Currently, 37 states and D.C. still suspend, revoke or refuse to renew driver’s licenses for unpaid traffic, toll, misdemeanor and felony fines and fees. The result: millions of people are struggling to survive with debt-related license suspensions.
Learn more at the Free to Drive website.
Driver’s license suspensions cost people their livelihoods. 86% of Americans drive to work and many jobs require a driver’s license. Without a license, you can’t take your children to school, buy groceries, or get the healthcare you need. Many people have no choice but to continue driving — meaning they risk more fines and fees, a criminal conviction, and incarceration.
Suspending licenses cuts economic growth. People who can’t work or who lose income due to a suspended license have less money to contribute to the economy and less money to pay off their initial fines and fees — leaving them saddled with court debt for years.
License suspensions undermine public safety. When law enforcement uses valuable time to cite, stop, fine and arrest people for driving on a suspended license due to unpaid fines and fees, they have less time to investigate and focus on crimes that endanger people’s lives.
Jefferson Associated Counsel 