Democrats in the Nassau County Legislature are pushing a bill to refund drivers who paid administrative fees over red-light camera violations.
The Fair Fees Accountability Act would permanently eliminate administrative fees and establish a fund to reimburse residents who have been charged.
Violators typically saw a $100 administrative fee tacked onto their red-light camera tickets. However, a recent ruling by a state court deemed it illegal.
Now, residents like Kelly Johnson from Valley Stream are demanding their money back.
“Now I am angry,” Johnson said Monday at a news conference organized by Democrats. “My goodwill has been taken advantage of. I feel like I have been robbed.”
Legis. Seth Koslow (D-Merrick) said he wants to know where the administrative fees have been spent.
“Where did this money go?” Koslow said. “We still see potholes everywhere. We still have traffic issues. Where did this money go over the last decade, and why has it not benefited the county?”
Presiding Officer Howard Kopel (R-Lawrence) said he won’t allow the refund bill to be voted on, citing the budgetary strain that reimbursement of past fees would create.
