Where Money From Your Traffic Fines Go

Here in California, getting a traffic ticket is as common as sunshine. It seems as if the state has a traffic ticket for everything. All of these fines generate an incredible amount of revenue. So everyone in California wants to beat that traffic ticket. Have you ever wondered where all of the revenue from traffic fines goes too? If so, then this post is for you.

The Base Fine on Traffic Tickets

The first issue that determines where the revenue goes is based on where that ticket was issued. This is called the base fine. If a traffic ticket was issue by a municipal police officer, the subsequent base fine will go to that municipality (city). If a traffic ticket was issued by county law enforcement, the base fine will go to that issuing county. In regards to the California Highway Patrol, the base fine will go to the location (city or county) where the motorist was stopped by the highway patrol officer and given a ticket at.

The Additional Penalty Assessments

Once a location has been determined, it is up to that county or city to decide where the revenue from the base fine will go. Different jurisdictions use that revenue from the base fine for many different things. However, that is only the base fine.

What makes California traffic fines incredibly expensive is the addition of other fines. These are called additional penalty fees and they are always added to the base fine. Although base fines have been relatively stable for the past twenty years, penalty fees continue to increase every year, increasing a tickets that’s say 150 dollars to 450 dollars (or more).

The California legislature sets up penalty fees. These penalty fees are so numerous because each one goes to fund something different. For instance, one penalty fee goes to emergency medical air operations, another to a DNA identification fund and a third as a general state surcharge. It seems that when the state government has a need to fund a project, a penalty fee is created.

Many courts use penalty fees to fund court operations, such as night court or construction and maintenance of the courthouse. Years ago, there was only one penalty fee added to the base fee, now they are more numerous and growing. At the same time, many people plead guilty and simply pay the fine, rather than go to traffic court, where they may miss work and still end up having to pay that expensive fine.

California Needs Revenue From Traffic Fines

There is no evidence that these ever increasing traffic tickets in California are making California roadways safer. However, without the revenue from these expensive traffic tickets, every segment of government would be financially impacted. One estimate, back in 2006, place the revenue from traffic tickets at around 500 million dollars a year. Therefore, traffic tickets in California are simply not going to get cheaper any time soon.

Got a recent traffic ticket? If you need help in beating a traffic ticket in California, contact us today.