March 17, 2021

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Minnesota Senate Judiciary and Public Finance and Policy Committee Hon. Warren Limmer, Chair 3221 Minnesota Senate Building St. Paul, Minnesota 55155

RE: Minnesota Catholic Conference support of Senate File 432 (Ingebrigsten)

Chair Limmer and Members of the Committee,

The Minnesota Catholic Conference (MCC), the public policy voice of the Catholic Church in Minnesota, writes to express our support for Senate File 432, a bill which seeks to reconsider and eliminate criminal punishments that create unjust collateral sanctions for those living at or near the poverty line.

Catholic Conferences across the country have routinely supported legislative efforts to de-criminalize poverty. Our faith teaches us that criminal laws should always respect the dignity of each person. When an individual violates the law, they should be punished. At the same time, a criminal offender’s inherent dignity does not diminish even if he or she violates a law. The proper balance is struck when our laws and sanctions consider several factors, including the offender’s danger to the society. Civil and criminal penalties should always serve the purpose of rendering justice to both society and the offender.

We must distinguish between policies that render justice and those that perpetuate injustice. License suspensions for payment-related violations primarily impact people with low incomes and little savings. Sixty percent of low-income individuals who lose their driving privileges eventually lose their job, leading to escalating debt, exposure to usury, and family hardship. The non-payment of fees and fines is not a threat to public safety, but rather a symptom of poverty, and we should ensure that no policy perpetuates the injustice of poverty. Similarly, our criminal justice system can uphold public safety without also acting as revenue stream for the state, an arrangement that disproportionately harms communities of color and those in poverty.

The policy changes proposed by Senate File 432 transcend partisan boundaries and would allow our justice system to maintain public safety without criminalizing poverty. Please vote “Aye” on favorable passage.

Respectfully submitted,

Ryan E. Hamilton, Esq. Government Relations Associate

475 University Avenue W. Saint Paul, Minnesota 55103 ARCHDIOCESE OF SAINT PAUL AND MINNEAPOLIS ⧫ DIOCESE OF CROOKSTON ⧫ DIOCESE OF DULUTH Tel: 651-227-8777 Fax: 651-227-2675 DIOCESE OF NEW ULM ⧫ DIOCESE OF SAINT CLOUD ⧫ DIOCESE OF WINONA-ROCHESTER www.mncatholic.org

March 16, 2021

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Senator Warren Limmer, Chair Senator Ron Latz, DFL Lead Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy Minnesota State Senate Minnesota State Senate 3221 Minnesota Senate Bldg 2215 Minnesota Senate Bldg Saint Paul, MN 55155 Saint Paul, MN 55155

Dear Senator Limmer and Senator Latz:

We are writing in support of legislation under consideration by the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee to reform the state’s driver’s license suspension policies. The bipartisan legislation, SF432/HF336, is coauthored by Sen. Bill Ingebrigtsen and Rep. Jamie Becker-Finn.

States across the country are passing legislation to reform their driver’s license suspension policies. Many states have recognized that suspending drivers licenses for non-traffic related offenses is counterproductive and government overreach by state and local governments. Driving a vehicle is critically important to our daily lives and often is essential for getting to work and taking care of a family, particularly in rural areas where alternatives to a vehicle are not readily available.

In addition, prosecutors and law enforcement spend an enormous amount of time and resources on this issue. The American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators estimated that arresting someone for driving with a suspended license can take 9 hours of an officer’s time, including waiting for a tow-truck, transporting an individual to jail, filling out paperwork, making a court appearance, and other administrative duties. This is an unwise use of taxpayer resources that could be re-directed to more important public safety priorities.

SF 432/HF336 prohibits the suspension of driver’s licenses for unpaid traffic tickets. It does not change driver’s license suspensions for dangerous driving offenses. The legislation leaves in place current tools used by state and local governments to collect unpaid fines and fees.

We strongly encourage the Minnesota Legislature to revise laws to limit driver’s license suspensions to conduct that involves dangerous driving such as driving while impaired or intoxicated or multiple moving violations. We believe SF 432 is an important reform to pass and encourage the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee to vote out this legislation.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Grover Norquist, President Emily Mooney, Manager, Criminal Justice & Civil Liberties Americans for Tax Reform R Street Institute

3120 117th St E Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota 55077 Pine Bend Refinery 651.437.0700 March 16, 2021

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Senator Warren Limmer, Chair Senator Ron Latz, DFL Lead Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy Minnesota State Senate Minnesota State Senate 3221 Minnesota Senate Bldg 2215 Minnesota Senate Bldg Saint Paul, MN 55155 Saint Paul, MN 55155

Dear Senator Limmer and Senator Latz:

Thank you for the opportunity to submit this letter in support of SF 432 (Ingebrigtsen), the Driver’s License Suspension Reform bill. This legislation represents bipartisan work and agreement within the legislature and among a diverse group of stakeholders, including prosecutors, business, and criminal justice advocacy organizations.

