The District is more prolific at ticketing and booting vehicles than other comparable U.S. jurisdictions, according to D.C. budget documents.
The 167 parking officers with the Department of Public Works each ticketed 9,000 vehicles in fiscal 2005, 2,500 more per officer than those employed in Arlington, Baltimore or Seattle, the agency reported in Mayor Anthony Williams’ proposed fiscal 2007 spending plan. The city’s three boot crews immobilized 15 vehicles per day last year, more than teams in Arlington, Baltimore, Philadelphia or San Francisco.
The comparison cities were chosen by Public Works because their size, geographic location and parking program components were similar to the District.
D.C. tackles parking scofflaws very aggressively because it has no other recourse, the department says. There is no reciprocity agreement with Maryland or Virginia; therefore, commuters’ and tourists’ tickets “never need to be paid, because those states do not require D.C. parking tickets to be satisfied before renewing the driver’s license or the vehicle’s registration,” the report asserts.
It continues: “Booting out-of-state scofflaw vehicles ensures that the tickets are paid.”
Council Member Carol Schwartz, chair of the Committee on Public Works and the Environment, said she’s heard from residents and businesses that the city isn’t “even close to being on the right track.” In the case of commuters, she said, too many are parking in residential permit areas for many more hours than they’re allowed.
Schwartz said DPW is “probably trying to show themselves as being aggressive,” but many people would beg to differ.
“I want people to come here, shop here and eat here,” she said. “I want them to think of us as friendly, but I don’t want them to get free parking when they’re not entitled to it.”
Ward 1 Council Member Jim Graham said the council continues to seek the right enforcement balance. Parking, he said, is the most divisive issue in his ward, and has no easy answers.
Clamping down
» Parking officers wrote roughly 1.47 million tickets in fiscal 2005.
» Parking tickets generated about $55 million for the District.
» Booting and towing fees generated another $1 million.
» Anthony Williams has proposed spending $19.2 million on parking enforcement in fiscal 2007.
