NYC Citizens Earn Nearly $1M Each Reporting Idling Vehicles, Prompting Reform Efforts

New York City residents are earning close to $1 million each by recording videos of idling trucks and buses through the city’s Citizen Idling Complaint Program, launched in 2019. Top earners include Ernest Welde at $895,737 and Wanfang Wu at $748,825. Citizens receive 25% of fines from DEP cases or 50% if filing directly with the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings. With fines ranging from $350 to $2,000 and 95% of complaints substantiated, submissions jumped from 49,000 in 2022 to 124,000 in 2024. Queens Councilman James Gennaro, who chairs the Environmental Committee, said “The days of the six-figure bounty hunters are over. The program has become an occupation. The program was not intended to be an occupation.” DEP Commissioner Rohit Aggarwala previously stated “we do not need to make them millionaires.” (Story URL)