Flint Hills Resources’ parent-company, Koch Industries, has been engaged in criminal justice reform efforts in Minnesota over the past several years. We know that the status quo in our criminal justice system is not working. The criminal justice system should protect people and secure public safety, give restoration to victims, remove barriers to opportunity for people with criminal records, and ensure equal justice for all.

Driver’s licenses should be suspended when drivers have proven to be a danger to themselves or the public. SF 432 prohibits the suspension of a driver’s license for unpaid traffic tickets and prohibits the “double stacking” of fees by the Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS). This legislation does not change driver’s license suspensions for dangerous driving offenses.

This legislation leaves in place collection processes through state and local governments – a more effective tool for collecting unpaid fines and fees. Several states have passed driver’s license reform bills including Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, California, Mississippi, Georgia, Kentucky, Virginia, West Virginia, Oregon and New York.

Employers know that driver’s licenses are necessary for employment, health care and other critical needs and that’s why they should only be suspended when drivers have committed a serious public safety infraction.

We strongly encourage the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee to support SF 432. Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Heather N. Rein Director, Community Affairs Flint Hills Resources cc: Members of the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee

March 16, 2021

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Senator Warren Limmer, Chair Senator Ron Latz, Lead Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy Minnesota Senate Minnesota Senate 3221 Minnesota Senate Building 2215 Minnesota Senate Building St. Paul, MN 55155 St. Paul, MN 55155

Dear Senator Limmer and Senator Latz:

On behalf of the Justice Action Network, the nation’s largest bipartisan criminal justice reform organization, I am writing in support of legislation introduced in the House and Senate to address the issue of driver’s license suspensions. The bipartisan legislation, HF 336/SF 432, was introduced by Rep. Jamie Becker-Finn and Sen. Bill Ingebrigtsen.

The Driver’s License Suspension Reform bill prohibits the suspension of a driver’s license for unpaid traffic tickets and makes licenses currently suspended only for unpaid tickets eligible for reinstatement. The legislation also prohibits the “double staking” of reinstatement fees by the Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS). In the past two years, DPS initiated the process of “double staking” fees which has led to significant hardships for families.

This legislation does not change driver’s license suspensions for dangerous driving offenses. This legislation also leaves in place the collection process for unpaid tickets but allows for people with no other infraction than unpaid traffic tickets to continue to legally drive while they are paying off these debts to the government. Minnesota has several other tools to collect unpaid traffic tickets between cities, counties, and state government. States have passed similar legislation including Maine, Mississippi, California, Virginia, Tennessee, and Michigan. We have included background information on the statewide impact of the legislation. We appreciate your efforts to address inequities in our criminal justice system.

Thank you for your consideration. Please feel free to contact our organization’s government relations representatives, Chas Anderson at [email protected] and Ade Salami at [email protected].

Sincerely,

Jenna Bottler Deputy Director, the Justice Action Network

C: Members, Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee

1 March 16, 2021

The Honorable Warren Limmer, Chair Transportation Finance and Policy Committee 3221 Minnesota Senate Building St. Paul, MN 55155

Dear Chair Newman and Members of the Committee,

We write to respectfully urge you to support the Driver’s License Suspension Reform bill, introduced in the Senate by Sen. Bill Ingebrigtsen (SF 432). The bill has strong bipartisan support, and we believe the time to act is now.

The Driver’s License Suspension Reform bill prohibits the suspension of a driver’s license for unpaid traffic tickets and eliminates the additional suspension period imposed upon payment of a driving after suspension ticket. These provisions do not change driver’s license suspensions for dangerous driving violations. They do not eliminate personal responsibility – unpaid traffic tickets are sent to collections, so people are still held accountable for the cost of their ticket. Eliminating driver’s license suspensions for unpaid tickets allows people to continue driving legally to work and taking care of their families while they pay off their traffic debt.

On the national level, ending driver’s license suspensions for unpaid traffic tickets is supported by a diverse group of organizations, including the Southern Poverty Law Center, the ACLU, the National Conference of Chief Justices (CCJ), the National Conference of State Court Administrators (CSCA), and the National Center for State Courts (NCSC).

