The financial fine is considered one of the immediate deterrent penalties that the law has followed to punish those who commit traffic violations and breach the organizational traffic rules established according to Iraqi Traffic Law No. (8) for the year (2019).

This law has specified the amount of the traffic fine and determined it based on the severity or minor nature of the violation committed by the citizen, and it granted traffic authorities the authority to issue penal judgments imposing this fine.

The Authority and Accountability of Traffic Committees in Adjudicating Violations

Although the authority to impose penal judgments is usually entrusted to the judicial authority represented by judges, there is an exception that grants this authority to traffic officers according to Article (28) of the Traffic Law:

• "A traffic officer, based on his observation or surveillance of monitoring devices, has the authority of a misdemeanor judge to impose the fines stipulated in Articles (25, 26, 27) of this law for traffic violations that occur in front of him or that appear on monitoring screens, and the penalty is issued according to the judgment model attached to this law."

This authority has also been granted to traffic commissioners up to the fourth degree in the second paragraph of the same article:

• "A traffic commissioner of up to the fourth degree, based on his observation or surveillance of monitoring devices, has the authority of a misdemeanor judge to impose the fines stipulated in Articles (25/ Third) and (26) of this law for traffic violations that occur in front of him or that appear on monitoring screens, and the penalty is issued according to the judgment model attached to this law."

This authority was introduced due to the increasing surge in traffic violations resulting from the continuous rise in the number of vehicles and the impossibility of referring all these violations, which can be described as minor, to the judicial authority.

This necessitates alleviating the burden on the judiciary, which cannot urgently and decisively address these violations, given their nature, which makes them cases that should be resolved and adjudicated promptly and with urgency.

The law has also assigned the traffic committee the task of adjudicating objections in Article (30).

First: "A committee shall be formed in the Traffic Directorate called the 'Objection Adjudication Committee,' consisting of the Director of the Legal Affairs Unit in the relevant Traffic Directorate (Chairperson), an officer from Individual Security (Member), and an officer from the Auditing Division (Member)." The law granted the violating driver the right to submit an objection in the second paragraph of the same article:

• "The violating driver has the right to appeal the penalty decision imposed on him before the Objection Adjudication Committee as stated in item (First) of this article within (15) fifteen days from the date of the penalty decision.
• " The traffic committee was also given the authority to cancel or amend the decision in the third paragraph of the same article:
• "The committee has the authority to amend, cancel, or approve the appealed penalty decision, and its decision is final."

After clarifying the concept of traffic fines and the authorities granted to traffic officers and commissioners up to the fourth degree, as well as the right of the violating individual to submit an objection to the penalty imposed on him and the administrative body responsible for reviewing the objection, it is pertinent to ask here:

What are the penalties resulting from a violation by those granted the authority of a misdemeanor judge in case of abuse of this authority and exceeding their limits?

Referring to the texts of the Traffic Law, we find it devoid of any penal provisions imposed on traffic officers and commissioners for exceeding their powers and making errors in assessing the traffic violation.

Thus, should the Iraqi legislator grant authority without imposing penalties for exceeding these limits? Or grant penal powers without imposing penalties for abuse of that authority?

Moreover, we would like to draw attention to the mechanism followed in notifying the violating individual of the penalty decision against him in case of his absence.

Article (29) in the fifth paragraph provides the mechanism for notifying the penalty decision issued against the citizen: "The penalty decision shall be affixed to the vehicle's windshield in the event the driver is not present, and this is regarded as notification of the decision."

Is this mechanism achieving the intended purpose of legislating the Traffic Law and reducing violations?

Many citizens find themselves surprised by traffic fines when they visit the General Traffic Directorate, forcing them to pay without the opportunity to appeal to the traffic committee due to the expiration of the specified objection period, rendering the decision arbitrary.

In conclusion, we would like to highlight the necessity of including regulated penalties in the law for every violation committed by traffic authorities.

The increasing number of traffic violations committed by citizens poses a risk of misjudgment in assessing the appropriate penalties for these violations. It is also worth noting the need to increase traffic awareness by intensifying traffic regulations and warning signs that may reduce citizens' violations.

Additionally, the methods used to notify the violator of the issued penalty against him need to be developed, as notifying through methods such as affixing the judgment to the vehicle's windshield in the absence of the driver and publishing the ruling on the designated official website are weak and insufficient means to inform the violating individual. Notifying him of his infraction is an important tool to limit the possibility of committing the same violation again.

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