Virginia took one step closer to being rid of the monstrously stupid abusive driver fees today when the State Senate passed it’s version of the repeal law:
RICHMOND, Va. : The Senate finally passed its bill to repeal high fees on bad drivers Wednesday by resolving a partisan impasse over how to rebate fees already courts already imposed.
The 39-0 vote marks the first passage by the House or the Senate of a bill that not only repeals the hated surcharges assessed exclusively on Virginians but also refunds fees already collected and excuses payments still due.
“This is a clean repeal. It puts the burden on us,” said Sen. J. Chapman Petersen, D-Fairfax County.
The breakthrough came on an amendment by Sen. Kenneth W. Stolle, R-Virginia Beach, that allows people who have been assessed the fines to petition circuit courts to vacate the fees.
Once an order to pay the fees is voided, the state reimburses the petitioner for the amount already paid, and the Department of Motor Vehicles is prohibited from withholding drivers licenses for failing to pay fees not yet collected.
I think we can expect this one to get signed into law relatively quickly.