In recent years, several states have enacted reforms similar to those proposed in SF 432. In 2017, California, Maine, and Mississippi stopped suspending driver’s licenses for unpaid traffic tickets. In 2018, Virginia, Tennessee, and Michigan did the same. Adopting this proposed legislation aligns Minnesota with best practices being established around the country. Thank you for your consideration of our position.

Sincerely,

• State Public Defender • Second Chance Coalition • City Attorney of Minneapolis • Legal Services Advocacy Project • City Attorney of St. Paul • Minnesota Asset Building Coalition • Joint Religious Legislative Coalition • ACLU of Minnesota • Voices for Racial Justice • Catholic Charities • Lutheran Social Service • Minnesota Coalition for the • Minnesota Community Action Partnership Homeless

T H E M I N N E S O T A

C O U N T Y A T T O R N E Y S

A S S O C I A T I O N

February 5, 2021

Representative Jamie Becker-Finn 559 State Office Building St. Paul, MN 55155

Senator Bill Ingebrigtsen 95 University Avenue W. Minnesota Senate Bldg., Room 3207 St. Paul, MN 55155

Dear Representative Becker-Finn and Senator Ingebrigtsen:

The Minnesota County Attorneys Association supports HF 336 and SF 432 which prohibits the suspension of a person’s driver’s license under several specific situations and requires the Department of Public Safety and court administrator to report data related to driver’s license suspensions and related fines.

More than 80,000 Minnesotans currently have their driver’s license suspended for unpaid traffic tickets. Suspending licenses hasn’t worked as an enforcement tool. It’s time we acknowledge that and stop doing it. Driver’s license suspensions should be reserved for the sole purpose of ensuring safe roads, not demanding payment from people who may be struggling to meet their families’ basic needs. That’s why the Minnesota County Attorneys Association is advocating for the Legislature to pass your bipartisan bills to end that practice. It doesn’t change driver’s license suspensions for dangerous driving violations, such as DUI or reckless driving. It leaves in place the collections process for unpaid traffic tickets, so people are held accountable for the cost of their ticket. It also leaves in place the habitual violator law – if a person racks up more than three tickets in 12 months or more than four tickets in 24 months, they will receive a suspension, regardless of payment status.

Thank you for your leadership in authoring these bills.

Sincerely,

Robert Small Executive Director

100 Empire Drive, Suite 200 • St. Paul, MN 55103 • 6 5 1-6 4 1-1 6 0 0 • Fax: 6 5 1-6 4 1-1 6 6 6 www.mcaa-mn.org

P.O. Box 14720 Minneapolis, MN 55414 (651) 645-4097 www.aclu-mn.org @aclumn

Letter of Support SF 432

Chair Limmer and Senate Members,

We are writing in support of Senate File 432, which would end driver’s license suspensions for low-level unpaid traffic tickets. This bill would be a significant first step toward creating a more equitable criminal justice system by removing wealth-based inequalities. Fines and fees for lower-income Minnesotans can snowball quickly and lead to tragic repercussions. The policy of suspending driver licenses creates a situation in which two different people receive wildly different consequences simply based on their ability to pay.

The harms of suspending someone’s license are not hard to imagine. Many working adults drive to work, and many jobs require a valid driver's license. Losing the ability to drive to work and being saddled with costly fines is an enormous burden to families. More than 60% of low-income workers whose driver's licenses are suspended lose their jobs, leaving them unable to pay off their fine or afford the most basic of expenses such as food and rent.

Trapping Minnesotans in a cycle of debt and financial instability for something as small as an unpaid traffic ticket is not only harmful for families, it's also detrimental to public safety. Communities are harmed when we take into account that people without a valid license generally can’t renew their insurance and feel forced to drive uninsured to keep their jobs, posing a safety and financial threat to other drivers.

All this considered, the main reason for ending the practice of driver’s license suspension is that people's interaction with the legal system should not depend solely on how much money they have. There are ways to hold drivers accountable that are more equitable and fair. But these kinds of laws perpetuate wealth-based inequality in the legal system by punishing you more if you can’t afford to pay court charges. People without the money to pay off a single ticket can quickly see their fines and fees compound and go further into debt, lose their license, lose their job and even spend time in jail. All because of a failure to pay a simple ticket.

ACLU-MN supports Senate File 432 because it would be an important step toward ending our wealth based justice system where low-income Minnesotans are disproportionately penalized.

