Civil Remedial Fees

Tuesday, July 03, 2007

As of July, the state of Virginia imposes what it calls “civil remedial fees” of up to $3,000 for bad drivers who commit misdemeanor or felony driving offenses. The fees will be added to normal fines and court costs already on the books, and have caused an uproar among many Virginians. The changes mean that being cited for driving 20 mph over the speed limit can cost an additional $1,050.

One of the chief criticisms is that the fees will only affect in-state drivers. DC residents driving who commit the same offenses in Virginia will face far more lenient penalties than in-state drivers. This is the opposite of the speed traps often used to target out-of-town commuters to generate money for local communities.

Some of the fees ($300 for driving on “below-standard tires”) seem gratuitous. On the other hand, some of the fees seem disturbingly lenient ($300 for failing to stop for pedestrians waving white canes). Most of Virginia’s new penalties, however, apply to serious driving crimes that injure other people or that involve drugs or alcohol. And, given how few drivers seriously ponder what a 4,000-pound vehicle will do when it hits a human body, perhaps the other 49 states have their priorities backward.

These fees may be connected with politicians’ fear of saying the “T” word—as in higher taxes. ”Bad Driver” fees substitute for what is supposed to be higher taxes on cars and gasoline.

The new law (Virginia Code 46.2-206.1) states that “the purpose of the civil remedial fees imposed in this section is to generate revenue.”

This reluctance to call a tax a tax is not specific to Virginia. The City of Tampa, Florida, where fire and police departments are under-funded, was going to charge new fees of $450 for investigating an accident and $2,400 when victims of car wrecks had to be pulled from their vehicles. The idea has been abandoned, but it may well emerge in other communities where revenue is scarce.

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