Maricopa County License Hearing Guide

Show up at 1740 W. Adams Street in Phoenix for your DUI license hearing and you'll be in the wrong building. That's the Office of Administrative Hearings, which handles licensing boards and contractor disputes; the actual venue for a DUI suspension hearing is ADOT's Executive Hearing Office at 3838 N. Central Ave., Suite 300. Mixing these up costs a missed hearing and a default suspension.

The Affidavit and the Clock

The moment your BAC comes back at 0.08 or higher, or you refuse testing, the officer serves you a four-part Admin Per Se / Implied Consent Affidavit. The yellow copy is your temporary driving permit, valid immediately, no waiting period despite what's sometimes assumed; the pink copy is your hearing request form. That temporary permit is good for exactly 15 days from the date served. Miss the window to request a hearing, and the suspension, 90 days for a failed test or 12 months for a refusal (two years for a second refusal within 7 years), takes effect automatically on day 16 with no further recourse.

Filing the Request

The Executive Hearing Office accepts several methods, and using more than one at once isn't recommended. The AZ MVD Now portal or the EHO's own web portal gives instant confirmation. Email, hearingoffice@azdot.gov, is the office's preferred method and allows attaching a scanned pink copy. In-person drop-off at the Suite 300 reception desk works too; bring an extra copy for a date stamp as proof of timely filing. Fax (602-241-1624) is reliable if you keep the transmission report. Regular mail is the riskiest option this close to a deadline, since the rule is based on when the EHO receives it, not when you sent it.

The Hearing Itself

Since the pandemic, most hearings run virtually over Google Meet, though physical hearings still happen; whatever your Notice of Hearing specifies is what you show up for; showing up in the wrong format disrupts the docket. If you're attending in person, validated parking is available at 1st Avenue and Clarendon Avenue, just west of the building, bring your ticket to Suite 300 for the stamp, and arrive 15 minutes early to clear security.

Getting the Police Report

The hearing office itself doesn't hand you the evidence; you request the report directly from whoever arrested you, at your own cost. Phoenix PD runs an online records portal charging roughly $0.24 a page for the report plus a $5 convenience fee for online requests; DPS handles requests through its own portal, $9 for the first nine pages by mail or email, more for a CD.

Getting Back on the Road Faster

Since Senate Bill 1334 took effect, Arizona eliminated the old 30-to-90-day "hard suspension" wait before applying for a Special Ignition Interlock Restricted Driver License. You can move from the 15-day temporary permit straight into the SIIRDL with zero days of prohibited driving, provided you install a certified interlock beforehand and complete an alcohol screening. Unlike the old fixed-schedule hardship permits, the SIIRDL isn't tied to specific hours; the device itself functions as the compliance record, transmitting every start, stop, and breath test to the state every 90 days.

Reinstating Your License

Once your suspension period ends, reinstatement isn't automatic. You'll owe a $50 Admin Per Se fee, a $20 reinstatement fee, and possibly a $10 suspension fee, payable at an MVD office like Phoenix West (4005 N. 51st Ave.) or through a private Authorized Third Party provider, which typically offers longer hours for a convenience fee. Check your compliance status on AZ MVD Now before you go to confirm you're actually cleared.