Should Sex Offenders Be Banned from Driving Buses?

A proposed state law could keep those on Georgia’s sexual offender registry from getting behind the wheel of certain vehicles.

House Bill 40, whose primary sponsor is Rep. Paul Battles, R-Cartersville, would prohibit sex offenders from obtaining two types of commercial driver’s licenses. If passed, those who are placed on the sexual offender registry for crimes committed after July 1 of this year would not be able to obtain a CDL with a school bus (S) endorsement or a passenger (P) endorsement, the latter of which applies to charter buses or vehicles designed to seat more than 16 people, including its driver.

Those with P or S endorsements on a license issued before July 1 of this year would not be disqualified from seeking license renewals unless they are convicted of an offense that occurred after July 1 and requires registration on the sex offender list.

“It would be a total restriction on any transportation of children. This just protects them against the possibility of someone committing another crime,” Battles told CBS Atlanta.

But the bill is not needed as state law already prevents those on the offender registry from being around minors, legal and constitutional expert Page Pate told the CBS affiliate. He added that the law, if passed, likely could hold up in court, as those who can currently drive a bus would still be allowed to do so.

A copy of the proposed bill is attached to this article as a PDF.

Should lawmakers pass the bill?

Share what’s on your mind with us, and then return here to see what your neighbors in Paulding, Douglas and Cobb have said.