TEEN DRIVING: Legislators favor mandatory driver's ed
The question is: Who foots the bill?
Larry Hartstein - Staff
Thursday, December 14, 2000

Nearly every Gwinnett legislator wants to make driver's ed a requirement for getting a license, but they split on whether public schools should offer the course.

With teen driving measures sure to be debated in the General Assembly, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution surveyed the 17 lawmakers who represent Gwinnett.

All except Rep. Warren Massey (R-Winder) support making driver's ed a requirement, and many called for a tougher driver's license exam.

There was no consensus among local legislators on raising the minimum age for a license to 17.

The sharpest disagreement emerged over whether driver's ed should be mandatory in Georgia public schools.

Rep. Brooks Coleman (R-Duluth) said schools need to focus on basic academics, not driving.

"There are already so many required subjects, and you just can't continue watering down the regular curriculum," Coleman said. "Driving is a right that you earn. And it should be at the driver's expense, not at the taxpayers' expense."

Rep. Renee Unterman (R-Loganville) wants the state to fund the course through the public school system.

"I graduated from Berkmar in 1972, and we had it in the schools then," she said. "The big issue people raise is the cost. I think that is ridiculous and ludicrous. It's part of growing up. It's a part of education. The state has a surplus, and I have no problem using that surplus to educate our children, not just to save the children's lives but the victims who they kill."

Unterman said the state also might be able to defray some of the cost through arrangements with car dealers and insurance companies.

Gov. Roy Barnes has said he might move to increase the driving age and require driver's ed. Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor and Sen. Phil Gingrey (R-Marietta) have offered a more specific proposal.

Under their bill, license seekers would have to take driver's ed --- including night-driving training --- from an accredited course or from a parent with a signed affidavit. License stations that currently test drivers in parking lots would begin testing them on the road.

In addition, 16- and 17-year-olds would be banned from driving between midnight and 6 a.m., and 16-year-olds could have only one unrelated teenage passenger in the vehicle with them. Now, the teen driving curfew runs from 1 to 5 a.m.

Lawmakers from rural parts of Georgia, where roads are less congested, have blocked previous teen driving measures. Sen. Bart Ladd (R-Doraville), whose district includes part of Gwinnett, has introduced a bill that he says can overcome that opposition.

The bill would require anyone seeking a license before age 18 to take driver's ed. But it would apply only in counties with more than 220,000 people: Gwinnett, Fulton, DeKalb and Cobb.

"There is going to have to be a balance struck between rural areas and suburban and urban areas, and this addresses that," Ladd said.

No one knows which bill --- if any --- will prevail.

But Ladd is confident the General Assembly will act.

"People are serious about doing something," he said.

"They see the carnage on the road."

AJC TOWN MEETING

Panelists discuss teen driving at 7:30 tonight at:

MEADOWCREEK HIGH SCHOOL

4455 Steve Reynolds Blvd.

Norcross, GA 30093

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS

Across metro Atlanta, parents are struggling with the issue of teenage driving. Share your opinions, advice and strategies by calling 404-222-1916 or e-mailing [email protected]. We will publish responses, so include your name, city and phone number for confirmation. (We won't publish phone numbers.)