RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The General Assembly wants to let more young people begin driving on their own even though the North Carolina DMV isn’t currently offering required behind-the-wheel tests due to COVID-19 health worries.

The full House and a Senate committee approved separate measures on Wednesday that would set aside the behind-the-wheel test for teenagers seeking a limited provisional license and help ease a bottleneck of applicants. A young person still must log 60 hours of driving with a parent to seek such a permit.

The House bill would waive the road-test mandate for these youths until the Division of Motor Vehicles adminstered them again or for six months, whichever date is later. A legislative lobbyist for the Department of Transportation, which oversees the DMV, told House Rules Committee members that the agency supported the waiver.

The Senate measure would delay the road test until the teenager seeks their full provisional license.

The approved House bill also addresses what happens to young people who could only partially complete the 30 required hours of classroom instruction needed to receive their first license, called a limited learner permit. Shuttered schools meant canceled classes.