditions of the permit shall, upon receipt of written report of a police officer, in such form as the commissioner may prescribe, of such unauthorized operation, be subject to a civil penalty of not more than five hundred dollars. Any person who makes improper use of a special operator's permit issued pursuant to this section or in any manner alters any such permit or who loans or sells such permit for use by another person shall be subject to the penalties provided by section 14-147.
(e) If a person issued a special operator's permit pursuant to this section has his operator's license suspended by the commissioner in connection with any motor vehicle violation or other offense for which suspension action is authorized, the special operator's permit shall be deemed revoked on the effective date of such suspension, and any such person with notice of the suspension who operates a motor vehicle shall be operating under suspension and shall be subject to double the penalties provided by the applicable provisions of subsection (b) of section 14-111 and section 14-215.
(f) Any decision made by the commissioner under this section shall not be subject to appeal pursuant to the provisions of chapter 54 or any other provisions of the general statutes.
(g) Any person who is an applicant for a motor vehicle operator's license and whose license or privilege to operate a motor vehicle has been restricted by any other state in a manner that the commissioner deems to be substantially similar to the restrictions imposed by a special operator's permit issued in accordance with this section, may, in the discretion of the commissioner, be issued an operator's license together with a special operator's permit. The special operator's permit shall be required to be held by such person for such time as the commissioner prescribes.
(h) The commissioner may adopt regulations in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54 to implement the provisions of this section.
(P.A. 93-371, S. 3, 5; P.A. 95-314, S. 3; P.A. 00-196, S. 10; P.A. 05-215, S. 7; 05-288, S. 215; P.A. 06-196, S. 94; P.A. 08-150, S. 58.)
History: P.A. 93-371 effective July 1, 1993; P.A. 95-314 amended Subsec. (b) to prohibit the issuance of a special operator's permit to any person whose operator's license has been suspended for refusing to submit to blood, breath or urine test until such operator's license has been under suspension for at least 90 days; P.A. 00-196 made technical changes in Subsec. (b); P.A. 05-215 amended Subsec. (b) to prohibit the issuance of a special operator's permit to a person whose operator's license has been suspended previously under Sec. 14-227a, to provide that a person is not ineligible for a special operator's permit solely on the basis of being convicted of two violations of Sec. 14-227a unless such second conviction is for a violation committed after a prior conviction and to make a technical change, effective July 6, 2005; P.A. 05-288 made a technical change in Subsec. (b), effective July 13, 2005; P.A. 06-196 made a technical change in Subsec. (b), effective June 7, 2006; P.A. 08-150 amended Subsec. (a) by substituting "any scheduled court appearance" for "trial" and providing that any person identified in Subsec. (g) may apply for special permit, inserted new Subsec. (g) re issuance of special operator's permit to certain applicants for an operator's license whose license has been restricted by any other state and redesignated existing Subsec. (g) as Subsec. (h).
Legislature intended work permit exception under this section to constitute an affirmative defense, for which defendant bears the burden of persuasion, to the offense of driving under suspension in violation of Sec. 14-215(c). Requirement that defendant bear burden of persuasion is constitutional. 254 C. 107.
