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VERIFY: Not every state punishes its drivers for out of state tickets

In order for a state to punish its drivers for an out-of-state infraction, they have to be part of a national driver compact.

WASHINGTON — By now you probably heard about the loophole where drivers from Maryland and Virginia don’t have to pay penalties from speed and red-light cameras in D.C. It is because the three areas haven’t come to a reciprocity deal.

But as they try to hash out the details, it got some of our viewers wondering if there are any other states that don’t have to pay? The answer is complicated: Yes.

QUESTION:

Does each individual state and/or D.C. have full information on individual drivers?

OUR SOURCES:

ANSWER:

   

This is true.

Yes, all states have access to every driver’s information. But, it does not mean that every state can punish across state lines.

WHAT WE FOUND:

Every state has access to every registered driver’s information through the National Driver Register system.

This follows with the question: Can one state use that information to ask another to punish a driver who hasn’t paid a traffic camera ticket?

Well, that depends, the state would have to participate in either of two driver national compacts:

The Driver License Compact or Non-Resident Violator Compact.

According to our expert Robert Saunooke, if a state participates in the Driver License Compact, It has to share speed camera ticket information with other states.

Five states don’t participate in the Driver License Compact. That's Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, Tennessee and Wisconsin.

If they participate in the Non-Resident Violator Compact, the states must suspend the license of anyone who fails to pay any moving violation in another state.

Six states do not participate in the Non-Resident Violator Compact. That includes Alaska, California, Michigan, Montana Oregon, and Wisconsin. Virginia, while still part of both compacts, no longer suspends the licenses of its drivers for out-of-state camera violations.

This means while every state has access to every driver’s information, not every state takes action for its drivers’ out-of-state infractions.

It’s important to know that all of the states in our nearby area are a part of at least one of the two compacts.

For example, if you’re a Maryland driver and you got a ticket in Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, or D.C., then didn’t pay it. Maryland may punish you if the other state asks them to do so.

The same goes for all the other states with the exception of Virginia which will not suspend its drivers for out-of-state infractions.

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