Chien et al. on Suspended Licenses

Colleen V. Chien, Alyssa Aguilar, and Varun Gujarathi (Santa Clara University - School of Law, Santa Clara University - School of Law and Santa Clara University - Computer Science and Engineering) have posted The Financial Impact of Suspended Licenses in Illinois on SSRN. Here is the abstract:

 

Illinois is considering a bill, HB277, to end debt-driven suspensions for failure to appear. While the License to Work (2020) and SAFE-T Acts (2021) eliminated driver’s license suspension for fines and fees in Illinois, it is estimated that over 100,000 Illinois drivers have a suspended driver's license due to failure to appear in traffic court.1 These suspensions are often just an extension of the debt collection process for traffic tickets. Currently, the individual must appear in court and “resolve the violation”, a reinstatement fee may be required, and only then will the Secretary of State remove the failure to appear suspension from a driver’s license.2