MARTIN COUNTY — Martin County is joining counties across Florida in an effort to help residents who have fallen behind on court-related financial obligations regain compliance and potentially restore their driver licenses.
The initiative, known as Operation Green Light, is a statewide event focused on resolving unpaid court fines and fees that often lead to license suspensions.
“Operation Green Light is a statewide driver license reinstatement event,” said Carolyn Timmann, clerk of court for Martin County. “The primary goal is to help people come back into compliance with court-ordered financial penalties, costs, fees, and then this will allow them to have their license reinstated.”
Timmann said individuals typically have a limited window to pay court-ordered fines before additional consequences take effect. Once that deadline passes, accounts may be sent to collections, increasing the total amount owed.
“If they don't do that, under Florida law, we're required to send them to a collection agency,” Timmann said. “We send their account there, and then what happens is there's fees, statutory collection fees, that are added to their outstanding penalties. So that can be anywhere from 25 to 40 percent. The other thing that happens is if their case or their penalties are transferred into a lien, then interest will accrue as well.”
Operation Green Light provides an opportunity for individuals to address those financial burdens with fewer penalties and a structured path forward.
“So what happens during Operation Green Light is we are able to waive the outstanding collection fees and the outstanding interest, which can be very significant,” Timmann said. “And then we'll work with them to get them into a payment plan that meets their income levels and just continue to work with them to get these things paid off so they can either get back on the road or meet all their obligations. And sometimes that can even be the thing that's keeping them from having their rights restored.”
While the program is often associated with driver license reinstatement, participation is not limited to specific types of cases.
“There's no exclusion based on type of incident,” Timmann said. “It can be a regular traffic citation. It can be a criminal traffic citation. It can be a regular misdemeanor or a felony. It doesn't matter.”
In some cases, paying outstanding fines may not be the only requirement before a license can be reinstated, as additional court-ordered obligations may still need to be completed.
“Now, sometimes there may be other obligations that they have to fulfill before they can get their license back,” Timmann said. “They may have, for instance, been assigned community service. There could be other things like that. But we'll walk them through all of that and tell them exactly what they need to do to get their license restored.”
Officials said assistance is focused on cases within Martin County, though staff can help direct residents who may have outstanding obligations elsewhere.
“But we can look up their cases statewide and tell them that they need to go and take care of these things in other counties as well,” Timmann said.
Operation Green Light will take place April 13–17 and April 20–24 at the Martin County Courthouse Complex in Stuart, as well as branch locations in Hobe Sound and Indiantown. Phone assistance will also be available April 13, 14, 20 and 21 from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.