New bill helps Indiana residents with suspended licenses drive again
maylen
INDIANAPOLIS (WXIN) — More than a million Indiana residents have their driver’s license suspended.
About 80% of those cases are tied up in fees people can’t afford to pay. Now, lawmakers are creating a program to help.
House Bill 1199 gives the green light to drivers who got caught in an unfortunate cycle after a minor infraction, like a traffic ticket.
“The reality is, these people can’t afford to pay it, so they don’t,” said Michael Moore with the Indiana Public Defender Council. “They prioritize child support, food and bills.”
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After a while, fees start to pile up, and that’s when driver’s licenses are taken away. Unfortunately, those people still need to get to work, so they often choose to keep driving illegally.
“Driving while suspended with a prior conviction for driving while suspended is the number one charged misdemeanor in the state,” said Chris Daniels, traffic and safety resource prosecutor with the Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council. “We charge between 18-20 thousand of those misdemeanors every year.”
The bill gives those Hoosiers a chance to drive again as long as they show proof of future financial responsibility. However, it does not cover violent offenders or people charged with a DUI.
“This is a great bill. It actually helps people. It’s one of the few times we are not punishing people. We are actually going out of our way to help people drive legally, go to work, pay taxes and those kind of things,” said Moore.
Supporters said it will save taxpayers money in the long run by freeing up resources and allowing offenders to get and retain jobs.
“Really save the state a ton of time and money in enforcement,” said Daniels.
“It will allow a lot of Hoosiers back on the road and really be an economic stimulus to the state,” said the bill’s author, State Rep. Wendy McNamara.
This legislation was a collaboration between the Insurance Institute, prosecutors, public defenders the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles and the Indiana Department of Corrections.
“It’s probably been three years in the works,” said McNamara.
No one testified against the bill, and with it being on Governor Eric Holcomb’s agenda this year, lawmakers are confident it will pass.
It moved through committee unanimously and heads to the Senate floor next.
