24-03-2025
Why Tennessee lawmakers nixed a bill to lower school bus driver age to 23
A proposal to lower the minimum age for school bus drivers from 25 to 23 in an effort to curb the Tennessee's bus driver shortage is dead for the year, after bipartisan concern over student safety.
Senate Bill 1042 sought to lower the minimum age to 23 years old. Sponsor Sen. Janice Bowling, R-Tullahoma, said her goal was to 'address the school bus driver shortage across Tennessee' and give school districts more power over who to hire in those positions.
She said the legislation would "allow our rural school districts to determine if someone 23 years of age is competent and they have had their CDL for two years ― they would have the ability to hire them."
The Senate Transportation Committee voted down the bill 5 to 4 on Wednesday morning, citing concerns about maturity of drivers and student safety.
Lawmakers raised the minimum age for school bus drivers following a deadly crash in Chattanooga in November 2016. Then-24-year-old Johnthony Walker lost control of his bus, which rolled over onto the passenger side and wrapped around a tree. Six students from Woodmore Elementary were killed and 32 were injured.
Walker was later found guilty on a number of charges, including negligent homicide, related to the accident.
'This age was raised a few years ago due to an accident in Hamilton County,' said Department of Safety Legislative Director Elizabeth Stroeker. 'We would like to keep that promise and that agreement that we brought this bill a few years ago to keep it at 25 to make sure that you've got people who are mature enough to deal with 60 to 70 students on a bus.'
State law requires drivers to have a commercial driver's license before pursuing a certification to drive a school bus.
According to the department, very few people try to become school bus drivers before age 25. There are currently only 25 drivers in Tennessee who are 25 years old with the proper qualifications to drive school buses.
'The reason you have that low percentage of people in the 20 to 30 age range is that nobody of that age range drives school busses,' Stroeker said. 'We understand that there's a shortage of commercial drivers and school bus drivers – we don't believe this is going to fix that.
Sen. Mark Pody, R-Lebanon, supported the bill.
'The Army will have 21 year olds driving tanks, commanding people in wartime situations, and I know people that are 40 that I wouldn't say are mature enough to handle driving a school bus, but I do know some people that could,' Pody said. 'I think it should be up to the school board to make that decision.'
State law already allows existing school employees and active and retired military veterans to obtain the proper license to drive a school bus.
A companion bill has passed through several House committees, and is scheduled for a final House vote on Monday.
Vivian Jones covers state government and politics for The Tennessean. Reach her at vjones@
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee lawmakers nix bill to lower school bus driver age to 23
