The city of Springfield is owed millions of dollars in delinquent fines for property code violations, parking tickets and loud noise violations.
In some cases, the outstanding debt, which exceeds $2.6 million, has gone unpaid for years, according to records obtained by The State Journal-Register through the Freedom of Information Act.
Ward 1 Ald. Frank Edwards said people are “blowing us off.”
Edwards is pushing for an ordinance that would allow the city to turn debtors over to a collection agency. The idea is in its infancy, and Edwards said he is still working out details about when unpaid bills would be turned over to collections.
“I think it’s just ludicrous that here we are strapped for money and we’re just ignoring the sources,” he said.
The newspaper requested lists of people who owe delinquent fines and fees to the city of Springfield. Fees that are overdue for property code violations — grass and garbage — total nearly $1.8 million, according to the city. Delinquent parking fines total $706,482. Past-due loud noise fees total about $136,800.
Ward 7 Ald. Debbie Cimarossa gasped when she heard the total figures. She said she had no idea the total was in the millions of dollars.
“That’s disgusting,” she said. “We need to take an aggressive approach and collect those fines. That is a no-brainer.”
Steve Combs, president of the Enos Park Neighborhood Improvement Association, has been urging aldermen for months to find ways to collect the unpaid fines and fees.
Combs brought the issue up again during a recent policy briefing of the Citizens Club of Springfield, where Mayor Tim Davlin, Edwards and Ward 6 Ald. Mark Mahoney discussed the city’s budget.
“I understand times are tough,” Edwards said during the briefing. “There are some bills out there that people owe that if they would just make an attempt to pay … but they don’t. They just ignore us.”
The mayor told the crowd at the Hoogland Center that the city already uses the services of a collection agency in some cases, along with employing liens to recover past-due bills.
Mahoney said the city needs to do a better job at collecting it.
“I personally feel like the city should be more aggressive in going after some of those fines,” he said. …. “I think we have a responsibility to collect the fines for the people who violate the city code.”
Mahoney applauded Springfield Treasurer Jim Langfelder’s efforts in collecting some fines, particularly from parking tickets. In recent years, the city has encouraged parking ticket scofflaws to pay up by making vehicles subject to the “boot” when the owner racks up $250 in fines. The threshold was higher in recent years.
Another tool the city has used was seeking payment of old debts when someone wants a permit or license.
Typically, the treasurer’s office receives a list of people seeking permits and licenses and checks for unpaid parking tickets and property code and loud noise violations. Last week, however, Langfelder told aldermen that one unnamed city department plans to issue permits or licenses to people whether or not they owe money to the city.
“With some of those violations, this is the only hammer we have to collect outstanding debts,” said Langfelder, who urged aldermen to have all departments adhere to the policy.
“Once you start picking and choosing how you’re going to apply the process, that’s how the city or individuals get in trouble,” he said.
As the city’s rules are written, the city “may” deny an application or suspend a current license or permit for outstanding debt. Ward 5 Ald. Sam Cahnman asked if the wording could be made mandatory, but the city’s attorney urged caution in making debt payment mandatory for all situations.
Ward 2 Ald. Gail Simpson said Edwards’ collection idea sounds viable, but she wants more details.
“We need to find a way to get money from whoever owes it,” she said. “As long as there’s no loophole to get around for some people, on the surface, I’m not going to have any problem with it.”
Deana Poole can be reached at 788-1533.
Back debts
The city of Springfield is owed millions of dollars in delinquent fines and fees.
Among them:
Property code violations: $1,787,478
Parking tickets: $706,482.66
Loud noise: $136,802.73
Source: Treasurer’s Office
Read the original article from The State Journal-Register.