Thank you.

SIncerely,

Julia Decker, Policy Director Munira Mohamed, Policy Associate ACLU of Minnesota

______

February 3, 2021

The Minnesota State Bar Association is a voluntary professional association representing 13,000 attorneys statewide. The MSBA supports passage of HF336/SF432, which would prevent drivers’ licenses from being suspended solely for unpaid traffic tickets, court fines, or fees.

• The cumulative effect of traffic stops for driving after suspension causes significant additional burdens on prosecutors and public defenders who already labor under heavy workloads.

• Nonpayment of fines and fees is a symptom of poverty, not a threat to public safety. This bill would continue to protect the public by leaving in place license suspensions for dangerous driving violations and habitual violations.

• License suspensions disproportionately affect low-income people and frequently lead to job losses, exacerbating their already challenging economic circumstances.

For these reasons, the MSBA urges passage of HF336/SF432.

Dyan Ebert

President, 2020-21 Minnesota State Bar Association 2021 Driver’s License SUSPENSION REFORM HOUSE FILE 336 (Becker-Finn) | SENATE FILE 432 (Ingebrigtsen)

The Driver’s License Suspension Reform bill: • Ends driver’s license suspensions for failure to pay a traffic ticket Overview • Maintains the collections system for unpaid tickets and other court debt • Eliminates the tacked-on suspension period after paying a fine for driving after suspension

Across the country, more than 11 million driver’s licenses are suspended due to inability to pay court fines and fees. Since 86% of working adults drive to work, and many jobs require a valid license, license suspension can quickly lead to a financial crisis for those without significant savings. State policymakers are beginning to recognize that suspending driver’s licenses for unpaid court debt is harmful for families, costly for taxpayers, and detrimental to public safety. As a result, since 2017, 12 states have ended driver’s license suspensions and four states have driver’s license reform legislation pending for failure to pay traffic tickets. Over 60% of low-income workers whose driver’s license is suspended lose their jobs, leaving them unable to earn the income necessary to pay their court debt or meet other basic expenses such as groceries and rent.

Ended driver’s license suspensions COST TO TAXPAYERS:

Legislation pending to end Each traffic stop for driving after driver’s license suspensions suspension requires nine hours of personnel time to process.1 In 2018, Minnesota recorded Driver’s License Suspension is Costly for Taxpayers and Employers 38,472 convictions for driving after Driver’s license suspension creates a heavy cost burden on families, employers, law suspension or revocation. Nine hours enforcement, and our court system and reduces our tax base. This is why suspensions of personnel time per violation only should only be used for dangerous driving violations, not as a collections tool. on cases that resulted in conviction • Families: license suspension leads to job loss, escalating debt, and increased reliance equals 346,248 personnel hours, on publicly funded safety-net programs. or over $10,000,000 cost to taxpayers, not including time spent • Employers: when employees can’t get to work, employers take on the cost burden of by public defenders, judicial clerks, hiring and training new employees. jailers, bailiffs, and administrators • Law enforcement, prosecutors, public defenders and judges: the time burden of involved in processing license processing driving after suspension cases unrelated to dangerous driving diverts suspensions and reinstatements. resources from addressing other more pressing public safety issues.

1 Accoding to an analysis from Union County, Ohio. Holding Drivers Accountable Minnesota has efficient and effective measures to hold people accountable for obeying traffic laws and paying traffic tickets. Driver’s License Suspension Reform would end driver’s license suspensions for unpaid traffic tickets but would not impact the following accountability measures:

COLLECTIONS: HABITUAL VIOLATOR LAW: DANGEROUS OR Unpaid traffic tickets accrue late Under Minnesota’s Habitual Violator NEGLIGENT DRIVING: fees and are sent to collections, just law, a person who is convicted of Some driving violations, such as like other non-traffic-related court four traffic violations in a year or DUI, carry a mandatory driver’s debt. The Department of Revenue five in two years has their driver’s license suspension. Additionally, carries out collections for the state license suspended for 30 days. If judges have discretion to direct the of Minnesota, using the following they receive one additional traffic Department of Public Safety (DPS) measures to collect unpaid debt: ticket within those time periods, to suspend a driver’s license for • Revenue Recapture (withholding their license is suspended for 90 any traffic violation they consider payment for debt from your tax days. This ensures that habitually dangerous or negligent. DPS can refund) careless or dangerous drivers are also suspend a driver’s license still subject to license suspension without direction from the court • Garnishment of wages, bank after Driver’s License Suspension if a person is convicted of a traffic accounts, or other income Reform measures pass, but ties violation that contributed to an • Filing a lien against property suspension to driving behavior, not accident that caused personal These current practices would ability to pay. injury or property damage. Driver’s not change with Driver’s Licenses License Suspension Reform would Suspension Reform. not alter any of these remedies.

