Beginning Sept. 30, anyone under the age of 21 who gets a driver’s license in Ohio will have to go through driver’s education classes first.
Currently, driver’s ed is required for 16 and 17-year-olds. But it is not required for anyone over 18. Gov. Mike DeWine said it should be.
“We know that the most dangerous group of drivers on the road, for themselves and for others, are 18 and 19 year olds,” DeWine said.
DeWine said it makes sense to expand that to require driver’s ed classes for anyone under the age of 21 because statistics show it leads to safer drivers. He said too many young drivers who initially fail the test to get a license use the strategy of taking it over and over again until they pass.
“Young people who go through driver’s training become safer drivers; safer for themselves and safer for everyone else on the road,” said DeWine.
Last year, 58% of fatal crashes caused by a teen driver involved 18- and 19-year-olds.
DeWine had wanted to bring driver's education back to high schools. But Ohio lawmakers took out his proposed funding for that. DeWine said the budget that he signed in July continues the grants which were made available in the previous budget to help low-income students get this training.
Correction - The effective date for this new law was corrected at 11:05 pm, Sept 3, 2025
