Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Driver Licenses topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Senate committee approves amended bill to give near‑21 drivers temporary DMV license
Summary
The Senate Transportation Committee accepted an amended House Bill 1190 to let the DMV issue a temporary driver’s license (up to 60 days) to people about to turn 21, addressing photo/printing delays and reducing in‑lobby visits; the amendment was approved and the bill was accepted as amended by voice vote.
Chair opened the hearing on House Bill 1190, a measure sponsored by Representative Dan Bayou that would allow the Division of Motor Vehicles to issue a temporary driver’s license to people about to turn 21 so they receive the adult horizontal license rather than the vertical youth operator license.
Representative Dan Bayou, who identified himself as the state representative for Hillsborough 34, said HB 1190 is a reintroduction of a prior bill and called it "administratively prudent," arguing the change would prevent young people who renew early from receiving a vertical license that some establishments decline to accept.
John Marasco, director of the Division of Motor Vehicles, told the committee the bill would fix a recurring problem in which people who renew their licenses online before their 21st birthday still receive a youth operator credential in the mail and then must return to a DMV office for a new photo and horizontal card. "This bill fixes this for thousands of people moving forward," Marasco said, and he noted the bill would reduce DMV lobby traffic. He said the measure carries a $48,000 fiscal note the DMV can absorb and that an online renewal receipt paired with an expired photo ID would be given legal value under the bill.
Committee members asked procedural questions about the bill and thanked witnesses; no members of the public signed up to oppose it. After returning from executive session the committee considered motions, adopted a committee amendment, and accepted HB 1190 as amended. The committee approved the amendment and the bill by voice votes with all members saying "Aye." The record in the hearing does not state a roll‑call tally.
What happens next: the committee passed the amendment and accepted the bill as amended; the transcript records only voice votes. If the bill advances it will move to the next stage of the legislative process as amended.
Sources: Sponsor remarks and DMV testimony recorded in committee proceedings.
