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A driver’s license is a powerful symbol of independence, especially for many senior citizens.  Texas seniors, however, may soon have regulations that affect their ability to renew their licenses. 
Currently, the Texas Transportation Code requires all driver’s licenses to be renewed every six years.  Vision and field tests are not required for these renewals.  Additionally, a Texas driver may renew his or her license through the mail, if certain requirements are met.

Newly-proposed Texas Senate Bill 180 and House Bill 84 amend this Transportation Code as it relates to the issuance and renewal of a senior citizens’ licenses.  Specifically, S.B. 180 does not permit Texas drivers 79 years of age or older to renew their driver’s licenses by mail or electronic means.  Additionally, Texas drivers must pass a written or driving test for renewal at 85 years old and every two years thereafter.

 
H. B. 84 has slightly different details, requiring all 90-year-old drivers to pass a vision test, and possibly a driving test, before their licenses can be renewed.  These licenses would be up for renewal every two years.  If both bills pass, a compromise would be worked out between the House and Senate.

 
Texas Republicans, Senator John Carona and Representative Dan Branch, sponsored these two bills.  “We’re trying to balance the need for independence for many of our senior citizens with their safety and safety of others on the road,” Branch commented to the Dallas Morning News in early February.  “As the senses diminish with age, we need to make sure senior citizens are still capable of driving.”

“The idea is not to take older drivers off of the road, just to make sure they are proficient enough to drive safely,” Carona explained.
AARP-Texas spokesman, Rafael Ayuso, expressed concerns about this proposed legislation, “We want our roads to be safe for everybody, but we don’t want to discriminate against older people….Research shows that younger drivers have much higher accident rates than older drivers and to some extent, these efforts [to pass legislation] can be seen as using older people as an easy target.”

Figures from the Texas Department of Public Safety indicate there are 157,921 senior citizens – ages 85 to 90 – currently holding valid licenses.  It is unclear, however, how many of these elders are licensed but no longer drive or who have died.

For more information and access to the full searchable text of Texas laws, bills, and Constitution, visit the Texas legislation online: www.capitol.state.tx.us.

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