Community Service May Help Some Regain Driver’s License

By Christen Smith | The Center Square
Republished by Travels With The Post

(The Center Square) – Drivers in Pennsylvania who cannot pay fines necessary to reinstate their licenses will soon have another option: community service.

A new state program, approved by the state Legislature in Harrisburg, allows qualifying residents with licenses suspended for routine violations to forgo restitution fees. In lieu of the money, they can participate in community service work. Some applicants, however, will also be placed on a payment plan.

The bill currently is headed to Gov. Josh Shapiro’s desk, and awaits his signature.

The bipartisan law, sponsored by Republican Sen. Pat Stefano and Democratic Sen. Jay Costa, has been four years in the making. It cleared its final legislative hurdle earlier this month.

Difference-Maker for Low-Income Drivers

“The ability to drive is essential in rural Pennsylvania,” Stefano said. “This legislation will empower drivers struggling to escape the prison of debt, created by fines and fees from traffic violations.” Soon they may be able to “get back on the road so they can continue to contribute to our local communities.”

Costa said the program will “make an enormous difference” for low-income drivers.

“By allowing judges to assign community service instead of financial penalties for drivers already struggling to make ends meet, we can ensure workers get to jobs, patients get to doctor’s appointments, kids get to school and families can live their lives,” Costa added.

According to state data, courts received more than $10.3 million in fees and penalties from driving suspensions from 2019 through 2022. Of that amount, the state collected $6.8 million. It’s unclear what impact the legislation would have on future collections, as there is no estimate of how many drivers would be eligible for the program.

Photo by Ahmet Kurt on Unsplash+, used by Travels With The Post under license

The Center Square is part of a network of U.S.-based newsrooms launched in 2019 to report on state- and local-level governments and economics. Travels With The Post occasionally republishes news articles from its Pennsylvania edition that are likely to have interest among our readers. Find other republished stories here.