NYC councilor drafts bill to raise fines for the wealthy
Proposes civil violation fees be based on income
NEW YORK — A few months ago, a rumor started spreading through the leafy streets of Dyker Heights, Brooklyn, and eventually made its way to the local city council member, Justin Brannan. Brannan’s constituents, he said, complained that someone had built an illegal driveway next to their home by drilling through the concrete sidewalk.
The homeowner was telling neighbors that simply paying the fines was more affordable than a parking spot, and less of a hassle than street parking.
Brannan, who has narrowly won elections in his swing district on a message of making New York City more affordable for middle-class families, said he had the story in mind when he started drafting a bill that would require City Hall to come up with a pilot program to charge wealthy New Yorkers more than their lower-income neighbors for civil violations like building that driveway.
The sliding-scale idea, known as a day-fine program, would mean that some fines would be charged in proportion to an individual’s income on civil offenses that could include littering, double parking, idling in a car or truck, or open container violations, which currently carry fines ranging from $50 to a few hundred dollars.
It is not yet clear what the formula for the new fines would be and how much the penalties would cost, since the details of the pilot would be decided by city officials.
The bill, introduced in the City Council last week, is the latest example of how local lawmakers are trying to put even small dents in the city’s affordability crisis. That task has become even more urgent: Governor Kathy Hochul’s push to build more affordable housing in the city failed during state budget negotiations, and a city panel tentatively approved substantial rent increases for rent-stabilized apartments. And about half of New Yorkers can no longer afford basic necessities like housing, food, and transportation, according to a recent report.
“People just feel like they are being squeezed from every end, and there’s no end in sight,” said Brannan, the chair of the council’s finance committee. “If someone in the middle class gets a ticket, that’s a serious issue for them to figure out how to pay. But the guy across the street is racking up tickets and doesn’t care, because he can afford it.”
The bill, which was first reported by The New York Daily News, is not expected to come up for debate until the budget is wrapped up this summer, Brannan said.
Versions of the day-fine program have been used for decades in some European countries, along with Maricopa County, Ariz., and Bridgeport, Conn. But where other day-fine programs, including a one-year program tried on Staten Island, N.Y., in the 1980s, have largely focused on fines related to felonies or misdemeanors, Brannan’s bill would only apply to civil offenses.
If the bill passes the council, it would be up to the city’s Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings, along with other agencies chosen by Mayor Eric Adams, to decide which civil offenses would be subject to a sliding scale and how to determine how much New Yorkers should pay.