§ 2301. Office of the Public Auditor
TITLE 9: VEHICLE CODE DIVISION 2: REGISTRATION AND LICENSES § 2301. Operating a Vehicle for Rent or Hire Without a Taxicab Driver’s License or Taxicab Registration Card. (a) No person shall operate a vehicle upon a highway for rent or hire without having in his immediate possession a valid taxicab driver’s license or a taxicab registration card. (1) Any person who operates a motor vehicle in violation of 9 CMC § 2301(a) is guilty of a misdemeanor and may be punished by imprisonment for not more than one year and a fine of not less than 2,000. Further, any person who violates this subsection shall have their license to operate a motor vehicle suspended for one year. If a person has been previously convicted of violating 9 CMC § 2301(a), then violation of 9 CMC § 2301(a) is a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than three years or a fine of not more than $7,500, or both. (2) [Repealed.] (3) Any person convicted of violating this section shall not be eligible for a taxi cab driver’s license or a taxi cab business license. (4) Any vehicle used in violation of this section shall be confiscated and subject to forfeiture to the Commonwealth pursuant to the provisions set forth in 6 CMC § 2150. (b) An application for a taxicab license must be denied if the applicant was convicted of any of the following offenses within ten years of applying for a taxicab license: (1) Any felony offense; (2) Theft of a motor vehicle; (3) Any crime wherein the applicant’s operation of a motor vehicle resulted in the death or serious injury of another person; (4) Fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer; (5) Two or more convictions for reckless driving; or (6) Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. (b) An application for a taxicab license must be denied if the applicant was convicted of any of the following offenses within ten years of applying for a taxicab license: (1) Any felony offense; (2) Theft of a motor vehicle; (3) Any crime wherein the applicant’s operation of a motor vehicle resulted in the death or serious injury of another person; (4) Fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer; (5) Two or more convictions for reckless driving; or (6) Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. (c) After certification of fitness by the Bureau of Taxicabs, all applications for a taxicab driver’s license shall be filed with the Bureau of Motor Vehicles under such uniform regulations as the Chief of Motor Vehicles may prescribe, and shall require fingerprinting and such oral and written examinations and driving tests as may be proper to determine the fitness of each applicant. Thereafter, the Chief of
TITLE 9: VEHICLE CODE DIVISION 2: REGISTRATION AND LICENSES Motor Vehicles shall approve or disapprove each such application in accordance with the provisions of this article. (d) Upon the approval of an application for a taxicab driver’s license, a fee, as set by the Bureau of Taxicabs, shall be paid by the applicant to the Chief of Motor Vehicles. For each duplicate or substitute license issued, a fee of $5 shall be paid to the Chief of Motor Vehicles. (e) A license number shall be assigned annually to each licensee. The taxicab driver’s license number shall remain in full force and effect as the identification number for the taxicab driver throughout the license year. (f) A taxicab driver’s license entitles the licensee to all rights and privileges of a chauffeur and operator, in addition to all the rights and privileges of a taxicab driver. (g) In addition to any other provisions for suspension or revocation of a driver’s license, a court may revoke permanently the license of any taxicab driver upon his conviction of any of the offenses as specified in 9 CMC § 2301(b). Source: PL 7-33, § 7; section title amended and subsection (a) repealed and reenacted by PL 15-64, § 2(c); (a)(1) repealed and reenacted, (a)(2) repealed, and (b) repealed and reenacted by PL 19-17, §§ 4–6 (Nov. 6, 2015). Commission Comment: PL 7-33, the “Taxicab Regulation Act of 1991,” took effect July 31, 1991. For additional requirements concerning licensing of taxicab drivers and taxicab businesses, see 1 CMC §§ 2594-2596. The CNMI Office of the Attorney General issued Opinion No. 04-15 on December 17, 2004, regarding the constitutionality of subsection (b) above. The opinion was published in 27 Com. Reg. 23893 (Jan. 17, 2005). See also 6 CMC § 3114, effective June 16, 2005, which also requires an individual to have a valid taxicab driver’s license (or taxicab registration card) in order to operate a taxicab and sets forth a penalty for violation which differs from the above section and 9 CMC § 2303. PL 15-64 was enacted on May 30, 2007, and contained the following findings and purpose in addition to other enactments and repealers, expenditure authority, global amendment, clarifications, severability, and savings clause provisions. 6 CMC § 3114 was eventually repealed by PL 15-64, § 2(b). Section 1. Findings and Purpose. The Commonwealth Legislature finds that with the enactment of various bills into public law, certain minor errors and inconsistencies have prevented the efficient codification of a number of laws. It is the intent of this Act to repeal, amend, or add necessary language to the Commonwealth Code in order to more accurately reflect the intent and purpose of laws enacted by the Commonwealth Legislature.
TITLE 9: VEHICLE CODE DIVISION 2: REGISTRATION AND LICENSES The Commission renumbered subsections (a)(3) and (a)(4) to subsections (a)(2) and (a)(3) respectively pursuant to 1 CMC § 3806(a). The Commission changed all references to 9 CMC § 2301(a) in subsection (a)(1) to conform to the proper spacing format pursuant to 1 CMC § 3806(g).
Source: CNMI Law Revision Commission