HB 5907 (2025-2026) – Michigan Vehicle Code amendments; mandatory sentencing enhancements for certain moving violations in specific zones
Overview
- Purpose: To impose enhanced penalties for moving violations in defined high-risk driving contexts (work zones, emergency scenes, and school-related zones) and to expand penalties for drunk/impaired driving and related fatalities or injuries. The bill also adds detailed provisions around fleeing/eluding, required special verdicts for DUI-related offenses, vehicle immobilization, and related procedures.
- Jurisdiction: Michigan
- Introduced: April 29, 2026 (House, Judiciary Committee)
Key Provisions and Changes
1) Sec. 601b – Enhanced fines and felony/misdemeanor penalties in work zones, emergency scenes, and school zones
- Double fines: Moving violations in a work zone, an emergency scene, or a school zone (defined time window: 30 minutes before school to 30 minutes after) carry double the standard fine.
- Injury/death from moving violations in these zones:
- Injury (3+ points under sec. 320a): Misdemeanor, up to $1,000 fine, up to 1 year in jail (or both).
- Death from such a violation: Felony, up to life imprisonment or any term of years, with a minimum sentence ranging from 5 to 15 years (plus potentially fines up to $7,500) or both.
- Exceptions: Subsections (2) and (3) do not apply if injury/death was caused by the negligence of the injured/deceased person.
- Definitions: Emergency scene, moving violation, school bus zone (within 20 feet of a stopped school bus with flashing red lights), and school zone (per sec. 627a).
2) Sec. 602a – Fleeing and eluding enhanced penalties when signaled by police/conservation officers
- General rule: Fleeing or eluding after a lawful signal to stop is typically a felony with substantial penalties.
- Graduated levels mirror other Michigan statutes, with higher degrees (second- or first-degree fleeing/eluding) applying based on circumstances such as collision, location, prior convictions, serious injury, or death.
- Special provisions: A conviction under this section may coexist with other charges, but multiple counts arising from the same transaction cannot duplicate points under sec. 320a for related conduct.
3) Sec. 617 – Duties after accidents; penalties for failing to stop
- Requires drivers involved in accidents on property open to the public to stop and report or render aid as required.
- Penalties escalate to up to 5 years in prison or $5,000 fine for serious impairment or death; higher penalties (up to life, or 15–20 year ranges plus fines) apply for death or specific aggravating circumstances.
4) Sec. 625 – Operating while intoxicated; enhanced penalties and related provisions
- Defines “operating while intoxicated” (OCS and/or intoxication with specified blood alcohol content levels, with thresholds increasing over time after certification).
- Sets penalties for operators and vehicle owners who allow operation under intoxication.
- Enhanced penalties for resulting death, with tiers based on BAC levels (0.08, 0.17, etc.) and presence of prior convictions.
- Vehicle immobilization and potential forfeiture (625n) and ignition-interlock device requirements (as a probation condition) may be ordered.
- Special offenses involving young drivers and offenses involving a child passenger: escalating fines, imprisonment, and community service; some scenarios create misdemeanor charges, while repeated offenses or aggravating factors can create felonies.
- Requires reporting to the Secretary of State and State Police for DUI-impaired findings to maintain records for at least 7 years.
- Prohibits plea bargaining that reduces certain DUI-related charges in exchange for a guilty plea to a related enhanced offense, preserving the integrity of enhanced sentencing.
5) Procedural and timing aspects
- Effective date: 90 days after enactment.
- Required disclosures: Prosecutors must include prior-conviction information in charging documents when seeking enhanced penalties under this act.
- Special verdicts: For DUI-related charges, juries must issue special verdicts when determining intoxication/visible impairment (with some exceptions), and findings must be reported to the state and preserved as public records for at least 7 years.
Who/What is Affected
- Drivers and vehicle owners implicated in moving violations in work zones, emergency scenes, or school zones.
- Individuals charged with fleeing/eluding offenses (with enhanced penalties under specified circumstances).
- Parties involved in vehicle accidents (duty to stop and report; enhanced penalties for resulting injuries/deaths).
- Persons operating or permitting operation of a vehicle under the influence of alcohol, controlled substances, or other intoxicating substances, including enforcement and record-keeping requirements.
- Juvenile drivers and caregivers may face tighter penalties and驾驶-related obligations under the new provisions.
- Courts, prosecutors, the Department of State Police, and the Secretary of State (verification, reporting, and record-keeping duties).
Impact Considerations
- Substantive: Substantially tougher penalties for high-risk driving scenarios and DUI-related offenses, with potential increases in fines, imprisonment, and immobilization/forfeiture options.
- Procedural: Expanded reporting and conviction-prior-record requirements; limitations on plea-bargaining related to enhanced charges.
- Administrative: Increased responsibilities for law enforcement, courts, and state agencies to track, report, and administer ignition-interlock conditions and vehicle immobilization.
Note: This summary reflects the bill as introduced and does not reflect any amendments that may be adopted during committee or floor actions.
