Requires driver's license applicants who are required to take the road skills test to successfully complete an online road safety course prior to taking the road skills test
Summary
HB 1753 would require most driver's license applicants who must take a road skills test to first complete an online road safety course before being allowed to test, beginning August 28, 2028. The course must include at least five hours of instruction covering distracted and impaired driving, crash and fatality prevention, safe driving habits, and how to interact appropriately with law enforcement during traffic stops, including drivers’ and passengers’ rights.
The bill directs the Department of Public Safety to develop or contract for an accredited course by January 1, 2028, and requires the Department of Revenue to make the course accessible on its website and maintain a secure database of completions for verification by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. Applicants could take the course for free before completion, but a fee of up to $20 could be charged after completion; if the state administers the course, the money would go into a new Driver Safety Education Fund. The requirement would be waived for applicants who completed a classroom driver’s education course in high school, and it would not apply to commercial driver’s license applicants.
Impact
HB 1753 would add a new section to Missouri’s driver licensing laws in Chapter 302, creating a pre-test online road safety education requirement for many first-time or otherwise road-test-required applicants. It would also create a new Driver Safety Education Fund, authorize fee collection and dedicated use of those funds, and assign administrative responsibilities to the Department of Public Safety, Department of Revenue, and Missouri State Highway Patrol. The bill would not affect commercial driver’s license applicants and would preserve a waiver for those who already completed high school classroom driver’s education.
Sentiment
There is no recorded committee transcript or vote history in the provided materials, so no formal debate or roll-call sentiment is available. Based on the bill text and caption, the measure appears to be framed as a traffic safety and driver education initiative rather than a controversial policy change, with its emphasis on crash prevention, safe driving, and lawful interactions with police suggesting a public-safety rationale.
Contention
The main potential points of contention are the added requirement and cost for driver’s license applicants, the state’s role in developing or accrediting the course, and the inclusion of law-enforcement interaction content in the curriculum. Some may view the $20 fee and new administrative database as burdensome or unnecessary, while others may support the waiver for students who already completed classroom driver’s education and the exemption for commercial driver’s license applicants. Because no committee discussion is provided, it is not possible to identify specific legislators or stakeholder groups taking positions on these issues.