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State Rep. Mike Sparks asks Rutherford County board to back bill easing school bus driver age limits
Summary
Representative Mike Sparks presented a resolution urging support for legislation to lower Tennessee—s minimum age for school bus drivers to expand the pipeline amid driver shortages. He described past legislative attempts, data arguments, and asked the school board to pass a supporting resolution for the county commission.
Representative Mike Sparks urged the Rutherford County School Board to endorse a resolution backing state legislation intended to expand the pool of qualified school bus drivers.
Sparks described past and pending legislation (cited in the meeting as House Bill 84) that would lower the minimum age for school bus drivers, saying Tennessee is currently among the most restrictive states. "Tennessee is the most restrictive in the nation to drive a school bus," Sparks said, and argued that lowering the age would increase the pipeline of drivers.
Why it matters: Board members and staff said the county has experienced driver shortages and unfilled routes, sometimes forcing contractors to relinquish routes. Sparks noted the change adopted at the state level after a fatal Chattanooga crash raised the minimum age to 25; he said that approach addressed a highly publicized tragedy but did not resolve broader staffing shortages.
Details and requests: Sparks said the bill he has championed passed the House but failed in the Senate by one vote. He described amendments made to the proposal during the legislative process (at one point the age was discussed at 21 and was later moved to 23 in compromise, as recounted in the meeting) and asked the board to take a formal position: "Just pass the resolution," he told the board, so he can bring the board—s support to the county commission and to legislators.
Board response: Several board members expressed interest in the data behind the bill. Board member Maxwell said that even if the compromise set the age at 23, Tennessee would still have one of the highest minimum ages in the country and that lowering the age would help districts like Rutherford County. Board member Tidwell questioned whether raising age limits matched the underlying causes of crashes, noting that in one high-profile case the driver was speeding and using a cell phone. Several members asked Sparks to share supporting data; Sparks agreed to email the information he had received from a former state trooper and to follow up.
What the board can do next: Sparks told the board the resolution will appear on the local board agenda and asked for an affirmative vote that the district will forward to the county commission. No formal board vote on the resolution occurred during this meeting; Sparks said the item would be taken up at the board's Thursday meeting.
