OIG Bulletin, February 2022: Combating Disability Parking Placard Abuse

Disability parking placards are an important resource for persons with disabilities, allowing them to park in designated spaces and at parking meters for free.

Unfortunately, this convenience and the incentive of free parking can lead to the misuse of placards by individuals not entitled to use them, especially in locations where parking is both limited and expensive. Not only is placard abuse detrimental to the vulnerable population it serves, but it is illegal and costly to the parking revenue of cities and towns. 

The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) has investigated the misuse of placards over the years, issuing reports in 2013 and 2016. In 2017, as a result of the OIG’s investigations and work with the Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV), Governor Baker signed into law legislation that increased fines, imposed new civil and criminal penalties and provided additional enforcement and oversight measures regarding placard abuse. See 2017 Mass. Acts. c. 137. The new law took effect on July 1, 2018. Id. Violators now face loss of disability parking privileges, fines up to $10,000, license suspension and incarceration. See M.G.L. c. 90, §§ 2, 24B.

More than three years later, however, disability placard abuse remains a problem. The OIG’s Internal Special Audit Unit (ISAU) has received nearly 300 hotline calls about placard abuse since 2018. Notably, in 2021, placard abuse calls doubled from the previous year.

Although incidents of placard abuse seem to be increasing, so is enforcement of penalties against those who violate the law. According to RMV records, the monetary fines for placard violations across the state increased more than 400% over the past 4 years. In 2020 alone, the number of reported violations more than doubled from the year before, to just over 1,700. This figure remained steady in 2021. These enforcement trends are encouraging and critical to making accessible parking available for people who truly need it.

To ensure that disability placard abuse continues to be reported and penalized, municipalities may take one or more of the following actions:

Set Up a Commission on Disability

Pursuant to M.G.L. c. 40, § 8J, a city or town may establish its own Commission on Disability (COD). A commission can perform a variety of functions, such as ensuring compliance with disability laws and regulations, coordinating accessibility projects and making recommendations about policies and services. The Massachusetts Office on Disability supports municipal CODs and provides guidance on their establishment. Cities and towns that establish a COD are authorized to allocate the funds received from disability parking violations to the commission. See M.G.L. c. 40, § 22G. Therefore, enforcing disability parking laws not only benefits placard holders by ensuring they have access to parking, but the additional funding can also support programs and services aimed at improving the quality of life for people with disabilities. For example, town CODs have used funding from disability parking violations for sidewalks repairs to improve wheelchair accessibility.

Establishing a Municipal Commission on Disability

Step 1: Adopt M.G.L. Chapter 40, § 8J through a town meeting or city council vote.

Step 2: Set up a bank account for COD. The account must be separate from other town or city bank accounts.

Step 3: Appoint members. By law, a COD must have 5-13 members, a majority of whom must be people with disabilities.

Join the Placard Abuse Task Force

Education and collaboration, along with local community outreach, are helpful tools in preventing and detecting placard abuse. In 2013, the RMV created the Placard Abuse Task Force, a multi-jurisdictional group intended to share best practices on fraud reporting procedures and discuss ways to increase placard training for partners in law enforcement and members of local CODs. The task force is currently comprised of stakeholders at the state and local level, such as the RMV, OIG, commissions and offices on disability, and local law enforcement. Stakeholders that are interested in becoming a member of the task force should contact RMV Director of Medical Affairs, Corrine Steller at [phone] or [e-mail].

Disseminate Information about Disability Placard Abuse

We encourage jurisdictions and agencies to circulate the flyer created by the Placard Abuse Task Force to increase awareness of the laws concerning disability placards. Additionally, the RMV recently updated their instructional fact sheet, entitled “Do’s and Do Not’s of Disabled Parking.” These documents contain useful information regarding the appropriate use of placards.

Contact our Office if You Suspect Placard Abuse

Anyone can call or email the confidential MassDOT Fraud Hotline to report suspected placard abuse. When reporting disability parking abuse, please provide as much of the following information as possible: the location, the day and time, the vehicle’s license plate number, a description of the person allegedly abusing disability parking and an explanation of why you believe it to be abuse.

For inquiries regarding lost or stolen placards, placard applications or returning a placard, please contact RMV Medical Affairs at [phone].

Examples of Disability Parking Abuse

• Using an expired placard
• Making a counterfeit placard
• Photocopying or altering an existing placard
• Using someone else’s placard
• Parking in a disabled parking spot when the placard cardholder is not present
• Using a deceased person’s placard

 

Date published:	February 25, 2022