An income-based fine system for traffic and parking offences is not practical or feasible, Treasurer Andrew Barr says.
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The ACT government agreed to investigate the merits of a tiered fine system following calls from Greens MLA Caroline Le Couteur late last year.
Under the model, which is used in Finland, the size of a fine is linked to the offender's income, meaning those with large pay packets pay more for the same infringements than a low-income earner.
Speaking in the Assembly in November, Ms Le Couteur said the existing flat rate fine system disproportionately affected low-income earners.
"It's not just the immediate financial impact of a fine on someone struggling financially that is the issue," she said.
"Fines can lead to a negative cycle, with long-term consequences for a whole family."
Labor supported Ms Le Couteur's motion, which also called on the government to write to residents eligible for concessions about how to defer rates payments.
But in a statement tabled last week in the Assembly, Mr Barr said imposing an income-based fines traffic and parking infringements was not "practical or feasible".
Mr Barr said the 177,000-odd fines issued each year were handed out "automatically and without a court or other review body hearing the matter".
Income was also not be the most accurate measure of an offender's capacity to pay a fine, he said.
"There are many drivers who may not have incomes but are not necessarily financially disadvantaged - including relatively wealthy people taking time off work or working part-time for study or lifestyle reasons," he said in the statement.
Mr Barr said an alternative solution could be to give the courts more discretion when determining penalties for unpaid fines.
The government would consider the idea as part of wider reforms to the justice system, he said.
In his statement, Mr Barr noted that the government already offered payments plans, which allowed people to pay off fines in $10-per-fortnight installments.
In certain cases, individuals could also pay off some of their fine by completing community work.
ACT Council of Social Service executive director Susan Heylar said both options were flawed.
A payment program does not address the risk that payment of fines in low income households displaces spending on other essential items such as food, medication and vehicle fuel
- ACT Council of Social Service executive director Susan Heylar
"A payment program does not address the risk that payment of fines in low income households displaces spending on other essential items such as food, medication and vehicle fuel," Ms Heylar said.
"The community work order approach may not be feasible for a person with irregular work hours or caring responsibilities."
Ms Heylar said the barriers Mr Barr identified with the income-based fine model had been overcome in Finland.
She pointed to a scheme suggested in Singapore, in which traffic fines would be pegged to value of the offender's vehicle, as another alternative.
Ms Heylar supported the proposal to hand more power to ACT magistrates when hearing cases related to unpaid fines. The welfare group also "deeply appreciated" the government's ongoing support to raise the rate of Newstart.
Despite Mr Barr's statements, Ms Le Couteur said the Greens would continue to push for an income-based fine model to be adopted in the ACT.
"The Greens continue to be concerned about the impacts of fines on vulnerable people," Ms Le Couteur said.
Dan Jervis-Bardy
Dan covers federal politics from Parliament House, with a special focus on climate policy and the NDIS. He has previously reported on ACT politics and urban affairs since joining the Canberra Times in 2018.
Dan covers federal politics from Parliament House, with a special focus on climate policy and the NDIS. He has previously reported on ACT politics and urban affairs since joining the Canberra Times in 2018.
