Mayor Brandon Johnson urges ticket scofflaws to take advantage of three-month amnesty

Days before his runoff victory, then-mayoral candidate Brandon Johnson paid off more than $3,000 in outstanding water and sewer bills to the city that raised questions about his personal finances, and might have prevented him from taking office.

Now the mayor is offering Chicagoans an opportunity to dig their way out of the financial hole created by unpaid parking tickets and other outstanding vehicular violations.

The deal that ended the marathon budget stalemate included a ticket amnesty that began Tuesday.

The city expects to generate $16.5 million by offering “penalty amnesty” programs for vehicle violations, violations of commercial driveway permits and other violations prior to Dec. 31, 2023.

From now through June 30, penalty fees on overdue amounts will be waived.

Johnson beat the drum for the latest in a series of amnesty programs during Tuesday’s weekly City Hall news conference. He called it a plan to “economically empower the people of Chicago.”

“For too many Chicagoans, particularly those in historically disinvested communities, these individuals have been burdened with a ticketing debt system that punishes them for repeatedly falling behind on their payments,” the mayor said.

“Residents fall into a cycle of fines and fees that they cannot get out of. And that is hurting our entire city. My administration is charting a path towards relief. Today, we are proud to launch the city’s ticket debt relief program. This is a critical step to alleviating our residents’ financial burdens — especially those who rely on their vehicles for work, family care and other needs.”

For the next three months, old ticket debts can be eliminated “without added penalties or fees,” the mayor said.

If a resident's eligible vehicle ticket debt was placed in what’s known as “final determination status” before Dec. 31, 2023, that outstanding debt can now be settled by paying “only the base fine by June 30.”

“This program also includes relief on towing, storage and booting fees. Plus, those late payment penalties and collection costs are waived. Even if you are currently on a payment plan for ticket debt, you qualify for this relief program,” Johnson said. “To Chicagoans who have old ticket debt, this is your chance for a fresh start. So do not wait. Go to Chicago.gov/vdr… to find out more and pay your tickets.”

At the same time that he’s cutting ticket scofflaws some slack, Johnson is also moving to generate even more speeding tickets.

Speed cameras installed at 16 new locations to catch motorists driving too fast near schools and parks began spewing out warning notices on Tuesday. Ticketing will begin for keeps on May 15.

The sixteen new locations announced last week are the first of 50 that Johnson vowed to install to generate $11.4 million in 2025. Like the amnesty, it was part of the compromise plan to balance his narrowly approved 2025 budget after the City Council balked at raising property taxes.

The ticket amnesty is not the first time that Johnson has offered relief to debt-ridden Chicagoans.

Last year, the mayor convinced the City Council to offer nearly $2.4 million in financial relief to homeowners and business owners struggling to pay water bills tied to leaks in underground service lines repaired on or after Jan. 1, 2023.