Several new proposals have hit the Las Vegas courts this summer, one of which has been approved and will take effect between June 10th and July 10th, 2018 and will give you new options to pay your Las Vegas traffic tickets.
A New Way to Give Back While Paying Las Vegas Traffic Tickets
If you are issued a parking ticket, The Las Vegas City Council will allow you to donate school supplies instead of paying for the ticket. The City of Las Vegas Parking Enforcement will collect the donations and give the supplies to a nonprofit organization, Project 150, that focuses on helping the homeless as well as at-risk high students. The supplies will be distributed to students in time for the 2018-2019 school year to begin.
If given a ticket, you may choose to resolve the ticket by providing new school supplies of equal or greater value to the ticket fine. You must bring the parking ticket, supplies, and receipt for supplies.
The following public safety and handicap-related tickets are EXCLUED from the program:
- Any handicap-related violation
- Red curb
- 18” from the curb
- Blocking alley
- No parking areas
- Fire lane/hydrant
- Traffic hazard
- No stopping/no standing
- Sidewalk
- Double parking
- Too close to intersection, crosswalk or stop/yield sign
- Bike lane
- Blocking or facing traffic
As for acceptable donations, the following will be accepted:
- Heavy-duty backpacks
- 1′-2′ binders
- 8GB or higher flash drive
- College-ruled spiral notebooks
- Black ink pens
- Highlighters
- Mechanical or #2 pencils
- Erasers
- Pocket folders
- Scientific calculators
- Binder pouches
- Dividers
- College-ruled packs of paper
- Combination locks
The Option to Pay Las Vegas Traffic Tickets on The Spot
Another proposal in the mix — but one that is not yet approved — touches upon the “unfair” fact that traffic violations are currently criminal violations, rather than civil infractions.
One suggestion to lessen the severity of receiving a traffic ticket was that motorists should be able to pay their fines on the spot with a credit card after they are pulled over.
Assemblyman Steve Yeager, chairman of the committee considering traffic ticket reform, laid out a list of changes to the current laws that would help to modernize and standardize the process of receiving a ticket.
What Changes Were Included?
Yeager pointed out that there are different fees in different counties and that the 2019 Legislature might want to change that. As well, he emphasized that the number of fees and fines would be increased rather than decreased if the change was made from a criminal to a civil system.
To note: serious infractions such as DUI charges, reckless driving, vehicular manslaughter, and driving without a license or insurance would remain criminal charges.
Other Ideas Presented
In addition to those suggestions, other ideas presented at the meeting included whether the maximum jail time for minor offenses could be lowered from the current 6 months. As well, up for discussion is the ability to allow traffic ticket receivers to pay a fine via e-mail or telephone rather than by showing up in court.
Mason Simons, Justice of the Peace and Municipal Judge in Elko, Nevada argued that the current system should stay the same. He believes that converting the criminal system to a civil procedure would hamper law enforcement in searching a vehicle if there’s suspicion of a more serious violation.
However, other states that have already converted over to the new system advocate that the civil route gives officers more time go after serious offenders rather than spending their time in court to contest minor traffic offenses.
The committee meets late this summer to submit their bills to the 2019 Legislature.