Key Endorsements Minnesota State Bar Association Minnesota County Attorneys Association Minnesota State Public Defenders

By the Numbers Current Driver’s License (DL) Suspensions in Minnesota: If Minnesota passed Driver’s License Suspension Reform:

81,363 112,000 Minnesota DLs are currently suspended for unpaid traffic tickets fewer DL suspensions would be issued each year 17,236 24,000 Convictions for driving after suspension per year people would become immediately eligible for DL reinstatement RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF LIMITING DRIVER’S LICENSE SUSPENSIONS TO VIOLATIONS THAT INVOLVE DANGEROUS DRIVING

Summary:

A person whose driver’s license is suspended will often find it more difficult to earn a living and therefore pay the debt they owe to the government. The number of individuals with a suspended license also places a burden on the limited resources of law enforcement. This resolution encourages state policymakers to revise laws to limit driver’s license suspensions imposed for violations against the government to conduct that involves offenders with dangerous driving such as drunk driving or multiple moving violations.

Model Resolution:

WHEREAS, driving a vehicle is critically important in the daily lives of most Americans and often essential for getting to work, taking care of a family, and getting groceries; and

WHEREAS, in many small cities, towns, and rural areas that do not have public transportation and ride- sharing alternatives, driving is often the only realistic means of transportation; and

WHEREAS, drunk and dangerous driving is one of the nation’s leading causes of death and serious bodily injury and promoting safety on the roads is a legitimate, necessary, and core governmental function; and

WHEREAS, in Virginia alone nearly 1,000,000 people, or one out of six adults, have suspended driver’s licenses for unpaid court fines and fees; and

WHEREAS, in Texas some 1,800,000 people, have had their driver’s licenses suspended for failure to pay court fines and fees; and

WHEREAS, in California more than 17% of adults have their driver’s licenses suspended; and

WHEREAS, between 2010 and 2017 all but three states increased the amount of fines and fees for civil and criminal violations; and https://www.alec.org/model-policy/resolution-in-support-of-limiting-drivers-license-suspensions-to-violations-that- involve-dangerous-driving/

WHEREAS, nationally 40% percent of all driver license suspensions are issued for conduct that was unrelated to driving; and

WHEREAS, a person whose driver’s license is suspended will often find it more difficult to earn a living and therefore pay the debt they owe to the government; and

WHEREAS, Washington State in 2015 calculated that state troopers spent 70,848 hours dealing with license suspensions for non-driving offenses; and

WHEREAS, the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators estimated that arresting someone for driving with a suspended license can take 9 hours of an officer’s time, including waiting for a tow- truck, transporting an individual to jail, filling out paperwork, making a court appearance, and other administrative duties and accordingly Washington State Patrol Chief John Batiste called non-driving suspensions “a drain on the system as a whole”; and

WHEREAS, the Colorado Department of Motor Vehicles determined that suspending driver’s licenses for offenses unrelated to driving consumed 8,566 hours per year of its staff time; and

WHEREAS, many states impose a significant fee for reinstating a suspended driver’s license, such as Alabama where the fee is $275; and

WHEREAS, to the extent people break the law and drive with a suspended license, it is more likely they are also driving without insurance, thereby placing a greater financial burden on other drivers when they cause an accident; and

WHEREAS, in 2012 the state of Washington enacted legislation to stop suspending driver’s licenses for failure to pay non-moving traffic violations; and

WHEREAS, Congress is considering the Better Drive Act cosponsored by lawmakers such as Congressman James Sensenbrenner, Congresswoman Mia Love, and Congressman Justin Amash that would repeal a federal law that undermines the Tenth Amendment by imposing a federal mandate on driver’s license suspensions for drug offenses that is enforced through withholding federal transportation funds; and

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the American Legislative Exchange Council encourages state policymakers to revise laws to limit driver’s license suspensions imposed for violations against the government to conduct that involves offenders with dangerous driving such as drunk driving or multiple moving violations.

https://www.alec.org/model-policy/resolution-in-support-of-limiting-drivers-license-suspensions-to-violations-that- involve-dangerous-driving/