Concerning the reported "$44 million in uncollected traffic violation fines dating back 10 years and $26 million in uncollected parking violations in the last six years"...

Think of the County jobs that money could have saved!

Nassau County is one of the wealthiest counties in the country, and our county population exceeds that of ten states, yet we cannot collect fines for parking or red light violations, but instead lay-off hundreds of our own people to balance the budget.

The verb "govern" seems to be inoperative in the government of Nassau County.
And this is not a recent phenomenon.

But we still have our hockey team!

A new computer system scheduled to begin operating in June 2013 will enhance ticket collections, management oversight, ticket fixing security and automate the default judgment process. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?????? JUNE 2013>>>>>>>>!!!
With millions of dollars in uncollected fines, you allow this to continue to JUNE 2013 at the earliest. Why not sell a portion of potential accounts receivables in order to quicken returns to OUR county. With so many firms starving for business, the county cannot find ONE to do the job this year, for sure. Somebody should be fired NOW!!

Why pussy-foot around? Suspend the licenses and revoke the registrations of delinquents. They either pay up, or they find vehicles towed, impounded and promptly sold at auction. Cha-ching!

Based on the information that has been provided:

To avoid lawsuits and excessive judgments the county will 100 percent collect the debt owed, and rightfully so, but will need to have a summons amnesty program wherein which all fines will be collected but late fees etc will be waived.

This way, since they were negligent in the processing of collecting such fines, or even knowing if they sent out any reminders or late notices etc an amnesty program will work.

They will need to have the amnesty program to save themselves aggravation and will be collecting the original fines that were imposed....

It is a win - win situation for the county and the person that owes the fine.

all of you are forgetting one things:
these things require thought and action - two things govt agencies are incapable of.

Maybe the county could hire a software/systems analyst who can find an answer and get rid of the people who dont't know the difference between a bit and a bite.
The future traffic offenders are reading this blog and saying to themselves, why should I pay up when the system cannot get past offenders to do so.
Every day this shameful lack of control goes on, more and more the taxpayer is getting screwed.
There is more attention to the football story where someone might get $50., rather than this story where people in the county are loosing MILLIONS!!! Wake up taxpayers!!

Based on the information that has been provided:

To avoid lawsuits and excessive judgments the county will 100 percent collect the debt owed, and rightfully so, but will need to have a summons amnesty program wherein which all fines will be collected but late fees etc will be waived.

This way, since they were negligent in the processing of collecting such fines, or even knowing if they sent out any reminders or late notices etc an amnesty program will work.

They will need to have the amnesty program to save themselves aggravation and will be collecting the original fines that were imposed....

It is a win - win situation for the county and the person that owes the fine.

rabble rabble more friends and family rabble

Why is this money uncollected?

I had to re-read this article, at first i thought I was reading about Politrix in the City of Long Beach, but the article is about Nassau County. The word "Ineptitude" is quite interchangeable in this instance.

Good question. Note that the amounts outstanding were brought to light by a county audit, and not by the Traffic and Parking Violations Agency (TPVA) who owns the problem. To his credit. the audit was requested by the incoming new head of the TPVA.

To that agency's lasting shame, however, is the stark fact that this nonfeasance, this failure of TPVA to perform their expected and lawful duties, has persisted for 10 years. That fact enabled and perpetuated parking scofflaws.

But this is not the entire story. There are two other chapters.

1. Many of the unpaid tickets have doubtlessly originated, as they have traditionally, at Nassau Community College, having been racked-up by irresponsible students who did not respect the parking rules or the fines associated with their own behavior. The tickets go to the parents, but that is the end of that. After 2 years, the students have moved-on, and the parents are comfortable the tickets will not be pursued.

2. There is silent strike by the masses against cooperating with errant red light cameras by their not paying fines which they feel were unfairly levied, without due process.

Maybe the county should hire Luca Brasi to handle collections!

So we are all paying millions for the free treament of drug addicts. Why is the County so generous with our tax money? Isnt drug addiction a result of criminal behavior? If I get sick or injured, I dont see the County paying for my hospitalization or treatment. And these dope fiends get free treatment for their lack of self control and are not required to make restitution back to the County if they ever straighten out and hold down a job?
What a racket these fiends have and many drop out of rehab or wind up going back nunerous times since drugs are their only answer to their sorry lives or the need to fit in with their buddies.

