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The Miami-Dade Tax Collector's Office revoked 5,656 parking permits for individuals with disabilities after reviewing nearly 42,000 applications, according to a report by Telemundo 51.
The number of cancellations amounts to approximately 14% of the total audited.
The collector Dariel Fernández, who leads the initiative, was decisive in assessing the results: "After reviewing nearly 42,000 permits, one thing is clear: this system needed a thorough cleanup. Canceling 5,656 permits is not a mere administrative procedure. It means removing thousands of permits that should not have remained active."
The reasons behind the cancellations are varied: permits linked to deceased individuals, potentially fraudulent applications, incomplete forms or those submitted incorrectly, and other discrepancies identified during the review.
The audit was launched in December 2025 under a zero-tolerance policy and was presented as the most comprehensive review ever conducted in the county, covering all applications for permanent and temporary permits issued in the last 24 months.
The numbers have steadily increased since the beginning of the process: in March, with 27,000 applications reviewed, the cancellations barely exceeded 1,400; in April, with more than 33,000 audited, the figure surpassed 2,000; by the end of May it reached 4,707 canceled permits, and this week it has already surpassed 5,656.
The cancellation rate has also grown alarmingly: from 5.2% in March to 11.5% in May and 14% in June, suggesting that the audit is uncovering irregularities at an increasing pace.
Fernández emphasized that the central objective of the measure is to protect those who truly need these permits: «This audit aims to protect those residents, strengthen the integrity of the system, and ensure that these permits are reserved for the individuals they were intended for».
The official also warned that cases of alleged fraud may be referred to the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office for possible criminal action.
Under Florida law, providing false information to obtain a disability permit is a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail, a fine of $1,000, or both penalties.
The background of this audit reveals a system that, according to the authorities themselves, has been exploited for years.
In September 2022, the county prosecutor charged a 26-year-old woman for allegedly selling applications with forged doctor signatures for $200 each, highlighting the existence of organized fraud networks.
An observational study in Miracle Mile, Coral Gables, found that 30% of the vehicles parked in a single day displayed disability permits, a figure that authorities consider unusually high.
The audit is conducted in coordination with the County Sheriff's Office and the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office, led by Katherine Fernández Rundle.
"Residents deserve a system that is fair, accurate, and properly supervised," Fernández concluded, making it clear that the purification process is not over.
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