As the Illinois General Assembly has kicked off the 2024 legislative session, State Representative Jeff Keicher (R-Sycamore) has filed legislation to end a cumbersome requirement for Illinois residents aged 75 and older. Illinois is the only state in the nation that requires drivers 75 and older to retake a driving test as a condition of renewing their driver’s license. Keicher’s legislation, House Bill 4431, would end this practice.
“Contrary to what some folks may think, drivers aged 75 and older are not more crash-prone than younger drivers,” said Keicher. “Data from the National Safety Council shows quite clearly that drivers 75 and older are involved in fewer fatal crashes than any other age group. It is past time that we fix this onerous hurdle we put in front of seniors in Illinois, and I’m happy to carry legislation to get it done.”
As Keicher noted, the most recent data from the National Safety Council shows that drivers 75 and older are involved in fewer fatal crashes than any other age group. In 2021, the most recent year of data, drivers 75+ were involved in only 3,263 fatal crashes, which is 1,500 fewer than the next closet age bracket and dramatically less than the 13,200 fatal crashes involving drivers aged 25 to 34, the highest fatal crash prone age bracket.
To end Illinois’ status as the lone state in the nation requiring senior citizens to retake the driving test, Keicher HB 4431 amends the Illinois Vehicle Code for those 75+ to remove the requirement for “an actual demonstration of the applicant’s ability to exercise ordinary and reasonable control of the operation of a motor vehicle.”
For more information about the legislation, click here.
Rep. Keicher serves the 70th District, which includes portions of DeKalb, Kane, and McHenry Counties.