Driver’s License Suspensions for Court Debt Draw Scrutiny

Navigating life after prison with a suspended driver’s license proved difficult for Joseph Brantley.

Brantley, a recruiting director for M-D Building Products and a member of the Board of Corrections, said he rode a bike to work for months after his January 2021 release from prison. After saving enough to buy a used car, Service Oklahoma told him he would have to wait at least three years and pay $3,500 to have his license reinstated.

As professional and personal opportunities emerged, including the chance to finish his bachelor’s degree at the University of Central Oklahoma, Brantley said he faced the dilemma of driving on a suspended license.

“I took that risk, and by the grace of God it paid off for me and I’ve been reinstated,” he said. “I won’t ever do anything again to lose my license, but under the old law, that’s kind of the box I was put into.”

Oklahoma has tried to help people involved in the justice system find and keep jobs to reduce recidivism rates and boost workforce participation. A major reform came in 2021, when Gov. Kevin Stitt signed a law requiring the Department of Corrections to ensure inmates have essential documents before they’re released.

Reform advocates said Oklahoma should stop suspending driver’s licenses over unpaid court fines and fees. Lawmakers examined the issue during an interim study at the state capitol on Oct. 13.

District and municipal judges can direct Service Oklahoma to suspend a person’s driver’s license if they miss payments or fail to appear in court. Enforcement varies across counties, with debt-related suspensions more common in rural areas.

Michael Olson, policy counsel for Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform, said approximately 180,000 Oklahomans have a debt-related driver’s license suspension. The average suspension lasts 38 months, according to Service Oklahoma.

Olson said Oklahoma’s workforce participation rate would plummet if people strictly adhered to the suspensions.

“People continue to drive because you have to survive,” Olson said. “But I don’t think the consequences of disincentivizing people to drive are fully thought through.”

At least 25 states and the District of Columbia have passed some form of driver’s license suspension reform since 2017, according to the Free to Drive campaign. Advocates said ending debt-related suspensions does not reduce court collections and encourages more people to enter the workforce.

In California, which stopped suspending driver’s licenses for unpaid fines and fees in 2017, on-time collection rates for non-delinquent accounts rose 8.9% . Researchers in Tennessee examined 10 years of data, from 2011 through 2021, and found that license revocations did not improve collection rates.

Sarah Couture, a regional director at the Fines and Fees Justice Center, said Oklahoma could generate tens of millions in new tax revenue if it stops suspending driver’s licenses for court debt.

“Debt-based driver’s license suspensions cost people their livelihoods,” Couture said during the hearing. “It cuts economic growth, it undermines public safety and it does not compel payments.”

Several lawmakers expressed interest in the policy change, which stalled last session after it did not receive a committee hearing.

Sen. Casey Murdock, R-Felt, said he began examining the issue after one of his employees was arrested for driving on a suspended license and spent the weekend in jail. He said Oklahoma needs to ensure that people without a dangerous driving record can at least drive to and from work.

“The state is basically putting these people in timeout,” Murdock said. “You’re in timeout. You didn’t pay for whatever reason, and you have to stay here for however long.”

Sen. Spencer Kern, R-Duncan, said he recognizes the economic effect of driver’s license suspensions, but fears that eliminating debt-related suspensions could send the wrong message.

“If we remove these fines and suspensions, are we perhaps opening Pandora’s box on there are no consequences for your actions?” Kern asked during the hearing.

Lawmakers approved a 2021 bill allowing people with suspended licenses to file a hardship exception and request a provisional license. The provisional license permits unrestricted driving access from 6 a.m. to 11:59 p.m., or to and from work or school after hours.

Provisional licenses could be a solution, but eligibility is narrow and the application process is arduous, court debt attorney Ed Wunch said.

Though his driver’s license was restored in October 2024, Brantley said the suspension often comes up in his job as a recruiter. In his testimony to lawmakers, he recalled an employee being arrested for driving on a suspended license on a Friday night and having to spend the weekend in jail.

In an interview, Brantley said the Legislature should consider driver’s license suspension reform next year. He said fines and fees are often exacerbated by other financial pressures, including paying for auto insurance, rent and groceries.

“It’s such a vicious cycle and a vicious thing to get out of,” he said.

This story was originally published by Oklahoma Watch and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.