# Foster Youth and Driving Act: What It Does

This bill creates a new program to help young people in foster care learn to drive and get their driver's licenses. Right now, many foster youth face major obstacles to getting licensed—they might not have a trusted adult to teach them, money for lessons and fees, or help navigating the process. This bill aims to change that by providing direct financial assistance and requiring states to make driving preparation part of their foster care plans.

The bill sets up a federal funding program that gives states money specifically for driving-related costs. Foster youth who've been in the system at age 14 or older can receive up to $4,000 per year to cover things like driver's education classes, practice lessons, testing fees, license fees, and car insurance. The assistance can even help young people buy a vehicle. The program extends eligibility up to age 26 if the youth is working or in school. The bill also requires foster parents to receive training on how to help prepare young people to drive, and it mandates that every foster care plan include a specific plan for driving preparation when appropriate for the child's age.

To make this work, the bill provides $36 million in new federal funding annually and requires states to remove barriers that prevent foster youth under 18 from getting licenses—like addressing insurance and liability laws that make it harder for minors to be insured. States must also track data on how many foster youth are getting licenses and completing driver training. The bill recognizes that foster youth often lack the family support and financial resources that other teenagers take for granted, and it treats getting a driver's license as an important part of preparing for independent adulthood.

Foster Youth and Driving Act

Davis, Danny K.

Foster Youth and Driving Act This bill expands state foster care and adoption assistance programs to provide driving preparation assistance to foster youth and related training for foster parents. The bill further directs assistance to states and tribal organizations for age-appropriate foster youth to, among other things, obtain automobile insurance, complete driver's education, obtain a driver's license, and purchase a vehicle.