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Senate debates, amends bill letting ORS suspend licenses for unpaid child support; sponsors add a fail‑safe
Summary
Senators spent extended floor time on HB 15, which would allow the Office of Recovery Services to administratively suspend drivers’ licenses for parents 60 days behind on child support; sponsors added an amendment creating a process to rescind suspensions on prompt claim and appeal.
Senators debated House Bill 15 on Feb. 14, 2007, a measure that would allow the Office of Recovery Services (ORS) to administratively initiate suspension of a noncustodial parent’s driver’s license if the parent is 60 days behind on court‑ordered child support, with a 30‑day window for the obligor to contact ORS to avoid suspension and the possibility of a conditional driving permit for employment, education or visitation.
Sponsor Senator Walker (carrying Representative Fisher’s House bill) framed the bill as a targeted enforcement tool for obligors “who can afford to pay but refuse to pay.” Walker cited a 2005 auditor‑general estimate that ‘‘$325,000,000 in uncollected child support’’ is owed in Utah and said similar tools are used in 36 states to bring parents into compliance.
Opponents on the floor questioned whether administrative revocation by ORS would improperly duplicate or displace judicial remedies and whether it would worsen outcomes for obligors who need to drive for work. Senator Hickman warned that revoking a driver’s license ‘‘isn’t gonna solve any problem at all’’ and could compound unemployment and additional criminal exposure for driving on a revoked license. Senator Hilliard expressed concern about ORS accounting errors and inconsistent notices; he said judges already have tools including license revocation in court and cautioned against expanding ORS’s powers without robust safeguards.
Senator Bell offered Amendment 2, described on the floor as a fail‑safe for due process: a person ordered suspended could file a request with ORS asserting changed circumstances; ORS must respond in writing and, if it declines to rescind, the person would have 15 days to appeal. Bell said the amendment ‘‘sets up a fail safe procedure’’ and increases due process protections; the floor accepted the amendment by majority voice vote.
After extended debate and the amendment’s adoption, the sponsor emphasized that the bill includes pathways—payment plans, judicial stays and a conditional driving permit—to avoid permanently removing a person’s ability to work or visit children. The Senate moved to ‘‘circle’’ HB 15 (postpone further floor action) so it could be considered in coordination with related visitation legislation (HB 32). The motion to circle carried.
What’s next: HB 15 was circled for later consideration; the bill will return to the floor after the companion visitation measures and committee scheduling are resolved.
