If you get clocked above 100 mph by in California, police do not care if you have never received a speeding ticket. The California Highway Patrol will automatically forward the case to the DMV’s Driver Safety Branch. The agency will then review your license for possible suspension.

The interagency initiative is called Forwarded Actions for Speeding Tickets. It carries the fitting acronym FAST.

California Transportation Secretary Toks Omishakin explained the rationale. “This is about protecting lives and delivering on our shared responsibilities to make our roads safer for everyone.”

How FAST puts drivers on the DMV’s radar

How often will the DMV actually suspend a license? That depends on whether it believes the driver poses an ongoing risk.

DMV Director Steve Gordon put it plainly. “We want to take immediate action against dangerous drivers before their carelessness leads to a deadly crash.”

Veronica Bowie, chief of the DMV’s Driver Safety Branch, echoed the message. “Our message is slow down. Our priority is protecting the public.”

She explained how reviews work. “We review the driving record that shows the history that shows prior convictions, prior accidents, prior suspensions against the driving record. We may even call the driver in and speak to them and discuss that citation as well as the driving record.”

Citations will be electronic, and the DMV will review cases daily. CHP issued roughly 18,000 citations for speeds exceeding 100 mph in 2024. The DMV now faces a heavy workload.

That number could rise. CHP has deployed 100 new low-profile patrol vehicles aimed at catching speeders. Officials say the goal is deterrence, not punishment.

Gordon summed it up. “We’re being proactive, and together with our CHP partners, we’re ready to put the brakes on this reckless behavior.”