Nassau scofflaw program comes up short

Amnesty is over for Nassau County parking scofflaws.

A four-month program that allowed motorists to pay their outstanding parking tickets without additional penalties ended on Sept. 15 with only a fraction of violators coming forward to settle their fines.

Motorists with three or more unpaid parking tickets or red light camera violations could soon have their car booted or towed away, county officials said.

"The boot contract is processing and those with multiple unpaid tickets risk having their vehicle disabled until payment is received," said County Executive Edward Mangano.

The amnesty program was touted as a way for the county to recoup up to $21.7 million in unpaid tickets. But from May 16 through Sept. 15, the Traffic and Parking Violations Agency collected just $186,481 on 5,145 tickets, said Mangano spokesman Brian Nevin.

The program was originally scheduled to end on June 30 but the county extended it, hoping to boost the response. Since that point, the agency closed 2,614 tickets and took in $36,000.

"County Executive Mangano, aware of the financial issues of the violators, decided to offer an opportunity to resolve outstanding tickets at a greatly reduced rate before the commencement of the boot and tow program," Nevin said. "Those motorists who ignored the amnesty program will now be subject to increased costs due to the boot and tow enforcement actions."

The county has selected a private contractor that will search for scofflaw vehicles and place a boot on the wheel. Some vehicles may be towed to a private lot.

Nevin declined to identify the contractor, noting it was not yet official. Implementation of the agreement, he said, was delayed by contract negotiations.

The deal still awaits approval by the county legislature and the Nassau Interim Finance Authority, a state control board. The contract has yet to be submitted to the legislature, said Ed Ward, spokesman for Presiding Officer Peter Schmitt (R-Massapequa).

Under that program, violators who leave their car at any Nassau public parking location could return to find a locked boot on a wheel. The vehicle owner would have to pay the tickets before receiving a pass code to unlock the boot. The program will not apply to cars parked on private property.

Vehicles will generally be towed if the motorist is booted and fails to settle the tickets; is a repeat offender with a history of being booted; illegally removed the boot themselves or has a yet undetermined number of outstanding violations, Nevin said.

The contract, he said, will not cost taxpayers as the boot-and-tow provider will be paid through a fee paid by violators.

Previously, individuals who failed to pay their tickets had their names turned over to a collection agency.