AN ACT RELATING TO MOTOR AND OTHER VEHICLES -- OPERATORS' AND CHAUFFEURS' LICENSES (Permits continuation of instructor-led virtual instruction for drivers’ education for two-year period. Board of education required to provide report comparing test scores of virtual versus in-person instruction to house speaker and senate president.)

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2026 -- S 2419
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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2026
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A N A C T
RELATING TO MOTOR AND OTHER VEHICLES -- OPERATORS’ AND CHAUFFEURS’
LICENSES

Introduced By:
Senators DiPalma, Acosta, Zurier, and Urso

Date Introduced:
January 30, 2026

Referred To:
Senate Special Legislation and Veterans Affairs
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
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SECTION 1. Legislative findings.
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(1) The Rhode Island department of education has temporarily authorized driver education
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schools to deliver the thirty-three (33) hour community college of Rhode Island approved driver
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training curriculum in an instructor-led virtual format since April, 2020.
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(2) The virtual platform used to present the curriculum allows the instructor to see students
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on-screen and monitor student engagement by providing spot quizzes, interactive question and
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answer sessions, class polling and final exam.
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(3) Scores for exams taken in a classroom setting (pre-pandemic) and those taken virtually
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are comparable (90.94 on average for in-person vs. 89.58 on average for virtual).
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(4) Virtual instruction can provide workable alternatives to students with physical,
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emotional, or other learning challenges.
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(5) A virtual instruction option promotes greater accessibility to the curriculum advancing
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equity and inclusion.
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(6) A virtual option can be particularly important in rural areas or Rhode Island
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communities where no classroom instruction is available.
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SECTION 2. Section 31-10-20 of the General Laws in Chapter 31-10 entitled "Operators’
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and Chauffeurs’ Licenses" is hereby amended to read as follows:
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31-10-20. Driver education course requirement before licensing.

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(a) No limited-instruction permit or license shall be issued to any person not more than
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eighteen (18) years of age unless that person shall have successfully completed a course of
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instruction as provided in § 31-10-19, or a similar course of instruction
, conducted in a classroom
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setting or in an instructor-led virtual format,
recognized by the state board of education as
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equivalent to it.
The instructor-led virtual format course shall be permitted until July 1, 2028 and a
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report analyzing the test results of the instructor-led virtual instruction format as compared to the
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in-person classroom instruction format shall be provided by the state board of education, to the
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speaker of the house and president of the senate no later than September 1, 2028.
However, any
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person who is over eighteen (18) years of age and has been a holder of a motor vehicle operator’s
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license issued to that person by any other state, territory, or possession of the United States, or any
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other sovereignty for a period of one year immediately prior to his or her application for a license
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under this chapter shall not be required to comply with the provisions of this section.
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(b) Commencing on July 1, 2004, no limited-instruction permit or license shall be issued
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to any person not more than eighteen (18) years of age unless that person shall have successfully
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completed a course of instruction as provided in § 31-10-19, or a similar course of instruction in
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another state recognized by the state board of education as equivalent to it. In determining whether
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a course is equivalent, the state board of education shall at a minimum require: (1) That the course
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consist of at least thirty-three (33) instructional hours that substantially conform with the current
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curriculum utilized by the instructor(s) at the Community College of Rhode Island, including a
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minimum of three (3) hours of instruction focusing upon specific Rhode Island traffic laws, the
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specific requirements of the Rhode Island graduated-licensing statute in § 31-10-6, and eight (8)
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hours specifically for instruction on the effects of alcohol and drugs on a driver. All driver’s
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education programs shall include information concerning the Revised Uniform Anatomical Gift
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Act, chapter 18.6.1 of title 23, and information on donor cards pursuant to the applicable provisions
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of chapter 18.6.1 of title 23; (2) That the instructor holds a valid teacher’s certificate; (3) That the
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instructor satisfactorily completes at least a three-credit (3) course in traffic safety education at an
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accredited institution of higher education; and (4) That the program does not offer outside the
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classroom road test instruction or driving lessons to Rhode Island students. However, any person
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who is over eighteen (18) years of age and has been a holder of a motor vehicle operator’s license
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issued to that person by any other state, territory, or possession of the United States, or any other
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sovereignty for a period of one year immediately prior to his or her application for a license under
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this chapter shall not be required to comply with the provisions of this section.
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(c) The driver’s education course and driver’s license examination shall include material
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pertaining to a driver’s rights and responsibilities when stopped by a law enforcement officer as

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explained during the driver education course, including, but not limited to, rights provided to
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drivers pursuant to chapter 21.2 of title 31, the “comprehensive community-police relationship act
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of 2015.”
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SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.
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EXPLANATION
BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
OF
A N A C T
RELATING TO MOTOR AND OTHER VEHICLES -- OPERATORS’ AND CHAUFFEURS’
LICENSES
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This act would permit the continuation of instructor-led virtual instruction for drivers’
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education until July 1, 2028, the board of education would be required to provide a report
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comparing test scores of virtual versus in-person instruction to the speaker of the house and
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president of the senate no later than September 1, 2028.
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This act would take effect upon passage.
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