Police Ticket Quotas: Are they Legal?

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By: Taranjit | Last Updated: November 16, 2020

When it comes to driving related myths, there are many that we grew up believing whether it was because our parents did or our friends, and ticket quotas is something we have always wondered about. I can’t be the only one who heard that police officers have ticket quotas and that’s why they are out more at the end of the month because they need to reach said quota.

Well, is it true? Do police officers have ticket quotas?

In some states, yes, it is illegal, but it still happens despite it being prohibited. Even though many states have banned this practice, there are still officers that implement the quota and use it for evaluating officer performance.

Take the state of Massachusetts, for example. They have deemed it unconstitutional to have ticket quotas, yet the police units do it anyways. Officers in New Jersey and Pennsylvania have also been criticized for violating the law on quotas.

There are have been numerous reports that have been leaked or whistleblowers that mentioned that ticket quotas are still in effect and can range anywhere from 1 ticket per day to 100 a month (showing that quotas still exist).

And in order to reinforce the quotas, officers are given incentives or punishments based on whether they meet the set quotas. Meet the quota and you can get rewarded with a raise or promotion. Don’t reach the set quota, then be prepared to be punished by being given the unwanted shift schedule or a bad review.

No one wants the punishments, so it might be why such quotas still exist in certain parts of the country. On a positive note, this practice is under large scrutiny and more states are starting to implement the ban on it.

Illinois banned ticket quotas in 2014.

Arizona passed a legislation in 2015, but the governor vetoed it.

California (L.A.) paid two different settlements for lawsuits alleging that performance of officers was being evaluated based on if they met the ticket quota. $2 million was paid out in 2009 and $6 million in 2013.

Final Thoughts:

It’s just crazy to hear that the number of tickets given out by an officer holds such a high weight on whether they get promoted or get a raise. This is completely unjust and not a fair way to evaluate performance. It simply encourages officers to give as many tickets as possible, no matter the situation, instead of evaluating safety on the road and giving out tickets when a driver is being reckless or unsafe.