Ignition interlock in Texas

Community supervision is what Texas calls probation, and if the interlock is one of its conditions, the law says the device must be installed within 30 days of your conviction. The court sets this deadline, so if you blow past it, your probation itself could be in danger.

The Texas Department of Public Safety runs the second deadline. When DPS gets a court order that says you need an interlock, it mails you a notice. From that point, you have 30 days until your regular license is cancelled, unless the device is already installed and the interlock license is in your hands.

DPS needs roughly 21 business days to process a license, so scheduling your installation early gives the paperwork room to finish. One phone call sends your request to an installer that covers Texas, and the appointment gets set up from there.

The license DPS gives you is a restricted interlock license, and with it you can drive only vehicles fitted with an interlock. The DPS Driver License Division handles it. A different DPS division writes the rules that interlock vendors follow and certifies them.

The license costs the state $10. DPS advises allowing around 21 business days after the fee is paid for the processing to finish, so installing the device first keeps things from stalling.

A DWI suspension doesn't always mean you stop driving. A court can grant an occupational license, a restricted license meant for essential trips. You request one from a Justice of the Peace or a county or district-level court, then forward the court's order to DPS.

In a DWI suspension, the judge has to restrict you to an interlock vehicle, unless the court decides the device isn't required to keep the community safe. Your license then gets an interlock designation, and the device stays in use for the full suspension. If getting to work matters to you while suspended, the interlock is what usually makes it happen, and we can pass along your request to an installer in Texas right away.

For a standard device in Texas, Intoxalock quotes $89.99 to $101.99 a month. Keep in mind that's a single company's price for Texas, not anything set by the state or averaged across it.

If you apply MADD's national averages for setup and monthly fees, a device kept for 12 months lands at roughly $790 to $1,110 overall. The installer's charges don't include the $10 license fee, which goes to DPS.

Texas courts can lower the burden in two situations. Where the interlock goes along with deferred adjudication and the judge decides you're indigent, meaning the money isn't there, the judge can drop the installation charge and halve the monthly monitoring fee.

If your interlock comes with an occupational license and the court finds you can't pay, it may stretch out a payment schedule lasting up to twice as long as the order itself. Either way, the request goes before the court that handles your case.

On probation, the device has to stay in for at least half of your time under supervision. With an occupational license, it remains through the entire suspension unless the court decides there's good cause and no safety need.

Your time running out doesn't wipe the requirement off your DPS record by itself. DPS clears it only when it receives a sealed order from the court or a vendor removal form bearing a judge's or county clerk's signature. That signed paper, delivered to DPS, is what finally sets your license free.

The most recent amendment listed in the Texas interlock statute is HB 291, effective September 1, 2023.