The Texas Department of Transportation has announced it will waive $1.3 billion dollars in late fees on toll fines, The agency had sent 2.2 million accounts to collections agencies last year, alone, reported KXAN.
The change comes after the Legislature capped late fees at $48 per year, so the agency waived old ones going back to 2007.
Grits' first thought: The anti-toll people got a bigger win last session than I knew!
My second: That's in the ballpark of the size of the unpaid surcharges in the Driver Responsibility program. If the Lege can suck up and eliminate that much bad debt on the toll side, they should be able to do the same thing for the surcharge program, which deals out a comparable amount of economic misery, plus the added legal problems arising from a revoked driver's license.
A lot of legislators are now aware of problems with the surcharge program, so Grits still harbors hopes that all Texas needs to get rid of it is a session with a little black ink in the budget to cover the on-paper losses. Unfortunately, that won't be the 86th session in 2019.
But news that the Lege eliminated this old debt last year in another red-ink budget makes me a tad more sanguine. It shows they can do it when they want to.
The Lege should have learned from user experiance years ago. The way former citizens like i learned. Including like minded co-horts at the Texas Department of Totalitarianism. Round them all up on insignificant technicalities. Then haul their ignorant asses to jail for. Trying to get to work, getting over to help mom and going out for groceries. Then just for fun. Arrest them a forth time. For driving with a suspended license. On the way to court over driving with a suspended license. With paper work in their hand saying they have court that morning. Dressed for court. Plus make sure the friends car they had to borrow. Is impounded before a holiday weekend. So it stolen for fees more than the car is worth. I have chosen not to renew the Texas dl. Since 2011 (best guess). Nor a Texas id.since 2013. If I received either on a silver platter. With a $10,000 cashiers check for duress & damage. I'd cash the check to even the debt. Then burn the rest for the trash it is. On principle alone.
ReplyDeleteWaived? No way.
ReplyDeleteDid the Legislature pay or plan to pay the toll gods? Did the toll gods really agree to give up all that money-for-nothing? That's against the whole concept of letting the public roads crap so fox have to travel on toll roads.
Are you saying, those tolls won't be collected, and nobody got paid?
What of those of us who paid tolls AND fees?
{Captchacha is becoming a monolith}
Sounds like a simple case of insider trading to me. TxDoTotalitarianism must have had enough of it's 12,000 employees and those affiliated. Tired of getting collection notices. Since the rules don't apply to the Lege. We're probably just seeing a necessary action. From those toll-booth cams snapping away. With no means of separating a Lege license plate from those mot affiliated. We should follow the whole concept by digging a Grand fishing hole using affiliated monies only. Then charge those affiliated that paid for it. For the privilege (ha ha) to fish there.
ReplyDeleteGood example of only penalizing the compliant.
ReplyDeleteThe toll game is to rack up your fees and then when you call to ask for a onetime settlement they tell you we don’t do that . Instead they advocate that you just send them a payment every month to avoid the other ways they have at their disposal to make your life a living hell!! They would rather you stay a hostage. Happy to hear that they are having some limitations imposed upon them.
ReplyDelete