NewsWhore
02-04-2011, 12:10 PM
It now costs RD$500 to obtain a certified accident report from the Metropolitan Transport Authority (AMET), ten times more than the RD$50 that it cost less than two months ago. The fee is now RD$250 for motorcycle accidents.
The increases were imposed by AMET in an administrative move, and according to their spokesman, Jose Jaquez, it will be used to cover the processing costs. The increase has led to complaints from motorists seeking the reports who feel that it is not justified, and was described as arbitrary and illegal by jurists who say that AMET does not have the legal standing to establish or collect any judgment. In order to obtain the service required, motorists also need to take the payment receipt with a photocopy and three copies of the accident report. "This is an abusive action and what they are doing to the citizens by collecting this money is a swindle because they do not have the legal standing to collect it, and yet they go ahead and do it", said penal law expert Pedro Duarte Canaan.
He pointed out that the Constitution establishes that only the National Congress has the authority to create taxes, so from what the notice says, the AMET has taken on a right it does not have. "AMET does not follow the law and violates the Constitution when it administratively charges money to issue these certifications, because it lacks the legal authority to carry out collections", said the lawyer. However, he recognizes that this is a practice that has become embedded ever since the certifications were issued by the National Police and they form part of the disorder that reigns, moreover, in other state institutions. Nevertheless, AMET told Diario Libre that the measure is based on article 128 of Law 96-04 on the National Police, which establishes that "75% of the money from collections produced by the emission of any type of certification or document that the institution issues to citizens and any private entity will be allocated for the use by the National Police....". He added that the remaining 25% would be sent to the General Directorate of Internal Taxes.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#6)
The increases were imposed by AMET in an administrative move, and according to their spokesman, Jose Jaquez, it will be used to cover the processing costs. The increase has led to complaints from motorists seeking the reports who feel that it is not justified, and was described as arbitrary and illegal by jurists who say that AMET does not have the legal standing to establish or collect any judgment. In order to obtain the service required, motorists also need to take the payment receipt with a photocopy and three copies of the accident report. "This is an abusive action and what they are doing to the citizens by collecting this money is a swindle because they do not have the legal standing to collect it, and yet they go ahead and do it", said penal law expert Pedro Duarte Canaan.
He pointed out that the Constitution establishes that only the National Congress has the authority to create taxes, so from what the notice says, the AMET has taken on a right it does not have. "AMET does not follow the law and violates the Constitution when it administratively charges money to issue these certifications, because it lacks the legal authority to carry out collections", said the lawyer. However, he recognizes that this is a practice that has become embedded ever since the certifications were issued by the National Police and they form part of the disorder that reigns, moreover, in other state institutions. Nevertheless, AMET told Diario Libre that the measure is based on article 128 of Law 96-04 on the National Police, which establishes that "75% of the money from collections produced by the emission of any type of certification or document that the institution issues to citizens and any private entity will be allocated for the use by the National Police....". He added that the remaining 25% would be sent to the General Directorate of Internal Taxes.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#6)