A driver logging three unpaid tickets would not be able to renew his or her driver’s license and would face a possible license suspension.

The change would be dramatic for East Lansing, said Nancy Moylan, the court administrator for East Lansing’s 54-B District Court.

“It’s a huge problem,” she said. “We have a lot of parking tickets, period — lots of transient people coming through.”

Applied engineering sciences senior Nick Prafke, who commutes to MSU from Grand Rapids, said the city’s overnight parking regulations make it difficult to stay with friends during the week. He has received two parking tickets in East Lansing.

“There’s nowhere to park overnight; that’s a huge challenge,” he said.

But the goal of the law is two-sided, said Rep. Roy Schmidt, D-Grand Rapids, the bill’s sponsor.

The bill would increase cash flow for local governments that haven’t received money from state revenue sharing, which distributes a portion of Michigan sales tax income between state and city governments.

“(The bill) will help cities who are struggling during this economic challenge,” Schmidt said.

East Lansing has $2.2 million in outstanding revenue from unpaid parking tickets and MSU is waiting on $118,985 from unpaid tickets.

MSU has 4,242 outstanding parking tickets, and 501 of those tickets are from repeat offenders.

Schmidt said the bill leaves less wiggle room for those people with multiple tickets.

“We try to reign in on the (drivers) who have abused the system. It’s going to be an avenue for cities to get revenue in where the law has already been broken,” he said. “When you get six tickets, you’ve got a problem.”

Since the bill adds up parking tickets from police agencies statewide, tickets issued on campus could be counted in addition to tickets from East Lansing — or any other city — to suspend drivers’ licenses.

But three tickets does not mean automatic and immediate driver suspension.

Once a driver’s third violation is logged, the court would mail a letter warning that the license cannot be renewed if the citations are not paid within 10 days. After the 10 days, the Secretary of State would freeze the license and the driver would be charged a $45 fee, as well as the cost of the outstanding tickets.

But not everyone is convinced the bill will change behaviors.

“I guess it’s a good idea and the way it probably should be, but it doesn’t make me want to pay my parking tickets any sooner,” Prafke said.