MASSACHUSETTS

LICENSE SUSPENSION PROJECT

Goal: The goal of the Massachusetts Department of Revenue Child Support Enforcement Division"s (DOR/CSE) License Suspension Project is to encourage noncustodial parents who have not made timely and consistent payments toward current and/or past-due child support to make payments.

Strategic Plan: Supports strategies 2, 8, 9, 10 of the National Child Support Strategic plan.

Description: Our streamlined License Suspension Project implemented in January 2002 focuses on professional and drivers' licenses and car registrations. DOR/CSE notifies individuals who have not paid their court-ordered child support that they will lose their driver's and professional licenses and/or car registration if they do not immediately begin to pay past-due and ongoing current support. The threat of license suspension often produces dramatic results. However, if after 30 days, the threat of suspension alone doesn't prompt payment, the noncustodial parent is eligible for suspension of any license, permit, certificate, or registration issued by the Commonwealth.

A second and final letter is sent to the noncustodial parents indicating that any license they have will be suspended immediately. Since 2002, DOR/CSE has developed a close working partnership with the Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV). DOR staff has on-line access to RMV's system to suspend driver's licenses and registrations. If the noncustodial parent has a professional or recreational license, a Notice to Suspend is sent to the appropriate licensing authority.

Additionally, DOR/CSE has developed a working relationship with the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association (MCOPA) in an effort to locate delinquent obligors and enforce child support orders. The MCOPA has posted on its secured web site the names of individuals in their cities and towns whose licenses have been suspended. Local police chiefs can log onto the site and obtain the information. Sharing the information with local police departments means that officers will be better able to prevent unlicensed drivers from operating a motor vehicle and encourage them to comply with their support orders.

DOR/CSE has also initiated a pilot program with the regional Veterans Administration (VA). The program allows veterans who have an arrears balance to avoid license suspension and certain other enforcement actions as long as they comply with a repayment agreement with DOR. Compliance is monitored by DOR/CSE and VA staff. Since VA benefits cannot be garnished, the program allows DOR/CSE to collect money that would likely be uncollectible while allowing veterans to maintain their driving privileges and become competitively employed.

In addition, DOR/CSE has a program to work with inmates who have child support arrears. Inmates are allowed to maintain their driver's licenses while incarcerated as long as they comply with the terms of an agreement with DOR. That agreement provides that inmates will notify DOR/CSE of their whereabouts and income upon release or work-release. Inmates have a greater chance of obtaining employment when they are released if they have kept their driving privileges. After release, DOR/CSE continues to work with these individuals - -

directing them to employment resources, assisting them with modifications or current support orders when appropriate, and revising repayment agreements to reflect the obligor's ability to pay.

Results: The License Suspension program has been an extraordinarily powerful, timely, and inexpensive enforcement tool. It is a key component of our early intervention strategy. Because of its overall effectiveness " and because it produces faster results and is less costly - license suspension precedes a judicial contempt process. The threat alone of license suspension often produces dramatic results. Noncustodial parents have often responded to DOR's initial notice by coming forward with lump-sum payments to maintain their license. In one recent week, staff in our offices collected $82,000 from customers who came in to make a payment in order to keep their licenses. Additionally, noncustodial parents who come forward to make a full payment may be eligible for a waiver of any interest and penalty owed to the Commonwealth.

As of March 2005, DOR/CSE has contacted or sent suspension notices to over 50,000 noncustodial parents. Over 24,000 drivers' licenses, 770 registrations, and close to 800 professional licenses have been suspended. But the most important outcome is that through February 2006, over $63 million - most owed directly to custodial parents and their children - has been collected.

Location: The License Suspension Program is practiced statewide.

Funding:The License Suspension Program is a state-funded program.

Replication Advice: This practice is based on statute. Should you be interested in replicating this program, we recommend referring to Massachusetts General Laws, chapter 119A, in full.

Contact:

Lisa Perfetuo Miller

License Suspension Program Coordinator

Phone: (617) 626-4209

Email: MILLERLI@MASS.DOR.STATE.US