AN ACT to allow north carolina residents who are at least SIXTEEN years of age to obtain a north carolina special identification card for free and to establish a pilot program to issue special identification cards to students in public high schools in Anson, gaston, mecklenburg, and union counties.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 20‑37.7(d) reads as rewritten:

(d)      Expiration and Fee. – A special identification card issued to a person for the first time under this section expires when a drivers license issued on the same day to that person would expire. A special identification card renewed under this section expires when a drivers license renewed by the card holder on the same day would expire. The Division shall offer renewal of a special identification card in person and online on the Division's Web site.

The fee for a special identification card is the same as the fee set in G.S. 20‑14 for a duplicate license. The fee does not apply to a special identification card issued to a resident of this State as follows:

(1)        The applicant is legally blind.

(2)        The applicant is at least 17 16 years old.

(3)        The applicant has been issued a drivers license but the drivers license is cancelled under G.S. 20‑15, in accordance with G.S. 20‑9(e) and (g), as a result of a physical or mental disability or disease.

(4)        The applicant is homeless. To obtain a special identification card without paying a fee, a homeless person must present a letter to the Division from the director of a facility that provides care or shelter to homeless persons verifying that the person is homeless.

(5),       (6) Repealed by Session Laws 2018‑144, s. 1.3(a), effective December 19, 2018.

(7)        The applicant has a developmental disability. To obtain a special identification card without paying a fee pursuant to this subdivision, an applicant must present a letter from his or her primary care provider certifying that the applicant has a developmental disability. For purposes of this subdivision, the term developmental disability has the same meaning as in G.S. 122C‑3.

SECTION 2.(a)  Establishment of Pilot Program. – By no later than October 1, 2025, the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Transportation (DMV), in conjunction with the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (DPI) and the governing bodies of public school units with high schools located in Anson, Gaston, Mecklenburg, and Union Counties, shall establish and implement a pilot program to issue a North Carolina Special Identification Card as provided under G.S. 20‑37.7 to eligible students in public high schools located in Anson, Gaston, Mecklenburg, and Union Counties.

SECTION 2.(b)  Pilot Program Requirements. – The pilot program established pursuant to this act shall, at minimum, meet all of the following requirements:

(1)        Students that are (i) at least 16 years old and (ii) enrolled in a public high school located within Anson, Gaston, Mecklenburg, or Union Counties shall be eligible to receive a Special Identification Card in accordance with this pilot program.

(2)        DMV, DPI, and the governing bodies of public high schools located in Anson, Gaston, Mecklenburg, and Union Counties shall provide information to students and parents regarding the issuance of Special Identification Cards.

(3)        DMV, DPI, and the governing bodies of public high schools located in Anson, Gaston, Mecklenburg, and Union Counties shall coordinate scheduled times to give students the opportunity to obtain Special Identification Cards. Time to obtain a Special Identification Card shall be scheduled on one instructional day prior to December 31 of the school year and one instructional day after December 31 of the school year. If students travel to a DMV location to obtain the Special Identification Card, the DMV shall have a dedicated terminal for students during the scheduled times. A DMV mobile office may also be used to satisfy this requirement.

(4)        Upon the request of a student, the student's high school shall provide the DMV with the information required to complete a Special Identification Card application. This information shall be provided in a manner prescribed by the DMV.

(5)        Notwithstanding G.S. 130A‑93 or any other law to the contrary, the State Registrar is authorized to issue a certified copy of a student's birth certificate, at the Division's expense, to the governing body of a public high school or the Division upon a student's request in connection with a Special Identification Card application. The certified copy of the student's birth certificate is not a public record.

SECTION 2.(c)  Expiration of the Pilot Program. – The pilot program required by this act expires December 31, 2027.

SECTION 2.(d)  Conflict. – If there is a conflict between G.S. 20‑37.7 and the pilot program required by this act, then G.S. 20‑37.7 shall prevail to the extent of the conflict.

SECTION 3.  Applicability. – Section 2 of this act applies to Anson, Gaston, Mecklenburg, and Union Counties only.

SECTION 4.  This act is effective when it becomes law.