Maine: English Only for Driving Tests

 

Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles announces it will only print driving manuals and testing materials in English.

The state of Maine announced on Wednesday that testing materials for anyone seeking a driver's license would only be provided in English. Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap canceled a planned program that would have printed the materials from the Bureau of Motor Vehicles in multiple languages. Dunlap suggested that it was too expensive to print materials for the six percent of the population that speak either French or Spanish.

"The prices really surprised us," Dunlap said in a statement. "We were hopeful this could be a cost-efficient project, but based on the prices companies were quoting us to provide accurate translations, that hasn't proved to be the case."

Dunlap may revisit the issue if there proves to be sufficient demand. Census Bureau statistics show that about 64,000 Maine residents speak French as their primary language and 10,000 speak Spanish.

Maine: English Only for Driving Tests

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