Williams Supports Military Driver’s License Renewal Bill

HARTFORD — Rep. Sean Williams and the rest of the Connecticut House of Representatives voted unanimously on Wednesday in favor of legislation that will prevent the driver’s licenses of Connecticut soldiers serving in the U.S. military from expiring while they are on active duty and stationed out of the state and extends that validity for a period of time after their return home.

“This is one of the easiest votes I’ve made here,” Williams said. “For a soldier returning home from duty, a trip to renew an expired driver’s license should be far less of concern than meeting with family and friends they haven’t seen in a while—this bill ensures they’ll be able to drive themselves to get there.”

Under the legislation, the driver’s license of a member of the armed forces who is on active duty and stationed out of the state would automatically remain valid and they would be given an additional 30 days after being honorably separated from the service and returning to Connecticut. Currently, only six other states offer similar renewal provisions for members of the armed forces.

Under current law, an active duty soldier must remember to renew their license while serving outside of the state. Although the state does already provide the ability for many soldiers to renew their license ahead of time if they know they will be stationed abroad while their license is scheduled to expire, that can’t always be predicted.

The legislation, House Bill 5265, next moves to the State Senate for their consideration.