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Committee hears bill to extend E‑ZPass notice window from 31 to 61 days
Summary
Senate committee discussed Senate Bill 88, which would extend the statutory notice period for E‑ZPass toll violations from 31 days to 61 days and allow an administrative fee of up to $25; no formal vote on the bill was taken.
Senator Stephanie Hanson, chair of the committee, opened the April 9, 2025, hybrid meeting to consider Senate Bill 88, a proposal to change the statutory notice timeline and administrative‑fee language for E‑ZPass toll violations.
The bill would lengthen the current statutory 31‑day notice window to 61 days so the Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT) and E‑ZPass vendors have more time to notify motorists that they owe a toll before assessing a $50 penalty. Hanson said the change is intended to give people “some breathing room” to pay the underlying toll before a penalty is imposed. She also said the bill makes the administrative fee “up to $25” rather than a fixed $25.
The measure addresses how the $50 penalty is composed under current practice: a $25 administrative fee, a $10 volunteer ambulance fund fee and a $15 fund to combat violent crime fee, according to Hanson’s summary. Hanson framed the bill as giving DelDOT and its vendor more time to notify motorists after a missed toll so motorists can pay the dollar toll rather than immediately incurring larger penalties.
Shontay Hastings, secretary of the Delaware Department of Transportation, joined virtually and told the committee the fiscal effect is uncertain. “Could there potentially be revenue loss? Yes,” Hastings said, adding that the department also expects that reducing the immediacy of the penalty may encourage more motorists to pay the underlying tolls: “At the end of the day, we actually just need you to pay the dollar toll.”
Committee discussion also touched on DelDOT’s long‑standing operational practice of issuing an invoice and then later sending a violation notice; committee members asked whether the bill would delay a second set of penalties that DelDOT has been applying in practice roughly 42 days after a missed toll. Hastings said the 42‑day practice is not in code and described DelDOT’s intent to include all applicable charges in the violation mailing to avoid extra vendor costs for a third mailing.
There was no formal committee vote on Senate Bill 88 during the meeting. Several senators asked to be added as sponsors; Senator Spiroz Mestavinos, Senator Russ Huxtable and Senator Tizzy Lockman were among those who sought or were added as co‑sponsors during the session, according to committee remarks.
Public comment was not offered; DelDOT staff Amy Anthony attended to support the secretary but did not speak. The committee approved two sets of meeting minutes by voice vote earlier in the session and then adjourned.
The measure will return to the committee for further consideration at a later date if the sponsor schedules it for a formal vote or markup.
