Governor Mike DeWine is working on plans and budgets that would bring driver’s education classes back to school. He wants Ohio public schools to offer this course once again, something that has not been done for many years now. Since the course has been removed from schools, it has only been offered by private businesses, despite being a required part of obtaining a driver’s license, if you are under the age of 18.
Currently, state law requires minor drivers to take the course with a state licensed company.
The law requires that a learning driver who is under the age of 18 must have 24 hours of classroom instruction time and eight hours of behind-the-wheel driving time. This was all offered in public schools in the driver’s education class. But, once the class was removed, people were forced to turn to private courses exclusively. When Governor DeWine heard from Ohio parents about how frustrating this has become, he began working to make a change.
In his State of the State address, DeWine explained that parents have been telling him and his wife about the struggles they face with getting their kids into proper courses. Courses have limited availability and, depending on where you live in the state, may not even be offered in the area. Additionally, because the course is solely offered by private companies, the price is often very high and out of budget. This forces many of the Ohio youth to simply not learn to drive until they are over the age of 18 and no longer must follow the minor driving requirements.
According to DeWine, most teens are getting their permit and waiting until they can bypass driver’s ed.
Because of the amount of young drivers who are missing out on having formal driving instruction, in the form of driver education classes. This has led to an increase in the number of crashes involving young teen drivers, which in turn has increased the number of young driver fatalities. Specifically, DeWine reported that in recent years, there have been an increase in “crashes and fatalities among 18- and 19-year-old drivers than among 16- and 17-year-old drivers.” This is because more and more are getting their licenses at 18 without taking driver’s education.
Governor DeWine has offered a proposal to bring the class back in school.
According to his plan, DeWine would use state funding from the next two fiscal years to help reduce the impact of the cost. This would be between $500 and $700. From here, resources would be given to public schools in order for them to hire a teacher and start a driver’s education program in the school. Alternatively, they will be able to partner with an existing privately owned program to offer the program to students.
