If You Deduct Cost of a Stamp, the Toll Road Owes You Money

Commuters who violate the law face a wide range of fines. A carpool lane violation on the freeway can run $271. One passenger who broke Metro Rail’s no-eating law by popping candy in his mouth on the Blue Line trolley was assessed $104.

Then there’s the case of a young motorist who recently drove through an automated booth on a tollway in Rancho Santa Margarita without paying the 25-cent charge for his short trip. An automatic camera caught his license plate number.

A few days later, the miscreant received a bill in the mail. It was for the amount he owed: 25 cents (yup, a quarter--less than the cost of the stamp on the envelope).

With Orange County tollways yet to gain popularity, officials are going relatively easy on scofflaws, billing them just for the amount they owe.

Of course, if the violator doesn’t pay within 15 days, a $10 administrative fee is added. If no payment has been received after 30 days, a $76 fine is assessed.

But this driver promptly sent in his check for 25 cents. The toll road folks returned it to him a few days later. Not for insufficient funds. No, he had forgotten to record the violation number on the check. So he had to mail it back a second time.

Four 33-cent stamps used to clear a 25-cent fine.

At least the Post Office benefits.

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THERE SHE IS: As a promotional stunt, 20th Century Fox sent members of the media rubber sandals bearing stickers with the name of the studio’s new movie, “Where the Heart Is.”

Funny thing, though. If you peel off the sticker, as one nosy Times reporter did, you see a logo for the Miss USA pageant, held earlier this year (see photo). Talk about a cheap stunt!

Incidentally, the heroine of “Where the Heart Is”--hardly a Miss USA type--is a homeless teenager who hangs out in a Wal-Mart.

The rights to the Miss USA contest, which was broadcast on CBS, are owned by Donald Trump. You conjure up a scene at a cocktail party in which Trump sidles over to Fox boss Rupert Murdoch and says, “Hey, I got a couple thousand Miss USA sandals I can let you have cheap.”

Maybe Fox figured the recycled gear was all the media deserved.

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GREAT MOMENTS IN SURFING: In a letter to San Clemente-based Longboard magazine, a Chatsworth reader recalled seeing eccentric surfer Miki Dora filming a promotion for a new surfboard: Dora “picked up the board, looked it over, held it in one hand, feeling the weight, then, without hesitation, took a big bite out of the rail [edge]. Spitting the chunk on the sand, he mumbled something about the taste and walked away.”

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Steve Harvey can be reached at (800) LATIMES, Ext. 77083, by fax at (213) 237-4712, by mail at Metro, L.A. Times, Times Mirror Square, L.A. 90053 and by e-mail at steve.harvey@latimes.com