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Income adjusted traffic violation fines

Trausti said:
No. Taxes are private information. And in my state, there isn't even an income tax. There's no way for the cop to know my income.
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Sure there is.
Trausti said:
It doesn't punish you for being poor. You're punished for what you did. Don't excuse bad behavior because someone, by your definition, is "poor."
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You're kidding, right? Again, my question is how is it a punishment to someone who barely finds it inconvenient?
 
acbytesla said:
No, that's what you're doing. You're assuming that wealth equals success. As if means alone is meritorious.
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You're assuming it doesn't. And I'm sure we can each identify individuals that match either scenario. But a person should not be punished for that either way.
 
jeremyp said:
Don't you have due process in the USA?

In the UK, you can opt to accept the fixed penalty (which most people do) or you can go to court. This is because you always have the right to contest the charge.
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Sure, you can contest it. But it's not that big of a deal. You can set a hearing and hope the cop doesn't show up. But if he does, you're stuck.
 
Trausti said:
You're assuming it doesn't. And I'm sure we can each identify individuals that match either scenario. But a person should not be punished for that either way.
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No, not at all. I assume nothing. I didn't call them losers or successful. You're the one that describes those with money as successful.
 
acbytesla said:
I haven't. I think penalties should be income adjusted. Make it an actual deterrent instead of a pin prick.
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How is a point system not actually a deterrent? You're just laser focused on punishing people you don't like.
 
jeremyp said:
The point i that exist and the government has them. Your concern was that you didn't want the government to have access to your income details, well, in most cases it already does. So your point is invalid.



I agree that the threat of losing your licence is more of a deterrent for most people than the fine. Here in the UK, the fine for a speeding offence (when I last got caught for one) was £90 I think. This is about the same in this country as one tank of petrol i.e. for anybody who can afford to run a car, it is quite trivial. OTOH you also get three points which is a quarter of the way to losing your licence.
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There is now an income measure used in fines: https://speedingfinecalculator.co.uk/how-speeding-fines-are-calculated-uk/

Personally I still don't think it results in proportionate punishment, I think the multipliers need to be larger so that that the final fine hurts someone wealthy as much as it does someone poor. And it is laughable that the court uses a figure of £120 per week for those in receipt of benefits, for a single person Universal Credit is around £98 per week.
 
acbytesla said:
No, not at all. I assume nothing. I didn't call them losers or successful. You're the one that describes those with money as successful.
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I don't care what you call them. I'm just against using malicious envy to set public policy.
 
I’m intrigued that traffic infringements end up in US courts. The only time police are required to be contacted in my state (and I imagine all of Australia) are if someone is injured. Fines and penalties are otherwise dealt with civilly.
 
jeremyp said:
Don't you have due process in the USA?

In the UK, you can opt to accept the fixed penalty (which most people do) or you can go to court. This is because you always have the right to contest the charge.
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It's the same here. I've received only two tickets in 50 years of driving. And only one was what is described as a moving violation. I challenged both and had the latter ticket dismissed. But it makes little sense to challenge some tickets. For example, if you receive a ticket from a camera at a stoplight in Washington State and you pay the ticket, it doesn't affect your insurance. But if you challenge it in court and lose it does.

I drive paranoid. I do not want a ticket or to be in an accident.
 
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