Transportation
The Case for $100,000 Speeding Tickets
If you can afford a ritzy car, should you pay more for breaking the law?
Earlier this year, a motorcyclist in Oregon made local headlines when the state slapped him with a $1,103 fine for his 130 mph joy ride. If Portland City Commissioner Steve Novick had his way, though, things could have been much worse for the Seattle-based Ducati owner.
Last month, in the middle of a city council work session on a proposed $35 tax to support the arts, Novick bemoaned the existence of flat-rate taxes and fees that disproportionately hurt the poor. His support for progressive taxation extended even to his work at the Portland Transportation Bureau. According to the The Oregonian's Erik Luken, Novick said: