(COLORADO SPRINGS) — State leaders are proposing a new bill that would require teenagers to complete up to 36 hours of driver’s education to be eligible for a driver’s license. A Colorado Senate committee advanced the bill Mon. Feb. 6.

If passed, Senate Bill 11 would mandate that Coloradans under the age of 18 take a 30-hour driver’s education course and receive at least six hours of behind-the-wheel driving training from an instructor before being issued a driver’s license.

The bill would also require those over 18 but under 21 years old to complete a four-hour driver awareness program to get a driver’s license.

Critics noted the bill would raise the costs for first-time drivers, but its sponsor Senator Faith Winter, D-Westminster, said it is intended to increase road safety by better preparing young drivers.

Lawmakers are working hard to make driver’s education more affordable by offering scholarships and identifying online driver’s education courses that start as low as $40, not including the mandated six hours of behind-the-wheel training.

Currently, state law only requires those between 15 and 16 years old to complete driver’s education courses to get a learner’s permit.

Stay tuned to FOX21 News this week as we hear from the bill’s supporters and opponents who are concerned with the financial impacts this would have on families, especially rural Colorado residents.