Audit: Diplomats, out-of-state residents not paying NYC parking tickets
NEW YORK (WABC) -- Millions of parking tickets are written each year in New York City, and a new audit found that many diplomats and out-of-state residents are not paying them.
New York State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli says 29,500 tickets were ignored by out-of-state drivers.
The same audit found that diplomats owe more than $587,000 since 2002. The three nations that owe the most are Italy, Nigeria and Indonesia.
The report said the city Department of Finance is not doing enough to collect the money.
"It's simply unfair that so many New Yorkers face penalties and possible license suspension if they don't pay parking tickets, while DOF does little if anything to pursue out of state drivers and diplomats' cars," said DiNapoli. "They are writing off millions in potential revenue for the city."
He said the city needs to improve its collection of fines and fees, and added that many tickets have errors, leading to their dismissal as defective.
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