Drivers’ Licenses for Students

As the result of objections from the ACLU and the efforts of Representative Edith Ajello, the legislature significantly revised a bill that would have denied drivers’ licenses to students who miss a specified number of days at school. While the bill was designed as an incentive for students to stay in school, the ACLU argued that it was inappropriate to use drivers’ licenses as social punishment for matters totally unrelated to driving. As passed, the revised bill instead gives the Family Court the authority to suspend the licenses of minors brought before the court for truancy, but only after weighing the hardships that the suspension might cause.