Council will allow some fine refunds (wow, a city gives back money?)

[The Straight Story]

Council will allow some fine refunds


Chillicothe City Council voted Monday to give back money collected on right-turn-on-red tickets issued by the Redflex red light and speed photo enforcement system from its implementation through Jan. 1.

Mayor Joe Sulzer had promised to return fines collected for right-on-red violations that had been issued, citing confusion among residents over the ticketing process.

Council authorized the City Auditor's office to begin issuing refund checks to the more than 500 people who received tickets for right-on-red violations through January. Council members voted unanimously to approve the refunds, with Finance Chair Cindy Henderson, R-At Large, and Napoleon Cross, D-At Large, being absent from the meeting.

The total cost will be about $45,000, Sulzer said. The city pays about 70 percent of the photo enforcement proceeds to Redflex Inc. for their service, but Sulzer said the city won't lose money on the refunds because it didn't pay Redflex yet for the right-on-red violations - meaning the city only has to return the money it collected.

Sulzer said the city had planned to include payment for the tickets in the 2009 city budget, but was not sure which miscellaneous fund the money would come from.

http://www.chillicothegazette.com/article/20090210/NEWS01/902100307