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California should just become their own communist country. There is no aspect of peoples lives that the govt isn't regulating. Its actually getting kind of insane.
California is the same size as Germany and Germany stands on its own 2 feet, so why not!!! But It would be impossible to achieve, as we well know, to split off from the U.S. We applauded the break-up of the Soviet Union, and yet, it can't be achieved here.
It's a pyrrhic victory for many of the poor just to stay off the streets, and not slide into homelessness, so I heartily approve of this bill.
I've always thought it would make more sense to scale monetary fines with income. Decide how many hours of work each offense is worth, and fine accordingly.
So, parking fines are set at (spitballing) two hours pay.
The billionaire hedge fund dude pays $1,000,000* for each violation, while the minimum wage folks pay $30.00.
That's an interesting idea. Another way to look at that idea is fees and fines are supposed to be punitive. If punishment starts being on a kind of sliding scale it could actually become manageable and convenient for people. Then where's the deterrent to illegal behavior?
(Just playing devil's advocate here. I think the bill is an ok solution. It seems rational, practical, and compassionate all at the same time.)
Your problem in SF isn't towing. It's theft. Try parking a car on any public street in the city and walk away for two hours. Almost guaranteed, a rip-off gang will smash-and-grab. Then when you try to report the crime, you are shunted to a recorded line that takes your information, strictly for insurance purposes. There are some 30,000 car burglaries a year in SF, or about 80/day. I visited the city with my family for one evening and our rental got broken into while we were eating. The police have given up. The residents have given up. Law and order appear to be lower on the priority list than "helping" the poor.
Sometimes you don't notice that you're parking in a violation area, or you have driven around and around and can't find a legal place to park so you just park in violation so you can make it to your restaurant job shift so you won't be fired.
Sometimes, you don't have registration money, and your car can't pass inspection anyway if you're in poverty and so you just try to fly under the radar.
The more the upper/middle upper classes refuses to understand and support the struggles of the under class, the more the underclass will suffer injustices like having their cars stolen from them.
YES, boxus, I get it. We who have money can certainly afford to not park illegally, and can afford to pay parking tickets, we are often oblivious to the struggles of the less wealthy.
Thank God for this attempt to keep their cars from being stolen by private business towing yards.
It's called Personal Responsibility.
Everybody has an excuse for parking illegally... and it is NEVER their own fault when they get a ticket. Such BS. If you can't be responsible with a car, walk. Stop crying on my shoulder. I've heard enough. You'll get no sympathy from me.
Poor people have no more right to park illegally than do the rest of us.
We had a notorious towing company where I used to live. The cops were always drumming up business for them because they got a good slice of the $$$. A lot of cars got towed that were parked legally.
One time my old truck broke down on the shoulder, about 10 feet from a parking lot entrance. One of the wires burned off of the starter. As I was under the truck a cop pulled up and demanded I get moving. I told him my problem and asked him to help me push it the 10 feet into the parking lot. He said he wouldn't and was going back to his car to call the tow truck. I said to myself "bullsh**" and quickly pulled down some slack on the wire, cut off the burned section and half-assed it back on the starter. I climbed back in the truck and it fired right up. The cop looked p*ssed in his car as I drove past him.
I remember reading where that towing company had to shut down for a couple days because someone stole their tow truck, they eventually went out of business.
Another towing company, downtown, was always making the news. There was a guy who put up a sign in a parking lot selling parking spaces to baseball fans for $25. Turns out, he didn't own the parking lot and the cars were being towed for parking illegally. I think he might have been working with the towing company.
Then there was the towing scandal with the chief of police.
Chicago is running a similar scam, if you're late with your already expensive parking ticket, I believe it triples in cost. Then they can tow your car, which is also very expensive, and they impound it and there is a daily fee for that. Many of the poor lose their vehicles this way, and if you've ever tried to park in Chicago you know how difficult that can be.
That's an interesting idea. Another way to look at that idea is fees and fines are supposed to be punitive. If punishment starts being on a kind of sliding scale it could actually become manageable and convenient for people. Then where's the deterrent to illegal behavior?
(Just playing devil's advocate here. I think the bill is an ok solution. It seems rational, practical, and compassionate all at the same time.)
It would still be punitive but not crippling so the person then can’t pay their rent or bills or buy groceries because they had to pay their fine. Or can’t pay the fine because they have to pay all those, then they suffer further punishment because they can’t afford a set amount.
Fines are already “convenient” for people who can afford them with your logic.
Not surprisingly there's a loud out cry in this thread to the timeworn effect of "coddling the poor/ rewarding bad behavior"
and " big, bad government over regulation".
Did y'all miss this part? “Poverty-related tows do not work for anyone. Low income people lose, tow yards lose, local governments lose,” said Chiu.
The current system is a money loser for everyone, so a change in approach certainly is worth a try.
Some would probably prefer just shooting these motorists and burning their cars in place, but that's not currently on the table.
So, how do you distinguish between "poverty-related tows" and regular tows? Is it the quality of the car? If it's a junky old Ford Escort, don't tow it, but if it's a $120K Tesla, do tow it?
How about the concept that we treat all people equally under the law, regardless of income, race, or creed? If you break a law, you pay the price, PERIOD.
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