This story is free to read because readers choose to support LAist. If you find value in independent local reporting, make a donation to power our newsroom today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
California Drivers Will Now Get A Break On Unpaid Traffic Tickets
Busted. (Photo by Lucy Rendler-Kaplan via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr)
Drivers faced with brutally huge unpaid traffic fines will now be cut some slack with a new amnesty program in California.
Starting this Thursday, drivers with outstanding traffic ticket fines from before January 1, 2013, will get a discount of 50% to 80% on what they owe, reports the L.A. Times. Under the amnesty bill, passed by the California Legislature, there will also be an installment plan offered to help drivers pay those sometimes cripplingly high fines and fees. And if anyone lost their license because they couldn't afford to pay the fines, they'll be eligible to have it reinstated now.
Anyone with parking tickets, a DUI, a conviction for reckless driving or traffic fines from more recent years, however, is out of luck—the amnesty doesn't apply to those.
The amnesty was considered by lawmakers earlier this year, when civil rights and legal aid groups pointed out that over the past eight years roughly 4.2 million Californians had lost their licenses because they couldn't afford the mounting traffic fees. Many of those huge fees tacked on to traffic fines were added during an earlier budget crisis to help pay for the court system and other programs, according to the Times. For instance, base fines of $100 suddenly jumped to $500 and if the driver missed the payment deadline they would then owe $815, more than many could afford to pay in time.
To participate in the program, drivers may be charged $50 to participate in the program (because they still have to get you somehow). And, of course, the DMV will charge $55 to reinstate a driver's license.
The amnesty program begins October 1st and will run through to March 31, 2017.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our connected community. We are free to tell the full truth, to hold power to account without fear or favor, and to follow facts wherever they lead. Our only loyalty is to our audiences and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen our community.
Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive from readers like you will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.
If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive from readers like you will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.
If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