Ive got an idea what to do with all these doped up zombies....
Instead of the State or the County wasting our tax dollars tryng to make human beings out of them, how about using this desperate manpower to collect the unpaid traffic fines from all those scofflaws? Can you imagine how effective that would be for a dope crazed kid to show up at your place of emoliyment or at your home late at night demanding that you pay up or risk the alternative?

Fred. It's too late.
"It's a Sicilian message. It means that Luca Brasi swims with the fishes".

Chris Wendt-
the city of LA,Dallas and Miami have all ended their red-light camera programs. other cities are considering doing the same. most said that the cost of collecting the fines exceeded the cost the running the program (personnel,equipment)

all those 107,841 unpaid red light camera tickets have a single message:

"we're fed up and we refuse to pay up":.

there are plenty of other ways for nassau county to make $$.

To Chris Wendt:
I just want to correct what you have said..
Noted with interest. New York City, however, has not ended their program. Drivers are adjusting their driving habits, in NYC..
Correct and rightfully so. That is what it is supposed to do.
Taking an attitude of being "fed up" and using that as an excuse not to pay-up is NOT understandable, yet ultimately indefensible if collection is pursued.
Ahhh now it makes sense...

Chris wendt-

i didn't say that I AM fed up-but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see how many are.

"drivers are adjusting their driving habits".
yup-by speeding up to beat the camera and increasing rear-end collisions.i know two people who were sideswiped trying to get out the way.

today's news day had an article about how many have gotten red-light tickets simply due to getting out of the way of emergency vehicles.

others i know were caught in rush hour traffic and couldn't clear the intersection(s) in time because the stupid camera assumes that you ran the light.

in NYC and Nassau county i still have my good old fashioned hagstrom maps. thanks to friends/family in nypd/ncpd i know the exact location of every red-light camera.

e.g. if i want to go my from home to the new stop and shop in Oceanside (the old camp de baum property)- rather than take the direct route past 4 red light cameras, i use side streets and avoid them all. the time difference is at most 5 minutes.

paul- the county DOES NOT collect 100% of the fines. they aren't even processed locally- some firm in phoenix does. it wouldn't surprise me that for every $65 ticket, Nassau probably nets $35-$40.

the biggest irony of all is that phoenix discontinued its red light camera program. but neighboring scottsdale didn't.

To Merrick7....
I realize the State will foot the bill for Nassau County's drug treatment program.
So, instead of the funds coming out of my left pocket, they will come out of my right.

And I still say drug addicts get preferential treatment over citizens who need gall bladder surgery. We have to either have a costly private insurance policy or pay cash. Addicts get their self inflicted maladies treated for free by us taxpayers. Put them all to work repairing our roads and boardwalk and cleaning our public toilets, to reimburse us for their free rides.

jason-
to correct all these issues/problems,etc you need 2 things:
thought and action.
when you find a govt agency anywhere capable of these,please let us know.

perhaps the county should have a job program for recovering addicts. I am not sure at what salary level they would be afforded and how large their pensions might be in comparison to other county and state employees.

With the tremendous salaries,pensions and benefits of our legislature,police and educators, there's not any money left.
In fact they are laying off 30k workers in droves while keeping the 300k school superintendents. Jobs whose pensions equal their reg pay for police and many other gov and muni jobs, so how could they possibly care for the addicted,students, elderly and entry level personel?

You all voted for it now you all complain?

Look around......... if you aren't in one of the afformentioned sacred cow ,patronage or graft jobs, you are either homeless or hungry???

Look who's buying the homes in the area???

Greece is here, our own style of revolt is coming, starting with Zucotti park!

Organizers are already planning these protests all over the country this spring.

david rosenthal-
if/when you get a red light camera ticket look at the envelope it comes in:
Nassau County dept of such and such (probably finance)
PO BOX 123
Phoenix,AZ

how much did lobbyist X make on this deal?

There is no excuse to have not collected on the millions of dollars in traffic tickets. None. This country is too liberal for our own good. This is how I see it: Here's the deal - you get a ticket you have the opportunity to fight it or just pay it. You have one month from the date of issuance to fight/have dismissed or pay. Period. You don't do either then monthly interest fees are applied. After six months of non-compliance registration will be suspended and your license as well. This will be reported to your insurance company. Done. Sure, the plan isn't perfect, neither are any of us, but it's a definite move in the right (and tough) direction. Now as to all the illegals, and other unlicensed individuals, well, we'll have to work on that one, but one detraction would be that when you are caught - any which way - you serve one year of probation or some other punishment - my point here is that we've let too much slide in the pursuit of freedom - society has become the troublesome child and we have no one to blame.

