SOUTHWEST OHIO Hamilton County is tops in suspending drivers licenses of nonpaying dads

Some worry the law isn't being applied in other parts of the state.
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Hamilton County officials have dramatically increased the number of driver's licenses they've suspended for nonpayment of child support, and collections are increasing just as substantially.
Ohio passed a law in 2001 that allows local agencies to take such action against parents who repeatedly refuse to pay.
More than 2,000 suspensions
Hamilton County's Department of Job and Family Services has used the law to suspend 2,153 licenses from January to March this year, about four times the number for the same period last year. The total since the program began has climbed to 7,305.
Collections from those whose licenses have been suspended went from $82,167 in the first quarter of 2003 to about $420,000 in the first quarter of 2004. Total collections since suspensions began exceed $1 million in Hamilton County alone.
"The more licenses we suspend, the more money we collect, and the more effective it is," said Aiesha Walker, the county's child support chief.
Equal treatment?
Not all counties move to suspend so many licenses, and some people have raised concerns that the law isn't applied equally across the state.
A total of 61,926 licenses have been suspended statewide since the law went into effect, meaning Hamilton County is responsible for nearly 12 percent.
People who pay enough of their back support can get their licenses reinstated.
Dennis Evans, a spokesman for Ohio Job and Family Services, said officials prefer collecting payments in other ways, such as withholding money from paychecks.
"There are some tools you use before using a sledgehammer," he said.