Parking

How to Pay Your Parking Ticket

If you were issued parking citation/ticket in Santa Maria you have the option to pay online, or by mail.  

Pay Online: using the secure web payment service at www.CitationProcessingCenter.com 

Inquiries: Call the toll-free payment center at 1-800-989-2058

Pay by Mail: Use a check or money order, payable to the "City of Santa Maria." Include the original citation and your payment in the pre-addressed envelope you received at the time of citation. If needed you may use your own envelope addressed to: City of Santa Maria, Citation Processing Center, P.O. Box 10479, Newport Beach, CA 92658-0479.

Checking the Status of a Paid Parking Citation

To confirm your citation was paid, you may check the status of your parking citation payment in two ways:

By Internet: go to www.CitationProcessingCenter.com and search for your citation – you will see the payment status from the search results screen.

By Phone: Call 1-800-989-2058 and choose the "Pay Citation" option – your payment will be indicated by the automated system.

Please have your citation number or license plate number ready so that your payment can be properly researched.

Appeal a Parking Citation/Ticket

Parking citations/tickets are not criminal offenses. They are civil penalties that are the joint liabilities of both the owner and operator of the vehicle. Once a citation is issued, it is up to the driver or owner to respond to the facts presented on the citation. If you disagree with a parking ticket you received and would like to appeal it, you have 21 days from the date the ticket was issued. If you fail to request the Administrative Hearing within the prescribed time you will lose the opportunity to further contest the parking ticket.

There are three (3) levels of appeal/review that may be involved in contesting a parking ticket issued in the City of Santa Maria. The three levels are prescribed by the California Vehicle Code with the intention of providing citizens with an opportunity to contest parking tickets that were issued to their vehicles.

Three Levels of Appeal/Review

Step 1 - Administrative Review

Step 2 - Administrative Hearing

Step 3 - Appeal through the Superior Court

You may dispute your parking ticket in two ways

By Internet: Go to www.CitationProcessingCenter.com and search for your citation; once you’ve found your citation, click the button to contest the citation.

By Mail: Include the citation and your correspondence in an envelope addressed to: City of Santa Maria, Citation Processing Center, P.O. Box 10479, Newport Beach, CA 92658-0479.

In your review request, you should explain the circumstances surrounding the issuance of the citation and why it should be dismissed, offering as much detail as possible.

When your review request is received, the matter will be put on hold so that the fine amount will not increase.

The dispute and citation will be reviewed and determine whether or not the citation should be dismissed.

You will then be informed by mail as to the outcome of the review request.

Additional Tips

Pay your citation(s) on time.

Check the back of the citation to see when payment is due.

Include the citation number(s) in the memo line of your check(s).

Do not pay multiple citations with one check; include separate checks for multiple citations.