An Act To Amend the Laws Regarding the Unlawful Use of License or Identification Card

Sec. 1. 29-A MRSA §2102,  as amended by PL 2003, c. 452, Pt. Q, §§54 to 57 and affected by Pt. X, §2, is further amended to read:

§ 2102. Unlawful use of license or identification card; unlawful dissemination of protected information

A person commits a Class E crime if that person: The following provisions govern the unlawful use of a license or identification card and the unlawful dissemination of information that is protected by a state law or rule that implements the federal Driver's Privacy Protection Act of 1994, 18 United States Code, Sections 2721 to 2725 (2006).

Violation of this section subsection 1, 1-A, 1-B, 1-D or 3 is a strict liability crime as defined in Title 17-A, section 34, subsection 4-A.

Sec. 2. 29-A MRSA §2412-A, sub-§8,  as enacted by PL 2009, c. 297, §2, is amended to read:

SUMMARY

This bill amends the offense of possessing or displaying a suspended license by creating a 2-tier violation, a crime and a traffic infraction, which parallels the changes made to the operating after suspension statute by Public Law 2009, chapter 297. The bill provides that a person commits a Class E crime if that person displays or possesses a suspended driver's license or identification card when operation of the motor vehicle by that person is punishable as a crime. The bill also provides that a person commits a traffic infraction if that person displays or possesses a suspended driver's license or identification card when operation of the motor vehicle by that person is punishable as a traffic infraction.

The bill further adds a cross-reference to clarify what is intended by the conduct of "operating while license suspended." The conduct is as described in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 29-A, section 2412-A, subsection 1-A, paragraph A.

The bill also clarifies which prohibited acts are strict liability crimes.