New state policy proposed for abandoned cars

[MarkD]

"HONOLULU — A state representative has proposed a law that he says would help reduce the islands’ overwhelming number of discarded vehicles. Rep. Cedric Asuega Gates’ bill would change current language that says counties “may” dispose of abandoned vehicles. The bill would change that to say “shall,” which would increase counties’ responsibilities to dispose of abandoned vehicles."

http://www.westhawaiitoday.com/2018/02/0...-vehicles/

How benevolent. What the state ought to do is pass a law that sets a tow and disposal fee of $400 (or a reasonable cost thereabouts) on all abandoned vehicles. Everyone who registers any vehicle is informed of their obligation to properly dispose of their vehicle (if they decide to do so).

This notice is included when you get your registration. If a vehicle is abandoned, a $400 obligation is placed on the vehicle owner. No such owner shall be allowed to register or re-register any other vehicle without paying the fee.

I don't see much difference between abandoning a car on the side of a public road and leaving your bags of garbage there. But apparently I'm an extremist. (Yes we simultaneously need work on a "state sponsored junk yard where people can deliver their unwanted vehicles.")

[TomK]

In a year or two, the wording will change from "shall" to "must", and nothing will change.

[leilanidude]

Just a guess here.
I think that many of the abandoned vehicles were actually stolen and then abandoned by the thieves. If it was an older car in which the owner only had liability insurance, they may not have even bothered to report it as stolen, knowing that it was simply a waste of time. Most of these abandoned vehicles also seem to be chopped/burned, etc.

So in your idea of a $400 charge, it seems to reason that it will simply have more cars reported stolen to get the owner "off the hook" (pun intended). "It was stolen, I don't want it back after you found it burned."

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

pass a law that sets a tow and disposal fee of $400

There is already a law that states a driver must have auto insurance. I believe 1 out of 7 people on the road don't. They can't get a safety sticker without insurance.

The people without insurance or a safety check can easily skirt a $400 tow fee, as they don't bother with registration, insurance, or safety checks anyway.

Recycle Puna. Humans, although probably not you personally, have already left 400,000 pounds of trash on the moon. - YouTube's Half As Interesting

[Durian Fiend]

Registration carries a vehicle disposal fee, right? That's the correct way to approach the problem, provided these funds are actually used for this purpose. Multi hundred dollar fine for abandonment is a loser.

[kalakoa]

In a year or two, the wording will change from "shall" to "must", and nothing will change.

Taxes will go up to pay for vehicle disposal. That's a change, and we have no other choice.