Cars not registered? Tattle to Fair Share

Of all the things you would think would drive people wild, someone else’s failure to register his or her car in Nevada seems like it would fall low on the list of major irritations.

Yet I routinely receive calls complaining about this. People burn because they have paid to register their cars and resent it when others don’t.

The latest call was about a former police officer and his wife who live in Las Vegas. Both of their SUVs carry Utah license plates. This advice column is dedicated to the neighbor who is steamed about it.

Las Vegas Constable John Bonaventura’s office receives between 50 and 70 calls daily from people ratting out neighbors who have failed to register their vehicles within 30 days of moving here as the law requires.

The constable’s office has five full-time deputies designated to respond to calls about registration cheats. The scofflaw isn’t told who gave him or her up, but usually it’s a neighbor or co-worker who seethes at seeing out-of-state plates when he or she knows the individual lives in Nevada almost full time.

For each citation, the office is paid a $100 fee by the owner of the vehicle, even if the citation is dismissed. The fine for not registering can be as high as $1,000 or cut to $200 if the car is registered before the court date.

In the first three months of this year, 924 vehicles were cited for failure to register, so it’s a moneymaker.

Lou Toomin, the spokesman for the office, said people get mad when they see others not paying their fair share by registering their car. Hence, the program is called Fair Share. If this is one of your pet peeves, the number to call is 455-FAIR.

Of course, it’s possible the driver with the out-of-state plates has gone to the Department of Motor Vehicles and registered as a “seasonal resident.” Military personnel, out-of-state students and migrant workers are exempt. These are people who live here temporarily but pay income taxes or are registered to vote in another state.

Call 455-FAIR if you want to report someone. Please, I beg you, stop calling me about it.

ANOTHER OPTION ON SQUATTERS: Toomin didn’t want readers to think going to the police was the only way to remove squatters.

It takes longer and costs more, but Toomin said that if there are squatters who have taken over empty homes, the constable’s office can evict them.

That is how landlord Leon McKittrick ousted his six squatters from a rental property after police decided they were renters, not squatters. I told his story on Monday.

Although it’s recommended to call the nearest Las Vegas police area command and ask for the community-oriented policing team, the constable’s office has a way that works too, if you’re willing to pay fees and mileage of $2 to $4 a mile.

The property owner starts by filing a three-day nuisance order, followed by a five-day unlawful detainer. After that, the owner goes to Justice Court to obtain an eviction notice. With that in hand, the deputies accompany the owner to the property, with a locksmith, and evict the squatters. A more thorough explanation is detailed at the constable’s website at www.clarkcountynv.gov/depts/constable/las_vegas.

Of course, if the police do it, property owners don’t pay fees and mileage and spend the time going to court.

It is another option to deal with the squatter problem in the Las Vegas Valley.

Based on the number of calls I receive, the individual frustration of being a property owner whose home has been taken over by people who have no business being there doesn’t compare with the collective frustration of folks furious that they’re paying to register their vehicles while someone else is not.

Jane Ann Morrison’s column appears Monday, Thursday and Saturday. Email her at Jane@reviewjournal.com or call her at 702-383-0275.