Page 2186 - Week 06 - Wednesday, 9 May 2012
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The third change is that people will now be able to apply to have their traffic fines waived. As I have already said, this is in limited cases for people who have special circumstances, such as disability or homelessness, and are likely to never be able to pay the fines and cannot participate in community work or a social development program. The waiver option works hand in hand with the community work and social development programs. I again point out that in New South Wales the availability of an accessible and well-developed work and development order scheme has reduced the number of people applying for infringement debts to be written off.
Fourthly, and perhaps most importantly, this legislation will allow authorities to reinstate someone’s licence when they are engaging in one of these payment options. This can only happen if the licence was suspended because the person did not pay a fine in time. Suspending someone’s licence when they have not paid a fine in time has perhaps been the most problematic aspect of the fine payment system. It means that a person could effectively lose their licence if they cannot pay parking tickets on time or if they cannot pay the fine for bald tyres on their vehicle, offences that would never otherwise result in a lost licence. As we have seen, the impacts of this licence suspension can be devastating. People can lose access to income or lose their jobs. They might not be able to access medical treatments and they might even become homeless.
When I first started looking into this issue, I had a meeting with some employment agencies who were concerned that unemployed Canberrans who were most in need of employment services could not access them because their licences had been fine suspended. I also note that the Tuggeranong Community Council recommended a more flexible system of fine payments be implemented, and that was just recently.
When I first tabled this legislation I read out some case studies of Canberrans who had been impacted by the problems I am describing. I have received many representations since then as well. I will read out part of a recent letter which gives a picture of a common problem that occurs when someone’s licence is fine suspended:
Dear Ms Bresnan. It is great to see that you can understand the difficulties that low-income earners face when they find themselves in situations where they have regrettably incurred traffic infringements and are having difficulties paying them off, resulting in barriers to gaining work. It becomes a catch 22 situation.
My partner currently has a relatively large amount of outstanding traffic infringements which he received during a manic period (he suffers Bi-polar disorder and had a severe relapse following the death of his mother). He is now well again and has just started an apprenticeship, however things are very difficult for him as he has to arrange lifts to and from work and tech from his employers ... Once he starts receiving apprenticeship wages it will still take quite a while for him to pay these fines off. He has had to ask his new employer for lifts to work, which causes him embarrassment, shame and frustration that he is in such a position.
If he were able to obtain a permit whilst paying off his fines on a payment plan he would be in a much better position.
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