Congress to consider sweeping licensing changes for teen drivers

WASHINGTON (WISH) - A push is under way on Capitol Hill to change when teens would be allowed behind the wheel of a car.

A Congressional committee is set to take up debate Tuesday on the STANDUP Act, which wouldn't allow American teens to obtain a full license until their 18th birthday.

The STANDUP--short for "Safe Teen and Novice Driver Uniform Protection"--Act was introduced in the House of Representatives in April 2009.

A nearly identical version of the bill was introduced in the Senate a year later.

Supporters say the bill's goals are simple: to make teens safer drivers and reduce teen crash rates on America's roads.

To do that, the bill proposes some radical shifts in teen licensing requirements.

Under the STANDUP Act, drivers could only get a learner's permit at the age of 16, and would have to wait until their 18th birthday to get a full license.

Teens would also have to be supervised by an adult while driving at night, would be banned from using cell phones behind the wheel, and would only be allowed one friend in the car under the age of 21.

The proposed federal changes come on the heels of some recent teen driving law changes in Indiana.

In 2009, the state implemented its own "graduated drivers licensing"--or GDL--requirements.

Hoosier teens now have to wait until 6 months after their 15th birthday to get a permit, and can't drive at night or with other teen passengers until they've had their license for at least 6 months.

Indiana's law also bans the use of cell phones behind the wheel by any driver under the age of 18.

The bi-partisan group of House and Senate lawmakers backing the new federal bill says it has the potential to save up to 4,000 teen lives every year, along with the lives of thousands more pedestrians.

And, they're not the only ones pushing for change.

Car crashes are the nation's number one teen killer, and dozens of parents who have lost children on America's roads plan to weigh in at Tuesday's hearing as well.

Incentives would likely be put in place for states to adopt the new legislation should it be signed into law, including billions of dollars in grant funding.

States that refused to adopt the changes could face massive cuts in their federal highway funding.