Chap. 683.                     453
examiner, registry of motor vehicles, at some convenient time, in his discretion, but no later than September thirtieth, nineteen hundred and sixty-five, and notwithstanding any rule to the contrary regulating the experience or age requirements of applicants for motor vehicle examiner, registry of motor vehicles, all applicants who meet all other requirements shall be eligible to take said test and shall be eligible for certification and appointment, whether or not they have two years or more of satisfactory, full-time paid experience in which the investigation of accidents involving motor vehicles was the major duty, provided they have not passed their fiftieth birthday.
Section 2. Notwithstanding any law, rule or regulation to the contrary, the director of civil-service shall not establish a list from the examination conducted on June twenty-sixth, nineteen hundred and sixty-five for motor vehicle examiner, registry of motor vehicles, until the time provided by law for establishment of a list for the examination provided in section one has elapsed at which time the director shall merge the results of both examinations and shall then establish a list from all the marks in the same manner as if both tests were held on the same date.                                                Approved September 7, 1965.
Chap. 683.  An Act increasing the minimum and maximum damages
RECOVERABLE IN ACTIONS FOR DEATH.
Be it enacted, etc., as follows:
Section 1. Section 2 of chapter 229 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out the'first sentence, as amended by section 1 of chapter 306 of the acts of 1962, and inserting in place thereof the following sentence: — A person who (1) by his negligence causes the death of a person in the exercise of due care, or (2) by wilful, wanton or reckless act causes the death of a person under such circumstances that the deceased could have recovered damages for personal injuries if his death had not resulted, or (3) operates a common carrier of passengers and by his negligence causes the death of a passenger, or (4) operates a common carrier of passengers and by his wilful, wanton or reckless act causes the death of a passenger under such circumstances that the deceased could have recovered damages for personal injuries if his death had not resulted, shall be liable in damages in the sum of not less than five thousand nor more than fifty thousand dollars, to be assessed with reference to the degree of his culpability and distributed as provided in section one; except that (1) the liability of an employer to a person in his employment shall not be governed by this section, (2) a person operating a railroad shall not be liable for negligence in causing the death of a person while walking or being upon such railroad contrary to law or to the reasonable rules and regulations of the carrier, and (3) a person operating a street railway or electric railroad shall not be liable for negligence for causing the death of a person while walking or being upon that part of the street railway or electric railroad not within the limits of a highway.
Section 2. This act shall take effect on January first, nineteen hundred and sixty-six, and shall apply only to actions for death resulting from injuries sustained or accidents occurring on or after said date.
Acts, 1965. —