Posted on 03/23/2018 10:07:59 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
A bill bringing possible relief to Maryland motorists who face thousands of dollars in fines from unpaid E-ZPass tolls passed the Senate unanimously last Thursday and gets a hearing in a House committee next week.
Bill sponsor, Sen. Roger Manno, D-Montgomery, made fixes to his bill that died last year in committee, conf0rming it to a bill that passed the House last year.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Thomas “Mac” Middleton, D-Charles, told Manno at a March 7 hearing that he spoke with transportation officials last year and requested improvements. The Maryland Transportation Authority had a year to evaluate how it handles escalating fines that can devastate driver’s finances and credit ratings.
The bill, SB973, would allow the Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA) to recall delinquent debts over $300 from the Central Collection Unit under certain circumstances, prohibit the collection unit from collecting against a debt recalled by the transportation authority and require the MDTA to report to the governor and General Assembly progress on customer service operations.
“It pains me to be back here,” Manno testified March 7. “This bill deals with the persistent, pernicious practice of folks who are caught in this sort of toll penalty dragnet. … Because of small penalties, problems on their credit cards or wrong addresses – – administrative problems have made folks’ lives terrible and have ruined their credit. I’d like to ask you to take another look.”
$3,800 in fines for a single mom
In testimony before the committee, Nidia Carattini, a single mother from Montgomery County, said an overdrawn bank account connected to her E-ZPass account resulted in what are now $3,800 in fines.
“When I finally started getting collection notices, I tried to pay as quickly as possible,” Carattini said. “Some of the fees I wasn’t able to pay as quickly. They were attached to 60 to 80 trips. $50 per visit on the ICC. They said I couldn’t make payment plans and they were going to suspend my [vehicle] registration.”
Carattini said after her account was sent to CCU they would only allow collection payments after a 20% deposit was placed on the debt.
“I didn’t have the money, I didn’t do it.” Carattini said. “They took money from my state taxes and now it’s in a private collection agency. It’s like you need your car to work and you have to work to pay the fees and you don’t have enough money to pay the fees and they say they’re going to suspend your license. I’m a single mother. I need to work.”
Pausing frequently to fight back tears, Carattini told lawmakers she may have misread letters she received thinking she could only act if she was disputing the fees.
30 days to pay
MDTA Spokesman John Sales said when motorists don’t pay a toll on roads like the ICC, which only has electronic monitoring, video toll fees kick in.
For a video toll, Sales said, “it’s 50% higher than the base rate with a minimum of $1 and a maximum of $15 above the base rate.”
Sales said if the outstanding toll amount is paid within 30 days of the date in a mailed notification, “it’s closed and done.”
It takes MDTA, which obtains addresses from the Motor Vehicle Administration, two weeks to 30 days to mail out notices.
“If you don’t pay within 30 days, that’s when you get a $50 citation,” Sales said. “On the 45th day, the actual [$50] citation is assessed.”
Motorists may challenge the civil citation and penalties in district court within 30 days of being notified.
Sales said motorists who do not pay or challenge the fines or citation within 30 days are flagged with MVA for non-renewal of their vehicle registration. Motorists are also referred to the Central Collection Unit where a 17% service charge is added.
“Unpaid tolls and penalties combined less than a $1,000 will be referred to MVA with a vehicle registration non-renewal flag,” Sales said. “More than $1,000, you are flagged at MVA for [license] suspension.”
Sales said problems can occur when E-ZPass transponders die, motorists purchase new cars and don’t update their E-ZPass account and when new license plates are used.
“It’s really important for E-ZPass customers to keep their accounts up-to-date,” Sales said.
‘Egregious, excessive, abusive’
Henry Grubaro, a Takoma Park resident, said he and his wife ended up owing $500 on $20.58 worth of tolls after their bank cards were closed by the bank due to security breaches.
“It seems egregious and excessive and feels abusive as a citizen,” Grubaro said. “Like the preying mortgage industry, E-ZPass does a lot of those things. I ended up with another $2,000 going to CCU after they added their fees, and now I’m on a payment plan for another vehicle.”
