The Birmingham City Council has taken steps to address the city’s parking ticket backlog by approving a new $3 administrative fee for tickets that remain unpaid for over 30 days. This decision, made on Tuesday, aims to improve compliance with parking regulations by covering costs associated with accessing Department of Motor Vehicle records and mailing notices to violators.
Focus on Enforcement
Despite this new fee, the council rejected a proposal from the mayor and city transportation officials to increase parking fines by $10. Councilor Hunter Williams emphasized the need for better enforcement before raising fines, questioning why fines should increase without first attempting to collect existing dues. City transportation officials acknowledged the city’s reputation for lax enforcement, noting that only about 20% of parking tickets are currently paid, leading to a backlog of approximately 700,000 unpaid violations.
James Fowler, the city’s chief of public infrastructure, highlighted that the low fines might be encouraging non-compliance. However, Councilor Crystal Smitherman argued that the lack of enforcement is the primary issue. The council’s decision reflects a broader strategy to enhance the city’s parking violation infrastructure, which includes new software and a public website.
Additional Measures
In addition to the new fee, the council approved measures allowing the city to send unpaid tickets to collections. However, federal law prevents these unpaid tickets from affecting residents’ credit scores. The council also maintained language in the resolution to impose fines on certain violations that previously had no penalty, such as parking in alleyways, which will now incur a $15 fine.
Mayor Randall Woodfin noted that Birmingham’s parking violation rates are lower than those in other cities with similar populations and that fines have not increased since before 2008. He also mentioned that no vehicles have been towed under a measure passed last year due to the need for updated software and DMV records.
For Birmingham residents, the cost of a ticket for an expired parking meter remains at $15, aligning with rates in Montgomery and Huntsville. The changes approved by the council are expected to take effect in about 60 days.
Original reporting: BirminghamWatch — read the source article.
