Legislators want to revoke drunken drivers’ licenses

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By TODD RICHMOND
Associated Press

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Repeat drunken drivers would lose their licenses for at least a decade under a bill backed by a rare bipartisan coalition of Wisconsin lawmakers.

The measure is designed to send a message that legislators won’t tolerate repeat offenders, said Rep. Eric Genrich, D-Green Bay, one of the proposal’s chief authors.

“We see these habitually drunk drivers appearing in the paper and the TV news over and over again,” Genrich said. “This is our response, saying enough is enough.”

The Wisconsin Tavern League, the state’s powerful alcohol lobby, supports the measure as a way to keep repeat offenders off the road, said the league’s lobbyist, Scott Stenger. Mothers Against Drunk Drivers, however, has asked lawmakers to change the bill to force repeat offenders to use ignition interlocks for a decade rather than take away their licenses. The group feels that revocation won’t stop people from getting behind the wheel, MADD lobbyist Frank Harris said.

“On paper, this looks fantastic,” Harris said of the bill. “But in reality it will not stop somebody (from driving drunk). It’s just taking away a magical piece of paper.”

Right now, the state Department of Transportation can revoke licenses for drunken driving for up to a year. People who lose their licenses can apply for occupational licenses, which allow them to drive limited hours.

The bill would require WisDOT to permanently revoke the license of anyone who has committed five or more operating while intoxicated offenses. The agency also would have to permanently revoke the license of anyone with three or more OWI offenses and two or more so-called qualifying convictions for serious crimes involving a motor vehicle, such as homicide using a motor vehicle. In either case, the person wouldn’t be eligible for an occupational license.

Driving after revocation currently carries a maximum sentence of $2,500 and a year behind bars. Under the bill, anyone caught driving after permanent revocation for multiple drunken driving offenses for a second time or more would face $10,000 in fines and a year in prison.

Offenders could apply to get their license back after 10 years. WisDOT could choose to reinstate their licenses if they haven’t been convicted of a crime over that decade, they submit to an alcohol assessment and develop a driver safety plan.

Genrich acknowledged MADD’s concerns but said he’s wary of the potential costs of ignition interlock devices and who would bear that burden. He insisted revocation can be an effective deterrent to drunken driving.

“There are all sorts of other ideas and this is not a silver bullet, but that’s not a reason for inaction,” Genrich said. “We need to be doing all sorts of things to prevent this kind of behavior. This is just one thing I have to offer.”

The bill’s chances are unclear. Spokeswomen for Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, and Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, didn’t immediately return an email message inquiring about the proposal’s prospects.

But nearly a dozen Republicans across both houses have signed onto the bill as co-sponsors. The Assembly’s judiciary committee has scheduled a public hearing on the bill for Thursday, a move that’s typically the precursor for a committee vote that would clear the way for a full vote on the Assembly floor when the Legislature reconvenes next year.

One of the bill’s co-sponsors includes Rep. Josh Zepnick, a Milwaukee Democrat who lost his sister to a drunken driver in 1990 and was arrested himself for first-offense drunken driving last month. He didn’t immediately return a message left at his office Tuesday.

Wisconsin is the only state that treats first-offense drunken driving as a civil violation rather than a crime.