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The Unexpected Effects of No Pass, No Drive Policies on High School Education

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  • Kendall J. Kennedy

Abstract

Since 1988, 27 states have introduced No Pass, No Drive laws, which tie a teenager's ability to receive and maintain a driver's license to various school‐related outcomes—most commonly, enrollment and attendance. Enrollment‐Based No Pass, No Drive policies, in 21 states, target both enrollment and attendance, and have negligible effects on dropout rates. However, these policies decrease the Averaged Freshman Graduation Rate (AFGR) by between 1 and 1.7 percentage points. This lower graduation rate stems from students delaying their dropout decision by up to two years. As a result, these students are retained in the ninth and tenth grades, increasing 9th‐grade enrollment by 3.6 percent relative to 8th‐grade enrollment the year prior; this causes an artificial reduction in the graduation rate, rather than a reduction in the true likelihood that a student will graduate. Truancy‐Based No Pass, No Drive policies, in five states, target only attendance—teens that fail to meet a minimum attendance requirement lose their driver's license. However, these policies allow students to drop out of school without facing this penalty. These policies increase the annual dropout rate by between 23 and 34 percent (1 to 1.6 percentage points).

Suggested Citation

  • Kendall J. Kennedy, 2020. "The Unexpected Effects of No Pass, No Drive Policies on High School Education," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 39(1), pages 191-217, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:jpamgt:v:39:y:2020:i:1:p:191-217
    DOI: 10.1002/pam.22182
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    Cited by:

    1. Valerie Bostwick & Christopher Severen, 2022. "Driving, Dropouts, and Drive-Throughs: Mobility Restrictions and Teen Human Capita," Working Papers 22-22, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia.
    2. Kendall J. Kennedy & Danqing Shen, 2024. "Education, crowding‐out, and Black‐White employment in youth labor markets: Evidence from No Pass, No Drive policies," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 62(4), pages 1579-1597, October.
    3. Kennedy, Kendall & Shen, Danqing, 2020. "Education, Crowding-out, and Black-White Employment Gaps in Youth Labor Markets: Evidence from No Pass, No Drive Policies," MPRA Paper 103788, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Gregory Gilpin, 2018. "Licensure Provisions, Teen Licensing, and Vehicular Fatalities," CAEPR Working Papers 2018-010, Center for Applied Economics and Policy Research, Department of Economics, Indiana University Bloomington.
    5. Barua, Rashmi & Hoefer-Martí, Ian & Vidal-Fernandez, Marian, 2024. "Wheeling into school and out of crime: Evidence from linking driving licenses to minimum academic requirements," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 217(C), pages 334-377.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • H75 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - State and Local Government: Health, Education, and Welfare
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy

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