SB3513eng 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SB3513 Engrossed LRB100 19859 LNS 35138 b

AN ACT concerning transportation.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Reference to Act. This Act may be referred to as the Stay of Driver's License Suspension for Child Support Arrearage Law.

Section 5. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended by adding Section 7-701.5 as follows:

(625 ILCS 5/7-701.5 new)

Sec. 7-701.5. Loss of driving privileges for nonpayment of support; stay.

(a) The purposes of the Section are:

(1) To safeguard the best interests of children and families by establishing procedures, in appropriate cases, for a parent with a child support arrearage ("obligor") to retain his or her driver's license for up to 12 months, to enable him or her to maintain or obtain gainful employment, seek self-employment, start a business, or participate in job training or other programs to enable the parent to obtain employment and pay child support.

(2) To mitigate potential financial and relationship harm to children and families caused by the loss of a parent's driving privileges.

(3) To recognize the financial cost and difficulty of transporting children and families and maintaining employment, seeking employment or self-employment, or starting a business caused by a loss of driving privileges, while balancing the obligor's financial responsibility as outlined in the child support order.

(b) In any proceeding to enforce arrearages in child support payments or orders, the obligor has the right to petition the court or child support administrative body for an order to stay the suspension of driver's license ("Stay Order") for a period of up to 12 months after the date of the Stay Order. As the child support arrearage accrued while the obligor's license had yet to be suspended, the obligor must prove by clear and convincing evidence that the suspension should be stayed and that the child support obligation will be paid.

(c) The court or the child support administrative body shall oversee the Stay Order and shall review the Stay Order every 90 days to determine if the obligor has either started to pay child support if already employed or gains employment, made efforts to gain employment, or participated in job training or another work program towards employment, or became self-employed or started a business, for a period of up to 12 months after the date of the Stay Order, and shall have the discretion to extend the time of review upon good cause shown, as indicated in subsection (h).

(d) The court or child support administrative body shall, after issuance of a Stay Order:

(1) Require that evidence of employment be presented to the court or child support administrative body, if the obligor is employed at the time that the Stay Order is entered, and order the obligor to either sign a wage garnishment or wage assignment agreement or sign a request to the employer for withholding of child support, in order to avoid license suspension.

(2) Require that an obligor who is not employed seek employment, job training, or a work program through the Department of Employment Security and other means, and report to the court, in accordance with the provisions above, with a diary, listing, or other documentation of his or her efforts to gain employment in accordance with such order.

(3) Require that evidence be presented to the court or child support administrative body, at the next hearing, if the obligor obtains employment, and order the obligor to either sign a wage garnishment or wage assignment agreement, or sign a request to the employer for withholding of child support, in order to avoid license suspension.

(4) Require that evidence be presented to the court or child support administrative body if the obligor starts a business or obtains income by self-employment.

(5) Upon the receipt of proper proof by the court or child support administrative body of the existence of a business owned by the obligor, require the obligor to begin a process of repayment in order to avoid license suspension.

(6) Require an obligor who is self-employed, or starts a business, to provide, on an annual basis until the child support is completely repaid, to an administrative agency designated by the court or child support administrative body, financial statements showing income and expenses from the business or the self-employment, which shall be treated as evidence of the income available for child support payments.

(e) The court shall require clear and convincing evidence to adjudicate any additional issues raised by the obligor, including temporary disability or incapacity of the obligor and any reasonable efforts undertaken by the obligor to begin a process of repayment, modification, or reconsideration of the arrearage or child support order in determining whether to issue a Stay Order.

(f) Any support orders entered by the court in cases subject to this Section shall include the status of the driver's license until the child support arrearages are paid.

(g) The court or child support administrative body may terminate the Stay Order and order the immediate suspension of the obligor's driver's license before the 12-month period is over if the obligor fails to meet any or all of the provisions set forth within this Section. The court may also enter additional sanctions against an obligor who fails to meet any or all of the provisions set forth within this Section.

(h) The court or child support administrative body shall review the obligor's request for stay of the driver's license suspension every 90 days, for a period up to 12 months, and may make a determination as to the obligor's actual compliance and the obligor's efforts to comply with the order. The court or child support administrative body shall have the discretion to extend the Stay Order after the first 12-month period, upon good cause shown, including a good faith effort on the part of the obligor to pay the child support obligation, and continue to review the obligor's compliance with the Stay Order every 90 days, as provided in this Section.

(i) If the provisions of this Section are inconsistent with the requirements pertaining to Sections 7-705 and 7-706 of this Code, the provisions of this Section control.