Georgia § 40-5-23 - Classes of licenses.

§ 40-5-23. Classes of licenses.

The department upon issuing a driver's license shall indicate thereon the type or general class of vehicles that the licensee may drive. Subject to this chapter, the commissioner shall establish by rules and regulations such qualifications, including but not limited to, training, experience, or educational prerequisites, as he or she believes are necessary for the safe operation of the various types, sizes, or combinations of vehicles and shall appropriately examine each applicant to determine his or her qualification according to the type or general class of license applied for. The noncommercial classes of motor vehicles for which operators may be licensed shall be as follows: Class C - Any single vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating not in excess of 26,000 pounds, any such vehicle towing a vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating not in excess of 10,000 pounds, any such vehicle towing a vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating in excess of 10,000 pounds, provided that the combination of vehicles has a gross combined vehicle weight rating not in excess of 26,000 pounds, any three-wheeled motor vehicle that is equipped with a steering wheel for directional control, and any self-propelled or towed vehicle that is equipped to serve as temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, or travel purposes and is used solely as a family or personal conveyance; except that any combination of vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating not in excess of 26,000 pounds may be operated under such class of license if such combination of vehicles are controlled and operated by a farmer, used to transport agricultural products, livestock, farm machinery, or farm supplies to or from a farm, and are not used in the operations of a common or contract carrier; Class D - Provisional license applicable to noncommercial Class C vehicles for which an applicant desires a driver's license but is not presently licensed to drive; Class E - Any combination of vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of 26,001 pounds or more, provided that the gross vehicle weight rating of the vehicle or vehicles being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds, and all vehicles included within Class F and Class C; Class F - Any single vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of 26,001 pounds or more, any such vehicle towing a vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating not in excess of 10,000 pounds, and all vehicles included within Class C; Class M - Motorcycles, motor driven cycles, and three-wheeled motorcycles equipped with handlebars for directional control; Class P - Instruction permit applicable to all types of vehicles for which an applicant desires a driver's license but is not presently licensed to drive. Any applicant for a Class E or Class F license must possess a valid Georgia driver's license for Class C vehicles. A license issued pursuant to this Code section shall not be a commercial driver's license. (Code 1933, § 68B-204, enacted by Ga. L. 1975, p. 1008, § 1; Ga. L. 1984, p. 1329, § 1A; Ga. L. 1989, p. 519, § 7; Ga. L. 1990, p. 2048, § 4; Ga. L. 1997, p. 760, § 11; Ga. L. 2000, p. 951, § 5-7; Ga. L. 2005, p. 854, § 1/SB 273; Ga. L. 2006, p. 504, § 1/HB 1392; Ga. L. 2007, p. 47, § 40/SB 103; Ga. L. 2010, p. 932, § 5/HB 396; Ga. L. 2017, p. 184, § 2A/HB 136.) The 2017 amendment, effective July 1, 2017, in subsection (c), inserted "any three-wheeled motor vehicle that is equipped with a steering wheel for directional control," near the middle of the first undesignated paragraph, inserted "that" near the middle of the third undesignated paragraph, added "equipped with handlebars for directional control" at the end of the fifth undesignated paragraph, and designated the former ending paragraph of subsection (c) as present subsection (d). Cross references. - License requirement for operators of ambulance services, § 31-11-30 , et seq. Editor's notes. - Ga. L. 1997, p. 760, § 1, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: "This Act shall be known and may be cited as the 'Teen-age and Adult Driver Responsibility Act'." Ga. L. 1997, p. 760, § 27, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that the amendment made by the Act to this Code section shall apply to offenses committed on or after July 1, 1997, and shall not apply to offenses committed prior to that date. Ga. L. 2005, p. 854, § 3/SB 273, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that the 2005 amendment applies to offenses occurring on or after July 1, 2005. Law reviews. - For article commenting on the 1997 amendment of this Code section, see 14 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 203 (1997).