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The new year of 2026 has brought in brand new laws for the state of Tennessee. One of them being driving with an invalid driver’s license is now considered a Class B misdemeanor.

Some Jackson residents however feels that it creates a divide in the community. 

“Yeah, I think it creates a barrier for citizens of Jackson. I feel like, you know, people still need to get back and forth to work. If your license is suspended, you got to pay restitution, things like that.

How are you going to make the money to do that to actually get a driver’s license to be productive in society,” said Michael Gause a resident in the community. 

Another law includes questions of bicycling hand gestures on written drivers tests so drivers can better share the road with cyclists. Local bicycle experts shared just how they felt about this new law. 

“It’s really a good thing. It should have been done all along. The hand gestures have been around for a long time. They were taught to me in school.

When I was a kid, with the bike accidents we’ve had as of late in the last year or two, I would think it’s a really good thing that they’ve started implementing that again,” said Shawn Riggs, owner of Bicycle City.

 To learn more about the new laws you can click here.