Atlanta

New law would require booters to be licensed by the state

By Jim Strickland, WSB-TV
By Jim Strickland, WSB-TV

ATLANTA — Car booting would be state-sanctioned and state-licensed under a bill filed by Rep. Alan Powell, the chairman of the House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee.

House Bill 774 would force a booter to get a $1,000 state license, would cap fees at $85 dollars and give the state full control over regulation.

Booters say it would standardize the industry.

"Quite frankly, if you own a piece of property, you should be able to boot a car that's parked there illegally," lobbyist John Haliburton told Channel 2’s consumer investigator Jim Strickland at a committee hearing on the bill Monday.

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"What this legislation does is authorize booting everywhere," argued attorney Matt Wetherington.

Wetherington is suing several local companies for failing to strictly follow Atlanta's own booting law.

He's not sure the state can keep up with enforcement

"I don't think there's any reason to believe that when they have less oversight, less regress, that they're going to start doing the right thing," he said of the booters.

Committee member Scott Holcomb told Strickland that the signs weren't clear when he got booted. He's leaning toward a different type of law.

"I think the case for banning was pretty compelling.  Right now, if I had to decide, I would be more in that camp," he said.

Powell has assigned a sub-committee to study the issue. He said he doesn't want his law to interfere with local governments which have already banned booting.

Cox Media Group

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