234 Relating to: suspension of operating privilege for failure to pay monetary judgment.

  Date of enactment: March 1, 2016
2015 Senate Bill 462   Date of publication*: March 2, 2016

* Section 991.11, Wisconsin Statutes : Effective date of acts. "Every act and every portion of an act enacted by the legislature over the governor's partial veto which does not expressly prescribe the time when it takes effect shall take effect on the day after its date of publication."

2015 WISCONSIN ACT 234

An Act to amend 345.47 (1) (b) and 800.095 (1) (a) (intro.), 3. and 4. of the statutes; relating to: suspension of operating privilege for failure to pay monetary judgment.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

Section 1 . 345.47 (1) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:

345.47 (1) (b) In lieu of imprisonment and in addition to any other suspension or revocation, that the defendant's operating privilege be suspended. The operating privilege shall be suspended for 30 days or until the person pays the forfeiture, plus costs, fees, and surcharges imposed under ch. 814, but not to exceed 2 years one year . If the defendant has notified the court that he or she is unable to pay the judgment because of poverty, and if the court, using the criteria in s. 814.29 (1) (d), determines that the defendant is unable to pay the judgment because of poverty, the court may not suspend the defendant's operating privilege without first providing the defendant with an opportunity to pay the judgment in installments, taking into account the defendant's income. Suspension under this paragraph shall not affect the power of the court to suspend or revoke under s. 343.30 or the power of the secretary to suspend or revoke the operating privilege. This paragraph does not apply if the judgment was entered solely for violation of an ordinance unrelated to the violator's operation of a motor vehicle.

Section 2 . 800.095 (1) (a) (intro.), 3. and 4. of the statutes are amended to read:

800.095 (1) (a) (intro.) Suspension of the defendant's operating privilege until the defendant pays the judgment, but not to exceed 2 years one year . If the court orders suspension under this paragraph, all of the following apply:

3. If the judgment remains unpaid at the end of the 2-year one-year suspension, the court may not order a further suspension of operating privileges in relation to the outstanding judgment.

4. Serving the complete 2-year one-year suspension of the defendant's operating privilege does not relieve the defendant of the responsibility to pay the judgment.