A Senate committee on Monday rejected a bill along party lines that would have prevented cities like Lafayette that use electronic traffic enforcement from resorting to hiring collection agencies to recoup unpaid fines.
A Senate committee on Monday rejected a bill along party lines that would have prevented cities like Lafayette that use electronic traffic enforcement from resorting to hiring collection agencies to recoup unpaid fines, according to The Times-Picayune.
The Senate Committee on Transportation, Highways and Public Works voted 4-2 against Sen. J.P. Morrell's Senate Bill 102. Morrell, a New Orleans Democrat, argues using collection agencies hurts drivers' credit scores. Two Democrats voted in favor of the bill; the four Republicans on the committee voted against it. The bill, however, remains in committee where it can be heard again.
Morrell's bill met stiff resistance from the outset: Lobbyists representing the cities of Baton Rouge and New Orleans, along with representatives of the state Police Jury Association and the Louisiana Municipal Association spoke against the bill.
Read more here.