'Tis the season — to get a deal on those old traffic tickets that are hanging over you!
If you have old tickets that are preventing you from registering your car or renewing your driver’s license, you may be eligible for a ticket amnesty program. Occasionally, counties offer amnesty programs that allow you to pay a significantly smaller amount to clear your tickets. In some cases, you may even be able to do community service hours in lieu of a cash payment. However, most traffic courts require an appearance in court or special arrangements in order to perform community service hours. In California, the current rate is a $10 credit for every service hour. Therefore, if you owe $1,000 in fines, you must perform 100 hours of work for an approved non-profit agency or organization.
Please be aware that every county and state have different qualifications and procedures, so I can really only recommend that you go to your county's website and look for “Ticket Amnesty” programs. If one is not offered at this time, keep your eyes open, since these programs can save up to 50% on those old fines.
In California, many programs run from January until June. DUIs are NOT included in any amnesty program.
Link:
http://www.solano.courts.ca.gov/GeneralInformation/TrafficAmnestyProgram.html
