An Arlington government advisory panel wants the General Assembly to give Northern Virginia localities more authority to regulate those who tow vehicles that have been improperly parked on private property.
The county’s Trespass Towing Advisory Board on Jan. 3 voted 2-0 to recommend that the county government support efforts in Richmond this year that would remove current language prohibiting Arlington from imposing a permit process for towers that simultaneously are located in, and store vehicles in, the county.
Requiring towing companies to obtain permits from local governments in Northern Virginia is allowed if the companies operate in one jurisdiction but store vehicles in another. But government authorization is not required when a towing company operates and stows vehicles in the same jurisdiction.
“The question is, why is that even the case?” asked David Kennedy, the citizen representative on Arlington’s Trespass Towing Advisory Board. He said that, currently, the hands of localities are tied by “somewhat cryptic” language embedded in the Code of Virginia.
Detective James Tuomey, who represents the Arlington County Police Department on the panel, was in agreement that a change would be beneficial.
“It will allow the county and the towers and the consumer a level of protection,” Tuomey said of a permitting process.
Kennedy and Tuomey voted to request the change in state law. The board’s third member, Al Leach – who represents the towing industry – was not in attendance at the Jan. 3 meeting.
Whether proposals targeting the tow industry make it far in the 2024 legislative session remain to be seen. The towing industry tends to have one of the more effective lobbying operations in Richmond.
Should any legislation related to towing be approved during the 60-day legislative session, the Trespass Towing Advisory Committee will reassemble to consider and potentially recommend to the Arlington County Board any changes to be made to local ordinances related to towing issues.
For now, “we’ll let the experts in legislative affairs take it from here,” Kennedy said.
While the Arlington government can’t register certain tow operators, that doesn’t mean the government doesn’t regulate the industry. The last substantive changes were made in 2021; the full ordinance can be found at bit.ly/3voCd5p. The Fairfax County government’s towing ordinance can be found at bit.ly/48Fhk4.