One more point - and I so agree with whomever said it - driving is not a right - it is a privilege - if you abuse that privilege, you lose it. For good.

Helen-
once a drivers license is suspended-along with the insurance-most people don't bother to get it back they just keep driving.

they say there are as many as 800,000-900,000 in this state driving unlicensed and uninsured- even if you found every last one where do you plan on jailing them?

i agree that driving is a privilege not a right. if i lost my license for whatever reason i would not get behind the wheel- that's wrong.

the Nassau county deficit is between 100-300 million dollars. the 80 million owed would have helped-but as i said earlier that to implement change, there has to be thought,action-and some coordination- something govt agencies are incapable of doing for the most part.

sometimes i wonder if we are all shoveling against the tide.

Take a look around at what these scofflaws could do if allowed by the courts.
Highways, grifitti removal, trash, muni vehicle washings etc etc.
Noone in this county has the spheres to fight for it.

@icarumba - suggestions were offered - @Jason - GREAT idea - all those that owe and refuse to pay for whatever (excuse) reason - would be assigned community service. Perfect - keep them out of jail yet sentenced. And, if the idiots who keep driving without license/insurance are caught - then implement wage garnishing along with community service. Why are we so afraid to implement change for the better of our county? What is wrong with follow through and punishment? I'm so tired of the liberal pansy a@@ way of doing things.

helen- i didnt mean to pooh-pooh your suggestions. they are all very good but getting them implemented is a whole other story.
but what most folks dont realize that community service IS A CONVICTION- so maybe thats a start

The time is come to let the State take over all inappropriate actions by the County. The County has proven time and time again no matter what they try to control or "administer" the outcome is the same. The County has a failing success rate in all areas they touch. Let's get Governor Cuomo's office more involved.
We taxpayers need relief from the laxness that has infected our communities. Ineptness in all departments- the Police Department, District Attorney's office, Finance Office, Drug Control Office, and the Detox Center.
We need the help now.

Truer words have never been spoken
Governor.Cuomo@ny.gov We certainly need due diligence here as the squeaky wheels get the grease!

Thanks David!

Too many bleeding heart liberals, look at what they are putting Arpaio through.
The scammers are clever using real SS numbers of real people then paying them off.
As with everythng else true accountability and penalties for those who are involved.
Employers and the Home Depot pick ups need strict attention.
We need our constitution enforced not sympathy. It may be too little too late, however we can't just ignore or give up as Holder seems to want?

As far as the children, why should they be allowed to return?
They should go on the entry list as everyone else.

We get all the scuzz, while the honorable,educated and law abiding foreigners who want to enter get harshly scrutinized and have to leave as their visas expires.

They gotta change the wording on the Statue of Liberty to "well take all your needy and uneducated (non taxpayers) and turn away those (taxpayers)who will strengthen us"
This will be the true meaning today!

Just another example of how a lack of enforcement wastes more of our tax dollars.

We've gotten ourselves in such a mess in this country. Hopefully some change will come with Cuomo, and I hope he can remain strong while governor. As for this county? Pfft. I don't know...I agree the time has come to change immigration....and welfare, and and and....

Yes, penalties should be enforced, but instead of incarceration, hit people where it hurts, the wallet...and community service.

Pull back on privileges and remind people what this country stands (stood?) for and how it was built.

A refreshing analogy, nice reminiscing.

That is reality - we need change - how is that dreamland? I never said it would be fixed overnight, nor do I have to answers, what I did offer were suggestions, and I agree NC stinks. It's gotten far worse in so many aspects in the past 15 years.
What are we going to do? Sell? Good luck with that one. So, we can either sit on our hands and whine OR we can voice our opinions like this and perhaps in some small way create change. Who knows?

As for Queens and Brooklyn - not all that bad - just like NC there are good and bad neighborhoods - I was born/raised there - moved here for my elbow space and property - you know, real green grass property - not a combination back yard/drive way....

Helen
I agree with you that I would love to have faith in my Representatives in living up to their titles, but the realist in me see's the signs. We are heading in that direction no matter what. My point is if I'm paying for prime rib why am I getting chop meat ? I grew up in the city as well and I moved here thinking my dollars would get me more value. I was obviously wrong. I'm paying more and getting far less. So like you and everyone else I'm stuck.

