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Sullivan v. Commonwealth2/26/1998
[J-158-97]
OPINION OF THE COURT
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Transportation, Bureau of Driver Licensing (PennDOT) appeals from an Order of the Commonwealth Court that affirmed an Order of the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County (trial court) sustaining David J. Sullivan's (Sullivan) statutory appeal of a one-year license suspension imposed pursuant to Section 1532(b)(3) of the Vehicle Code, 75 Pa.C.S. § 1532(b)(3). We granted allocatur to decide the issue of whether, at the time of Sullivan's license suspension, PennDOT had the authority to suspend a driver's license based on an out-of-state conviction pursuant to the Driver License Compact of 1961 (Compact). Because we conclude that, at the relevant time, the Commonwealth had not enacted the Compact into law, we affirm the Order of the Commonwealth Court.
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY
The Compact is a contractual agreement among states intended to promote compliance with each party state's driving laws and regulations. Besides Pennsylvania, the Compact has thirty-nine party jurisdictions (thirty-eight states and the District of Columbia), each of which has enacted the Compact into law by statute.
Article III of the Compact provides that, "he licensing authority of a party state shall report each conviction [for an offense related to the use or operation of a motor vehicle] of a person from another party state occurring within its jurisdiction to the licensing authority of the home state of the licensee." Pursuant to Article IV(1) of the Compact:
The licensing authority in the home state, for the purposes of suspension, revocation, or limitation of the license to operate a motor vehicle, shall give the same effect to the conduct reported, pursuant to Article III, as it would if such conduct had occurred in the home state, in the case of convictions for:
(a) Manslaughter or negligent homicide resulting from the operation of a motor vehicle;
(b) Driving a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcoholic beverages or a narcotic to a degree which renders the driver incapable of safely driving a motor vehicle;
(c) Any felony in the commission of which a motor vehicle was used; or
(d) Failure to stop and render aid in the event of a motor vehicle accident resulting in the death or personal injury of another.
On March 28, 1995, Sullivan, a resident and licensed driver of Pennsylvania, was convicted of driving under the influence (DUI) in Nebraska, which is a party to the Compact. Pursuant to the Compact, Nebraska reported Sullivan's conviction to PennDOT. By notice dated May 25, 1995, PennDOT informed Sullivan that his conviction for DUI in Nebraska was equivalent to a violation of Section 3731 of the Vehicle Code, 75 Pa.C.S. § 3731, and, accordingly, PennDOT was suspending his license for one year pursuant to 75 Pa.C.S. § 1532(b)(3). The notice, however, made no reference to the Compact.
Sullivan appealed to the trial court, arguing, inter alia, that he had not been convicted of a violation of 75 Pa.C.S. § 3731, and that PennDOT had no authority to suspend his license based on an out-of-state conviction. At the hearing on September 20, 1995, PennDOT for the first time cited the Compact as authority for its suspension of Sullivan's license. PennDOT's attorney mistakenly identified the Compact as the "Interstate Compact Act", and cited to Pennsylvania Bulletin Volume 24, Number 45 (November 5, 1994). He argued that:
under Article 4 of that compact, the effect of a conviction of DUI reported to the department, the licensing authority in the home state, that is P
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