More than 70,000 local residents don’t have a valid driver’s license. But the Knox County Criminal Court Clerk’s Office is looking to change that.

In a first of its kind event, Criminal Court Clerk Mike Hammond will host a Driver’s License Reinstatement Resource Fair to address the large number of residents with a revoked or suspended license in the area.

“Knox County ranks second in the state for the highest number of residents without a valid driver’s license, so I wanted to do something to fix this,” Hammond said. “We will assist those who sign up with reinstating their licenses and helping them remove any barriers so they can become valid drivers.”

The event takes place from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, January 20 at the Pellissippi State Community College: Magnolia Avenue Campus. To register for the event and learn more about the Driver’s License Reinstatement Program, please visit https://criminalcourt.knoxcounty.org/services/drivers-license or call (865) 215-237.

Hammond said in some cases, many folks already qualify and will receive their license on site. In other cases, local and state officials can meet with them and talk about what requirements are needed to get them legally back on the road.

“Our office established the program several years back to help folks who needed it to satisfy their requirements from the state to get their license back and over the years we’ve helped more than 2,500 people,” Hammond said. “We think that doing an event will not only make it easier on folks but also help even more people.”