NJ Law Journal: Automatic Driver’s License Suspension for Unpaid Child Support in NJ is Unfair

Just 5 states suspend Driver’s Licenses for visitation/parenting time interference: Michigan, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Utah.

How States Enforce Visitation Interference

• Some states define visitation interference synonymously with custody interference (Idaho, Texas, Washington).

• Visitation interference is grounds for suspending alimony or maintenance (New York).

• Penalty fees up to $500 (Minnesota, Pennsylvania).

• Penalty fees can be up to $1,000 (Montana, Michigan).

• Suspension of licenses (Michigan, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Utah).

• Incarceration (Iowa, Louisiana, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Texas).

• Change in custody (Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Vermont, Washington).

• The posting of a bond (Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Oklahoma).

• Child Support Abatement (Missouri).

Visitation Interference Stats

• Approximately 50% of mothers see no value in the father‘s continued contact with his children.

• Mothers may prevent visits to retaliate against the fathers for problems in their marital or post marital relationship.

• 40% of mothers reported that they had interfered with the non-custodial father‘s visitation on at least one occasion, to punish their ex-spouse.

• The courts’ failure to enforce or expand visitation agreements are a frequently mentioned complaint.

• Interviewing more than 100 children researchers concluded that in most cases it was true that visitation was blocked, and that there was no justification for it.

For additional facts and source information, please view the PDF provided by Robert Ferrer, who researched the issue for Illinois Fathers.