Removing Transportation Barriers to Employment: The Impact of Driver's License Suspension Policies on Milwaukee County Teens

Abstract

This report examines the impact of current driver's license suspension and revocation policies on teenagers in Milwaukee County and central city Milwaukee neighborhoods. It is part of a series of public policy studies on barriers to employment for Milwaukee area workers. The research focuses on the special problems of youth in securing and keeping valid driver's licenses due to municipal and circuit court fine and forfeiture collection policies. Teenagers and young adults with a driver's license and access to a car can tap into jobs outside their neighborhoods and seek out employment in industries with greater opportunities for advancement. Wisconsin legislation allows municipal and circuit courts to place driver's license suspensions on juveniles who fail to pay fines for curfew violations, underage drinking, jaywalking, and other violations. In most cases, suspensions are placed on juveniles who had not yet obtained a driver's license. This study uses Wisconsin Department of Transportation driver's license and suspension and revocation files to determine what happened to suspended teens as they reached working age and to describe differences in policy impact by neighborhood.