The State Senate approved a measure that would modify the $300 civil penalty
for missed court dates in Mono and Inyo Counties.
Senate Bill 405 essentially gives drivers who missed court dates more time to resolve the situation before the penalty automatically kicks in. Under existing law, the fee is assessed 10 days after the court mails a warning notice to the defendant’s last known address. Los Angeles Democrat Robert Hertzberg wants to extend the period to 20 days. The proposal would also modify the current ticket amnesty to make a few more drivers eligible for drivers’ license reinstatement.
Governor Brown should consider the fast-tracked bill prior to the end of the year.
Penalty Assessments and Add-Ons
Despite all the attention that high penalty assessments garnered earlier this year, it looks like the sum total of the legislative remedies are an extra week and a half to come up with hundreds of dollars in fines, another Band-Aid temporary amnesty, and a rules change in Fresno and Tulare Counties. These moves did very little to change the simple fact that thousands of drivers are ordered to pay money they do not have.
In short, when considering penalty assessments, add-ons, and increased insurance rates, the average cost of a California traffic ticket is about 20 times the fine. Here in Central California, we have it a little better than the big cities, but only by a few dollars.
With attention shifting towards the upcoming Presidential election, it looks like the window for permanently revising penalty assessments has pretty much closed. Politicians in Sacramento are probably wiping their brows. They know that they dodged a bullet, and they can continue to fund pet projects with your money.