So here are some of the Civil Remedial Fees I mentioned...
Current mood: tired
Category: News and Politics

Just so you know, here are some of the numerous "civil remedial fees" we Virginians, and ONLY we Virginians will have to pay, should we ever get tagged for any of the offenses, regardless of reason:

Driving on a suspended license - 1st offense.........750
3rd offense in 10 years.............................3000
aggressive driving (judgment call here)...............1050
Improper operation of a motorcycle
(another judgment call)..................................900
operate motor vehicle w/below standard tires
(whatever the hell THAT means)......................900
Not having a drivers license on you
(yeah, you better have yours)............................900
Learner's permit violation...................................900
Reckless Driving.................................................1050
DUI and related.................................................2250
Driving after drinking, under 21, regardless of BAC..2250
Various Driving Misdemeandors..............................900
Like Refusing Blood/Breath test for WHATEVER reason
Any Driving Felonies...........................................3000

And, remember, ALL of these fees are above and beyond the fines that we would get charged for these infractions... and NONE of them can be waived... EVER.

Oh, and I forgot to mention the bit about how long they will now keep track of our "bad driving points"....

11 years

no, I'm not joking.

FYI - Most insurance companies don't even keep track of that for more than 3 years...

and if we gather up 8 demerit points during those 11 years? We have to pay extra to keep the privilege of driving.

Those fees are $100 a year for as long as there are eight or more demerit points, plus $75 for each demerit beyond eight, up to a max of $700.

A speeding 0-9 mph ticket will get you 3 demerits. 10-19 gets you 4, if I am not mistaken. Other infractions generally score you 3-4 demerits, mmkay?

But don't worry - see, with a whole good year of driving, you get to add A WHOLE 1 POINT back for "good behavior". (You can, it must be stated, take a safe driver course for 5 bonus points... but you can only do that once every 5 years... or maybe they've changed it to 11 years too... I don't know for certain)

SOOOO... if you should, say, get 3 speeding tickets in those 11 years, you could end up paying an extra $175-400 PER YEAR until you get those points back to 8 or less. The max fee for demerit points is a mere $700 per year.

Of course, this only affects Virginians, so like I said, speed away, oh ye tourists!

Personally, I think the Virginia State Senate needs to be taken out back and beaten.

And before you misread me and think that I am simply complaining about not being allowed to drive "badly", I must reiterate my major complaints about this law.

The judge cannot waive a fee, even if the reasons are good (like my suspended license tale of woe from years ago)
It violates the specific amendment against "excessive fines" - since WE are THE PEOPLE and WE are obviously decrying these amounts, then certainly they must be viewed as excessive
The whole 11 years of tracking my driving record and only 8 demerit points before getting spanked?? You could get that over 3 years with, let's see, a ticket for malfunctioning equipment (like a headlight that is out), a speeding ticket and, say, a rolling stop. Over THREE years!! (if you get a ticket, you don't get that 1 big point back for good behavior, see?) Normally, most people would say that isn't really that bad of a driving record.... and God forbid you forget your driver's license in your other pants!!! (That'll be 900 bucks please, thank you)
It violates the constitutionality of equal protection under the law - this is truly my biggest issue - if we gotta pay, why shouldn't EVERYONE??