Suspension and Revocation Status Report for Milwaukee County

Abstract

Driver’s license suspension and revocation records were analyzed for Milwaukee County residents using a series of data files from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. Notable changes were observed in number and patterns of charges. The elimination of mandatory revocations for OAR (operating after revocation) charges, a policy reform initiated by the Center for Driver’s License Recovery & Employability, reduced the number of OAR revocations from 10,124 in 2009 to 64 in 2011. The legislative reforms also led to a very large reduction in revocations for OWS (operating while suspended), which dropped from 5,815 revocations issued in 2009 down to 130 in 2011. As a result, total revocations for Milwaukee County residents decreased by 35 percent from 2010 to 2011 and by 67 percent from 2009 to 2011. Drug conviction license suspensions have all but been eliminated, under legislative reforms initiated by the CDLRE, dropping from 978 suspensions in 2008 (February through December) to 45 in 2011.