The Live Stop program has been a success, by most accounts. Through the initiative, the city has confiscated 34,000 vehicles driven by unlicensed and uninsured motorists. The one disappointment of the program is that it hasn’t convinced the Pennsylvania Department of Insurance to force insurance companies to cut their rates for Philly drivers.
Mayor John Street announced last week that his request that the state immediately cut auto insurance premiums for city drivers by as much as 25 percent had been denied by insurance secretary Diane Koken.
Street was rejected again when he asked Traffic Court President Judge Francis E. Kelly to offer illegal drivers a 45-day amnesty period to get their paperwork in order.
"The intent of the Live Stop program should be to punish those who refuse to do the right thing," Street said, "not those individuals who want to do the right thing but need a little assistance."
But Kelly said he is bound by the law to enforce the fines and penalties imposed when a police officer cites a person for driving without a license or insurance.
Street countered that the amnesty period would allow motorists to pay their fines without being subject to additional penalties. He also suggested low-income violators be permitted to pay their fines in community service rather than in cash.
Councilman-at-Large James Kenney said while he understands the need to get drivers legal, he disagrees that process should come at the expense of Live Stop.
"In order to continue to make this an effective program, you need to be consistent in the way you enforce these ordinances," Kenney said. "If you give people the idea there is no fine or there is no penalty for it, then people won’t take it as seriously."
The councilman drafted the city’s Live Stop legislation in 1999.
He’s not surprised the Pennsylvania Department of Insurance denied the mayor’s request to cut rates. Relief is going to have to come from Harrisburg, Kenney believes, but in the meantime the city has to continue to show zero tolerance for illegal drivers.
"In the end it is going to be the legislature that has to give us the relief we need," he said. "We just have to make sure we are positioned to make a good argument for it."
Auto insurance rates are an issue in the November mayoral election. Even though the state and Judge Kelly denied Street’s requests, Street campaign spokesperson Joel Avery said the mayor believes residents appreciate his effort.
"These people believe the mayor’s heart is in the right place," he said. "It’s not often you find folks willing to fight for the little guy."
Republican mayoral challenger Sam Katz, however, is honing in on Street’s inability to fix the insurance problem.
"The current administration has done too little, too late and only proposed quick fixes to bring temporary relief," said Katz campaign spokesperson Nathan Raab.
Katz is proposing creating a city post for an insurance advocate, Raab said. The advocate’s office would be dedicated to providing city drivers with affordable insurance premiums, he said.
Street issued an executive order in May to establish the Mayor’s Office of Consumer Affairs — a broader entity that would be responsible for a range of issues, including auto insurance. Avery also points to the mayor’s campaign to tow abandoned cars from the streets and the role that Operation Safe Streets has had in reducing auto theft.
"All I can say is he’s being aggressive about it," Avery said.
Politically, Street’s amnesty request could be interpreted as an appeal to the city’s poor minority voters — a segment of the city that has traditionally given strong support to the mayor.
But Katz is campaigning hard in the black and Latino communities, knowing the minority vote was the difference in the 1999 election. Last month, his campaign started airing commercials on black and Latino radio stations.
The Street campaign is denying any threat to its political base.
"[The request for amnesty] is not a political exploit," Avery said. "It’s because these auto insurance rates are too high, and they are too high for all Philadelphians, period."
Street’s support for Live Stop has been inconsistent, at best.
He initially opposed expanding the initiative, which started as a pilot program in South Philly’s Third and Fourth police districts. At the time the mayor said the program was unfair to low-income families and could potentially lead to racial profiling.
Then after he appeared to back the plan, he withdrew his support two months later, stating that the city was not prepared to implement it effectively.
Live Stop eventually expanded throughout Philadelphia in July with the Street administration’s backing.
