Pennsylvania Turnpike motorists racked up $155 million in unpaid tolls from April 2021 to March 2022, prompting a Lehigh Valley lawmaker to introduce legislation aimed at recouping some of the money.

State Sen. Lisa Boscola, D-Northampton County, said her bill proposes unpaid Pennsylvania Turnpike tolls be repaid by garnishing offender’s Pennsylvania Lottery winnings and state income tax returns.

“Law abiding Pennsylvanians have been paying their fair share,” Boscola said of the bill. “Yet, repeated offenders are getting away without paying. If we don’t go after them with more effective methods, more and more will try to avoid paying … then the whole system falls apart.”

Statistics on unpaid tolls were revealed in a 2022 report produced by the turnpike commission. The $155 million deficit in 2021-22 was up 49% from the same time the previous year, when losses totaled $105 million.

Earlier this month, the Pennsylvania auditor general released a performance audit report, which highlighted several mechanisms the turnpike commission can use to enforce unpaid toll collection.

The Pa. Turnpike approved a massive layoff of 500 toll collectors in June of 2020, moving the entire interstate network to a cashless system.

“The Turnpike made a mistake in going totally cashless and laying off those toll collectors,” Boscola said. “Ever since, it seems unpaid tolls have gone up by the tens of millions each year. My bill will create another tool to go after these scofflaws. We needed to come up with a creative method to maximize collections so we can reinvest those funds in turnpike improvement projects.”

Auditor General Timothy L. DeFoor’s report on the turnpike commission had three findings and 23 recommendations for improvements.

Auditors found almost a quarter of uncollected tolls were because of unpaid invoices, unidentified license plates or because PennDOT either had the wrong address or no address at all.

Boscola isn’t the only lawmaker trying to cut down on uncollected turnpike fees. Sen. Marty Flynn, the minority chairman of the transportation committee, is proposing a bill that would require anybody trying to register a vehicle in Pennsylvania to have paid all of their turnpike fees.

“That’s not fair to taxpayers. With that kind of money, the roads, the bridges, we could repair with that kind of money. It just gives us another arm to enforce the law,” Flynn said.

Flynn is also urging the turnpike commission to accept PayPal and other forms of payment to make it easier to collect fees.

“The latest Revenue Assurance Plan report posted by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission provides no indication that this problem has been solved,” Flynn said. ”The reality is that these unpaid tolls come at the expense of roadway maintenance and improvements, as well as debt service for significant outstanding obligations held by the PTC. Most importantly, paying customers continue to face significant toll increases that put pressure on their household budgets while others avoid paying without consequence.”

Though neither bill is expected to pass this year, both Boscola and Flynn said they are hopeful their legislation proposals can kick start serious discussions in 2023.