Jason be happy with the Boca Burger it's probably better for you in the long run. Talking about accountability, do you know who audits the school district ??? Take a guess......The School District does, it audits itself. So do you all feel comfy that they are finding ways to save you and I money, are they identifying waste.......No Way they are. And still our POB HS drops in ratings.
The rise in crime in our area is being fought as a political battle. Mangano says the Police budget needs chopping up. The Police say there is not enough of Police Officers. And are either one spending more time fighting crime or just using it to sling arrows at each other.
Cuomo made a great speech the other day, too bad his priorities lie with the development of upstate communities. Not a bad idea, since we will all probably move there to get away from the crime, taxes and overall NC Ripoff.

Simba,Helen and Jason:
interesting posts.
Ronald Reagan's famous question still applies,
"Are you better off than you were four years ago"?

for nassau county the answer is a resounding NO.
we in the TOH have got to face the reality- that we have become an extension of brooklyn/queens without the subway and the most mediocre bus system that any county over 1 million people can possibly have.
We are paying Maserati taxes and getting KIA services in return.
The salaries,pensions and school costs are strangling us.
All of the current "representatives" at the village,town and county level- especially kate murray and ed mangano have done nothing but hurt us all financially and politically with every chance they get. the vast majority sit back and say/do nothing.

Cuomo has really surprised me. He has faced the reality and has responded accordingly, though im not sure i agree with his new schools/student policies.

NC will never rejoin Queens due to political and legal issues.
What may make more sense- but this is decades away if at all- is to take the three towns,Hempstead,North Hempstead and Oyster Bay- and turn each of them into counties.

The old ways of doing things have to end. We have to "not only think out of the box" but must realize that conventional wisdom no longer works.

Simba-
look at what China has done-built huge,planned,modern cities. Problem is they are uninhabited at this time.

At first I thought that Cuomo's idea of redeveloping upstate was absurd. Then I gave it a second look and concluded that a lot of it makes sense.Its extremely rare that a politician -Cuomo was born in Queens and now lives in westchester- sees that we do have a state beyond NYC,LI,Westchester and the capital region.

Look at the region between Albany and Lake George- its doing well. More folks from downstate are moving up there despite the harsh winters.

Maybe there is life is the rest of the state. Hopefully,If he does the right thing perhaps Cuomo will point the way for some of us.

another idea-
besides turning the towns into counties-
how about the following:

either merge the villages- for example theoretically lynbrook, east rockaway and rockville centre can be merged into one entity called EASTLYNROCK.

or "de-incorporate" the incorporated villages and merge them into the unincorporated areas.

does anyone else have any other ideas?

Merging separately incorporated villages, or "de-incorporating" any of them is completely out of the realm of political possibility.

Dissolving Nassau County and making two new counties, Hempstead and North Hempstead (with Oyster Bay being dissolved, split and subsumed into each new County) would be the best of all ideas, however unlikely to ever see the light of day on any formal agenda.

@Jason....I agree that the time has come to review the pensions and payrolls of unions. However; that's all that is going to happen. Change is far off in the distance. Now, the SCHOOLS need to be looked at first. I'd love to audit my own books. I can make them really pretty.....and not find any waste, can't you? The redundancy of positions in the school system is the first to go. Second is the obscurity of the budget itself. No shell games anymore. Politicians should all be hung out to dry - all tossed out and start fresh (I know, not in the realm of reality). Term limits shorter and pay based on work performance, much like they are planning for the teachers of NYC - most of all we must hold our end of the bargain and become more aware of what's going on in govt and vote. Now, there's a privilege we don't take advantage of too much.

We must institute a broad internet schooling concept. The technology is there and is already being implemented in many areas of the country and world.
Once we show we can keep classroom sizes down as well as continue the quality education, (or should I say the education process, as quality is stretching it considerably), we will then have the leverage necessary for common sense, needed bargaining practices. ;)
Then again that would be the right thing to do?????////

Jason, what do you mean by "broad Internet schooling concept" and how do you envision that concept working?

Simple Chris,
An expanded internet program. It's inevitable to be the future schooling methodology. It's already utilized in degree programs such a University of Phoenix.
Volunteers can be recruited, enough to balance the class sizes to optimum levels as teachers must be laid off due to budgetary concerns.
Sooner or later teachers would pressure their union heads to open their lucrative contracts as the writing on the wall become more and more apparent.
I have spoken to many teachers in my business which give me close contact.
They have already expressed concern.
Gov. Coumo certainly has this in his back pocket as the unions intend to fight his budgetary cost cutting strategy which is directed at the education system.
This is the platform many future legislators will run on as those who refuse to wake up and smell the coffee get voted out in the nex't few elections.
First one on my list is Comptroller Di Napoli!
He must have some buddies who "influence him"?

His opposition to Coumos budget plan is enough!