2.1 Drivers' School Licensing and Operational Requirements

What a Drivers' School License Authorizes

COMAR 11.23.01.03A: a drivers' school license issued under Transportation Article, Title 15, Subtitle 7 authorizes "a business entity, organization, institution, or individual to give instruction in the driving of motor vehicles in which a fee is collected."

Two structural rules follow immediately:

• §C — the license may not be transferred, sold, or assigned without written MVA approval. The regulation defines an assignment broadly: assignment of all or substantially all of the school's assets, or any assignment of interest in the stock or shares of the business that results in a transfer of control, is an assignment. A change of ownership cannot be papered over as a stock sale.
• §D — a drivers' school may provide the driver education program courses under Title 16, Subtitle 5 only if the school is both licensed under COMAR 11.23.01 and certified under COMAR 11.23.02. The same two-credential structure that applies to individuals applies to businesses.

---

Qualifying (COMAR 11.23.01.04)

An applicant for a drivers' school license:

1. Shall be 21 years old or older;
2. May not have a pending charge or criminal conviction for fraud in the operation of providing instruction, a crime of moral turpitude, a sex offense, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, or an offense within the last 5 years involving a controlled dangerous substance, alcohol or drugs while operating a motor vehicle, or a felony while operating a motor vehicle;
3. May not have an outstanding complaint or pending charge that would be grounds to refuse, suspend, or revoke the license under Transportation Article, §§15-109 and 15-709;
4. May not have a conviction of the §A(2) type within 5 years preceding the application date;
5. Shall have a valid federal and State tax identification number;
6. May not have an unresolved past-due tax or other financial obligation due to Maryland;
7. Shall be in compliance with all State and local requirements to do business in Maryland; and
8. Shall have a designated business office located in Maryland with posted business hours.

If the applicant is a partnership, corporation, or education institution, each individual responsible for the operation of the business must meet these qualifications (§B).

A five-year window, not three

Note the contrast with individual instructors. The drivers' school lookback for CDS/alcohol/felony-while-driving offenses is 5 years (11.23.01.04A(2)(e) and A(4)). The individual instructor lookback for the same categories is 3 years (11.23.01.13A(5)(e)). Item writers pair these deliberately.

---

The Application (COMAR 11.23.01.05)

The application must be signed by an authorized representative, completed in its entirety, and accompanied by nine categories of material:

Two closing rules matter operationally. §E requires a separate application with all required documentation for each business office, classroom, or training site. And §F provides that a license may only be issued if all chapter requirements are met and the applicant has successfully completed the orientation conducted by the Administration.

§D provides a narrow waiver: the MVA may waive the application fee, license fee, renewal fee, and the surety bond requirement for an educational institution that offers the instruction as part of the normal school-day curriculum and does not charge a fee for the course.

---

The Surety Bond — Know the Statutory Figure

COMAR does not state a dollar amount. It points to Transportation Article, §15-705, which provides that "the amount of the surety bond shall be $40,000." The bond is filed with the Administration after the application is approved but before the license is issued, and COMAR 11.23.01.07A(7)(d) requires it to be maintained continuously in force thereafter.

Prep material circulating a $20,000 figure is quoting a superseded number. The current statute says $40,000.

---

Branch Licenses (COMAR 11.23.01.06)

A business office, classroom, or training site at a location other than the primary site listed in the school license application "shall be separately licensed as a branch before use by a school." The branch application is submitted on the MVA's form, signed and certified by the school's owner or authorized representative, and accompanied by the COMAR 11.11.05 fee for initial issuance and for each renewal (the MVA publishes $135 for a driving school branch and renewal).

---

Everyday Operational Duties (COMAR 11.23.01.07)

A licensed drivers' school shall:

1. Display the school's license in a conspicuous place in the business office;
2. Use only school training vehicles approved by the Administration;
3. Use only the curricula, instructional materials, quizzes, tests, and forms approved by the Administration;
4. Make operation and student records available for MVA inspection during posted business hours;
5. Comply with nondiscrimination requirements (race, creed, color, age, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, marital status, disabilities, and other protected classifications, including under the Americans with Disabilities Act); with agency findings on complaints; and with all State and local building, zoning, fire and safety codes, including a posted maximum-occupancy certificate in the current business owner's name for every office and classroom used for instruction or testing;
6. Report changes in writing to the Administration within 30 days, including changes to training vehicles and instructors terminated or no longer employed;
7. Maintain at all times an approved Maryland business office, Workers' Compensation and Unemployment insurance, general liability insurance, and the surety bond; and
8. Ensure that each class is conducted in only one language, excluding sign language.

§B disqualifies school owners and operators with pending charges or convictions in the same seven categories used throughout the chapter. §C bars a licensed school from endangering an employee, student, or instructor; subcontracting any portion of the program without prior MVA approval; or using any publication or advertisement that is false, deceptive, or misleading.

Curriculum Approval (COMAR 11.23.01.23)

Curriculum is approved at the school level, not the instructor level:

• §A — the curriculum used for giving instruction in driving motor vehicles shall be approved by the Administration before a drivers' school provides instruction using that curriculum.
• §B — a school may only use the curriculum approved by the Administration, and it shall include the components set forth in Regulation .05C — the detailed course description, performance objectives, topic areas, per-unit instruction, standards for successful completion, audiovisual materials, textbooks and references, copies of the knowledge and skill examinations, and the typical session schedule.
• §C — any revisions and modifications to a curriculum must be approved by the Administration before being used for instruction.

There is no de minimis exception. Reordering units, swapping a worksheet, or replacing an examination is a modification that requires prior approval.

---

Renewal and replacement

The school license and branch license are valid 2 years and expire automatically unless renewed (11.23.01.09A-B). A school license that is lost, stolen, mutilated, or destroyed is replaced under COMAR 11.23.01.10, which requires an application stating the date and circumstances, surrender of a mutilated license, and the duplicate fee in COMAR 11.11.05. Renewal requires compliance with all governing law, the renewal fee, and documentation of Workers' Compensation and Unemployment insurance, general liability insurance, and the §15-705 surety bond. As with instructor credentials, a renewal application must arrive at least 2 calendar weeks before expiration or the license expires and the school must reapply from scratch (§F-G).