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A row of cars get parking tickets in downtown Portland on Monday, August 4, 2015.

(Elliot Njus/The Oregonian)

Portland wants to give frequent parking offenders the boot.

The city transportation bureau policy has been to tow cars with sufficient unpaid parking tickets to make the city's "scofflaw list." Transportation Commissioner Steve Novick is seeking authority to immobilize the cars with parking boots instead.

The policy, transportation officials said, would give parking scofflaws the chance to pay up before adding the cost of towing and storing their vehicle, which the city said can add hundreds of dollars of costs.

"We can avoid unnecessary penalties, and I think the towing fee is an unnecessary penalty," Novick said at Wednesday's City Council meeting. He added that booting a car is a more humane penalty because it allows the driver to retrieve belongings inside the vehicles.

The car would be booted for up to 36 hours, during which the driver would be required to contact the court about their fines before the boot would be released. The city wouldn't boot vehicles on Friday, when the court would be closed for most of the 36-hour window.

Workers would also leave a warning stuck on the driver-side window. There would be no additional charge for placing or removing the boot.

The city is owed about $7.5 million in parking ticket fines. There are currently 4,764 vehicles that are eligible for booting.

Vehicles are eligible for towing when it's accrued at least six citations in which the fines have doubled or which add up to at least $500. The city tows five cars a day,

It does, though, have to obtain a warrant from the Multnomah County Circuit Court first.

Under the current system, parking officers who come across a vehicle that has a warrant can call in a tow order.

Philadelphia saw the rate at which drivers paid parking tickets more than double after instituting booting, said David Benson, Portland's parking services group manager.

The council will vote on the policy next week, and a majority appeared to support the policy. It would cost $3,500 to buy five boots.

-- Elliot Njus

enjus@oregonian.com

503-294-5034

@enjus