Navigating life after prison with a suspended driver’s license proved difficult for Joseph Brantley.
asserted
Navigating → navigate → 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.
asserted
he → say → 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.
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license → save → 3,500
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.
asserted
he → emerge → license
“I took that risk, and by the grace of God it paid off for me and I’ve been reinstated,” he said.
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he → take → me
“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.”
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I → do → law
Oklahoma has tried to help people involved in the justice system find and keep jobs to reduce recidivism rates and boost workforce participation.
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people → try → 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.
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they → come → documents
Reform advocates said Oklahoma should stop suspending driver’s licenses over unpaid court fines and fees.
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Oklahoma → say → fines
Lawmakers examined the issue during an interim study at the state capitol on Oct. 13.
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Lawmakers → examine → Oct.
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.
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they → direct → court
Enforcement varies across counties, with debt-related suspensions more common in rural areas.
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suspensions → vary → areas
Michael Olson, policy counsel for Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform, said approximately 180,000 Oklahomans have a debt-related driver’s license suspension.
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Oklahomans → say → suspension
The average suspension lasts 38 months, according to Service Oklahoma.
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suspension → last → Oklahoma
Olson said Oklahoma’s workforce participation rate would plummet if people strictly adhered to the suspensions.
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people → say → suspensions
“People continue to drive because you have to survive,” Olson said.
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Olson → continue → ?
“But I don’t think the consequences of disincentivizing people to drive are fully thought through.”
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consequences → think → people
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.
uncertain
states → pass → campaign
Advocates said ending debt-related suspensions does not reduce court collections and encourages more people to enter the workforce.
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ending → say → 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%.
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rates → stop → accounts
Researchers in Tennessee examined 10 years of data, from 2011 through 2021, and found that license revocations did not improve collection rates.
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revocations → examine → 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.
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it → say → debt
“Debt-based driver’s license suspensions cost people their livelihoods,” Couture said during the hearing.
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Couture → base → hearing
“It cuts economic growth, it undermines public safety and it does not compel payments.”
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it → cut → payments
Several lawmakers expressed interest in the policy change, which stalled last session after it did not receive a committee hearing.
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it → express → 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.
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one → say → jail
He said Oklahoma needs to ensure that people without a dangerous driving record can at least drive to and from work.
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people → say → work
“The state is basically putting these people in timeout,” Murdock said.
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Murdock → put → timeout
“You’re in timeout.
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You → ’re → timeout
You didn’t pay for whatever reason, and you have to stay here for however long.”
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you → pay → reason
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.
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eliminating → say → 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.
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Kern → remove → hearing
Lawmakers approved a 2021 bill allowing people with suspended licenses to file a hardship exception and request a provisional license.
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people → approve → 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.
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license → permit → hours
Provisional licenses could be a solution, but eligibility is narrow and the application process is arduous, court debt attorney Ed Wunch said.
uncertain
Wunch → say → ?
Though his driver’s license was restored in October 2024, Brantley said the suspension often comes up in his job as a recruiter.
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suspension → restore → 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.
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employee → recall → jail
In an interview, Brantley said the Legislature should consider driver’s license suspension reform next year.
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Legislature → say → reform
He said fines and fees are often exacerbated by other financial pressures, including paying for auto insurance, rent and groceries.
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fines → say → insurance
“It’s such a vicious cycle and a vicious thing to get out of,” he said.
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he → ’ → ?
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