101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
SB1473

 

Introduced 2/13/2019, by Sen. Mattie Hunter

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
625 ILCS 5/7-701.5 new

    Provides that the Act may be referred to the Stay of Driver's License Suspension for Child Support Arrearage Law. Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Includes a statement of legislative purpose. Provides that in any proceeding to enforce arrearages in child support payments or orders, the obligor shall have the right to petition the court or child support administrative body for an order to stay the suspension of driver's license ("stay order") lasting up to 12 months after the date of the stay order. Provides that 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 started to pay child support if already employed, gains employment, or has made specified efforts to gain employment. Provides that the court shall impose specified requirements. Adds other provisions governing: employment, business, or self-employment income; additional issues, temporary disability or incapacity; support order requirements; termination of stay order for noncompliance; stay order extensions; and other matters. Provides that if the new provisions are inconsistent with Sections of the Code pertaining to notice and hearing requirements currently in place for the suspension of a driver's license for nonpayment, the new provisions control.


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A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning transportation.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 1. Reference to Act. This Act may be referred to as
5the Stay of Driver's License Suspension for Child Support
6Arrearage Law.
 
7    Section 5. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended by adding
8Section 7-701.5 as follows:
 
9    (625 ILCS 5/7-701.5 new)
10    Sec. 7-701.5. Loss of driving privileges for nonpayment of
11support; stay.
12    (a) The purposes of the Section are:
13        (1) To safeguard the best interests of children and
14    families by establishing procedures, in appropriate cases,
15    for a parent with a child support arrearage ("obligor") to
16    retain his or her driver's license for up to 12 months, to
17    enable him or her to maintain or obtain gainful employment,
18    seek self-employment, start a business, or participate in
19    job training or other programs to enable the parent to
20    obtain employment and pay child support.
21        (2) To mitigate potential financial and relationship
22    harm to children and families caused by the loss of a

 

 

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1    parent's driving privileges.
2        (3) To recognize the financial cost and difficulty of
3    transporting children and families and maintaining
4    employment, seeking employment or self-employment, or
5    starting a business caused by a loss of driving privileges,
6    while balancing the obligor's financial responsibility as
7    outlined in the child support order.
8    (b) In any proceeding to enforce arrearages in child
9support payments or orders, the obligor has the right to
10petition the court or child support administrative body for an
11order to stay the suspension of driver's license ("Stay Order")
12for a period of up to 12 months after the date of the Stay
13Order. As the child support arrearage accrued while the
14obligor's license had yet to be suspended, the obligor must
15prove by clear and convincing evidence that the suspension
16should be stayed and that the child support obligation will be
17paid.
18    (c) The court or the child support administrative body
19shall oversee the Stay Order and shall review the Stay Order
20every 90 days to determine if the obligor has either started to
21pay child support if already employed or gains employment, made
22efforts to gain employment, or participated in job training or
23another work program towards employment, or became
24self-employed or started a business, for a period of up to 12
25months after the date of the Stay Order, and shall have the
26discretion to extend the time of review upon good cause shown,

 

 

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1as indicated in subsection (h).
2    (d) The court or child support administrative body shall,
3after issuance of a Stay Order:
4        (1) Require that evidence of employment be presented to
5    the court or child support administrative body, if the
6    obligor is employed at the time that the Stay Order is
7    entered, and order the obligor to either sign a wage
8    garnishment or wage assignment agreement or sign a request
9    to the employer for withholding of child support, in order
10    to avoid license suspension.
11        (2) Require that an obligor who is not employed seek
12    employment, job training, or a work program through the
13    Department of Employment Security and other means, and
14    report to the court, in accordance with the provisions
15    above, with a diary, listing, or other documentation of his
16    or her efforts to gain employment in accordance with such
17    order.
18        (3) Require that evidence be presented to the court or
19    child support administrative body, at the next hearing, if
20    the obligor obtains employment, and order the obligor to
21    either sign a wage garnishment or wage assignment
22    agreement, or sign a request to the employer for
23    withholding of child support, in order to avoid license
24    suspension.
25        (4) Require that evidence be presented to the court or
26    child support administrative body if the obligor starts a

 

 

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1    business or obtains income by self-employment.
2        (5) Upon the receipt of proper proof by the court or
3    child support administrative body of the existence of a
4    business owned by the obligor, require the obligor to begin
5    a process of repayment in order to avoid license
6    suspension.
7        (6) Require an obligor who is self-employed, or starts
8    a business, to provide, on an annual basis until the child
9    support is completely repaid, to an administrative agency
10    designated by the court or child support administrative
11    body, financial statements showing income and expenses
12    from the business or the self-employment, which shall be
13    treated as evidence of the income available for child
14    support payments.
15    (e) The court shall require clear and convincing evidence
16to adjudicate any additional issues raised by the obligor,
17including temporary disability or incapacity of the obligor and
18any reasonable efforts undertaken by the obligor to begin a
19process of repayment, modification, or reconsideration of the
20arrearage or child support order in determining whether to
21issue a Stay Order.
22    (f) Any support orders entered by the court in cases
23subject to this Section shall include the status of the
24driver's license until the child support arrearages are paid.
25    (g) The court or child support administrative body may
26terminate the Stay Order and order the immediate suspension of

 

 

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1the obligor's driver's license before the 12-month period is
2over if the obligor fails to meet any or all of the provisions
3set forth within this Section. The court may also enter
4additional sanctions against an obligor who fails to meet any
5or all of the provisions set forth within this Section.
6    (h) The court or child support administrative body shall
7review the obligor's request for stay of the driver's license
8suspension every 90 days, for a period up to 12 months, and may
9make a determination as to the obligor's actual compliance and
10the obligor's efforts to comply with the order. The court or
11child support administrative body shall have the discretion to
12extend the Stay Order after the first 12-month period, upon
13good cause shown, including a good faith effort on the part of
14the obligor to pay the child support obligation, and continue
15to review the obligor's compliance with the Stay Order every 90
16days, as provided in this Section.
17    (i) If the provisions of this Section are inconsistent with
18the requirements pertaining to Sections 7-705 and 7-706 of this
19Code, the provisions of this Section control.