LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Kentucky lawmakers are once again pushing to increase penalties for illegal street racing.
State legislators are hoping they can do with House Bill 425 what they couldn't do with House Bill 465 last year and what an ordinance in Louisville already does.
HB 425 would fine illegal street racers $1,000 on the first offense and have a mandatory vehicle impoundment for at least six months. After more offenses, the fine goes to $2,000 and the car would be sold at a public auction or destroyed.
Kentucky State Representative Beverly Chester-Burton filed the bill. She said in a statement, “We can make our streets safer when people who are tempted to engage in dangerous, illegal racing on public roads know it will come at a real cost. Destroying someone’s car may sound harsh, but it is meant to prevent something far worse, the loss of life on our roads.”
Street racing has been a topic of conversation in Louisville for years. In September, Louisville Metro Police crushed a car that had been used in illegal street racing to deter people from doing it.
"This is a message to people who want to go out here and participate in this dangerous behavior that we're not going to tolerate it on the streets of Louisville," LMPD Chief Paul Humphrey said in September.
Breezy is the vice president of the No Limit Car Club. He said the ordinance in Louisville has limited what the club can do and he worries a state law would just make it worse.
"The way that they try to do it is kind of harsh because they're also not trying to meet in the middle for somewhere for us to go," Breezy said.
The legislation will now be considered at the Kentucky General Assembly's 2026 session.
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