[Nfbf-l] {Disarmed} Fw: Abuse of Parking Permits - new law effective 7/1/2012

[Sherri]

Too bad we didn't have as much success with our pedestrian bill.

Sherri
----- Original Message ----- 
From: Samme.Ripley at ocfl.net
Sent: Wednesday, March 21, 2012 7:59 AM
Subject: Abuse of Parking Permits - new law effective 7/1/2012


Crackdown welcome on disabled parking abuse
March 21, 2012

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Abuse of disabled parking permits is an annoyance for many folks. Worse, it 
unjustifiably casts suspicion on the many who have a legitimate need for 
them.

So it's worth cheering an attempt by the state to go after those who take 
wrongful advantage of disabled parking permits.

Starting July 1, a new Florida law will make it easier to report disabled 
parking permit abuse via telephone hotline, online or by mail. Just as 
important, the bill will also give enforcement specialists the power to 
confiscate a disabled parking placard from anyone who fraudulently obtains 
or uses one. There will also be random reviews of permit holders by the 
Florida Department of Motor Vehicles.

To which we can only say, Bravo!

Abuse of disabled parking permits has long been rampant in Florida. 
Additional tools to help nab the scofflaws and leave the disabled parking 
spaces for those who really need them are welcome.

All of us have seen people hang the permits from their rear-view mirror at 
the mall or the grocery store, only to see a very able-bodied person get out 
of the car and walk away. It is a source of irritation for the vast majority 
of people who obey the law.

It is more than irritating for the truly handicapped who have fewer parking 
spaces to use.

Yes, sometimes a disability isn't visibly apparent at first. But let's face 
it. There is a lot of disabled parking permit abuse taking place, too. 
Volunteers who issue citations to those who abuse disabled parking permits 
will tell you they have heard every excuse in the book.

Florida Highway Patrol officers on duty on race days at the Daytona 
International Speedway regularly catch and cite people using someone else's 
permit to grab a close parking spot, said FHP spokeswoman Kim Montes. The 
consequence of the abuse, at Daytona and elsewhere, is that many of those 
who are rightfully issued permits because of a physician-certified 
disability complain that there are too few designated parking spots. At 
least 177,000 people in Central Florida have such permits.

Despite the risk of citations, and despite the fact violators face a stiff 
penalty - using a permit belonging to someone else can be a second-degree 
misdemeanor punishable by a $1,000 fine or up to six months in jail - people 
are still abusing the placards. Illegally parking in a disabled spot can 
cost $256.

Hopefully the tools in the new law will cut down on violations. How strict 
the volunteer parking enforcers will be remains to be seen, but even the 
threat of being caught should help. The threat of embarrassment should help 
even more.

Copyright © 2012, Orlando Sentinel





Samme Ripley

Orange County Office on Disability

Citizen Resource & Outreach

407-836-6568 office/407-836-7583 fax

samme.ripley at ocfl.net



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