New York City parking fine amnesty plan pushed

City officials are hitting the gas pedal to collect hundreds of millions in unpaid parking fines, but one way to prod delinquents to pay up - a parking amnesty program - has so far gone nowhere.

If passed, a bill co-sponsored by Councilman Michael Nelson (D-Brooklyn) would give drivers 60 days to pay their outstanding parking ticket fines while forgiving late penalties and interest.

Since the bill was introduced in February, it has stalled, said Steve Zeltser, a spokesman for Nelson. Among the reasons, he said, is the lack of support from City Hall, which he explained is concerned because "not a lot of people took advantage of it" when it was last done in 1993.

However, mayoral spokesman Marc LaVorgna said Mayor Michael Bloomberg does generally support a temporary amnesty program and the administration would be open to discussing it.

Nelson, meanwhile, is hoping that the legislation will be heard in committee in the City Council early next year.

His office could not provide an estimate for how much the city would potentially earn. Zeltser said the amount relies on how effectively the program is advertised to delinquent drivers.

"Even if we recover half of it, it's still money," he added. "Parking tickets are a way of life now."

The Department of Finance said the city is owed about $440 million since 2002 in delinquent parking debt. Given its limited resources, the city had let a person's debt reach at least $800 before referring it to collections.

After repeated requests, the Finance Department wouldn't divulge how much the city is owed in late fees and interest. The mayor's office also was unable to provide that information.

The MTA offered its own ticket amnesty program for the month of October, but is still tallying the results, an agency spokeswoman said.

This time of year is typically when the city issues the most parking tickets because people are out for the holidays, said Louis Camporeale, author of "The New York City Parking Survival Guide."