Joe Sperber, an IT business owner who frequently uses the InterCounty Connector (Route 200), said he ended up owing about $3,000 in fines and penalties to the state when he used an old truck that didn’t have a transponder for. Testifying before the Finance Committee, Sperber said all the E-ZPass office had to do was align the license plate from his truck with his E-ZPass account.
Improving customer service
As part of a new customer service initiative launched by the Hogan administration earlier this year, MDTA has begun sending out email alerts telling E-ZPass customers when their accounts have a low balance, insufficient funds and when renewal dates are approaching. New attention-grabbing envelopes with red ink will also be used when notices of fines are sent.
Using a new mobile website, ezpassmd.com, customers can also now add new or temporary vehicles to their accounts, replenish an account, update credit card information and pay video tolls. Transponders can also now be purchased through MVA eStores.
More MDTA service initiatives are planned for this year, according to the agency. MDTA will connect video toll transactions with license plate numbers, so unpaid tolls do not escalate to citations; and, MDTA will implement a video tolling customer service center helpline.
A hearing on Manno’s bill is scheduled for March 29 at 1 p.m. in the House Environment and Transportation Committee.
Manno is one of eight Democrats running for Congress in Maryland’s 6th Congressional District for the seat of Rep. John Delaney, who is running for president.
Strange to just throw away all that state income.
Not Good , Tolls to so called private companies sound like some sort of capitalism when it is not( When there is no chance for competition) when it is a government tax then it just an extcercise of tyrrany
“I didn’t have the money, I didn’t do it.” Carattini said. “They took money from my state taxes and now it’s in a private collection agency. It’s like you need your car to work and you have to work to pay the fees and you don’t have enough money to pay the fees and they say they’re going to suspend your license. I’m a single mother. I need to work.”
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This is what politicians live for. A groveling serf begging to have her life spared from a system the politicians engineered thru their own laws. Politicians no doubt voted into office by this very woman and millions like her.
Maryland “Freak State” PING!
>> Strange to just throw away all that state income.
The scrutiny of the pensions the indebted single-mom was supporting.
Public unions must be outlawed.
Everyone else is paying, you hwve to pay too.
I don’t use I-200. For this reason.
I also don’t have a Sleazy Pass. Used to have one. There was a $25/month gig on your credit card. Even if you don’t use anywhere near $25 of tolls. I found this out the hard way, and, once found out, I closed out the account.
I detest, loathe, and abhor the Sleazy Pass agency.
Did they come down? What,are you kidding? This is Massachusetts,there are no "temporary" taxes here.
It's been proven by Howie Carr and others (Howie's a Boston talk host and columnist) that the tolls in this state fund the salaries and pensions of hundreds and hundreds of fat a$$ed brothers-in-law of state legislators.These salaries and pensions typically run into 6 figures.
My guess is that the same is true of toll roads in other states as well.
Nazi pass.
I still don’t have it. Not interested. Then again, I’m generally toll-averse.
I know someone who was racking up bills on their father’s car after he died.
They indicated that there was a mixup in the record of what transponder was being used for his car. His got swapped with some rental car.
I also have to wonder how many state and local gov employees manage to have themselves “removed” from the database, so they don’t incur tolls or fines.
Automated toll collection is ripe for abuse.
They’re not throwing it away. They’re just passing along the cost to folks who play by the rules while allowing the scofflaws to skate.
The alternative to automation is to pay poorly productive folks who retire at 55 and collect fat pensions and health bennies for 20 to 50 years.
abhor tolls..... take a different road
The admin fee was removed years ago. They do maintain a minimum balance of $25.00 in the account.
The state dropped the fee because folks were getting their EZ-Pass transponders from Delaware.
I live in NH and I have an EZ Pass, which I find quite convenient on the rare occasions when I have to leave the woods and travel to “civilization”.
On a recent trip to NYC, I was shocked to learn that NY now charges you MORE if your transponder was issued by a state other than NY.
Isn’t this a border tax? I thought states couldn’t do that.
I can definitely see problems from the gov bureaucracy happening with this stuff. I avoid the ICC altogether because you can’t just pay at the door with real money.
But once again, the libs are lenient on “poor” people, never mind that they are poor almost invariably because of their own irresponsibility. Libs are enablers.
Oh, and never mind that many of the scofflaws are not poor. Just non-Chalant.
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