By Wesley Harris
Significant restrictions in a new state law have all but shut down the speed camera industry in Louisiana.
State Senator Stewart Cathey, Jr., who represents much of Lincoln Parish, authored a bill to curtail the use of speed cameras and mailed citations, a practice many citizens see as a revenue source for small towns rather than a safety initiative.
“I am proud to report that Governor Jeff Landry has signed Senate Bill 302 placing significant restrictions on the speed camera industry that has been plaguing our rural communities,” Cathey announced recently. “We were able to place limitations that will all but eliminate these vultures from our communities.”
Cathey’s bill passed the House 92-0 and the Senate 37-0 in the last state legislative session.
One component of the new law requires cameras to be operated by trained, POST-certified law enforcement officers.
Some municipalities have contracted with companies to staff the radars and cameras with civilians. The company then mails out a “citation” to the vehicle owner demanding payment of a fine. The practice of using civilians is now prohibited.
No Lincoln Parish law enforcement agencies are using speed or traffic light cameras but some police departments in Claiborne, Jackson, and other area parishes have participated in such initiatives in the past.
Those municipalities received heaps of criticism for adopting the practice as a means of revenue generation that has little impact on public safety. Some law enforcement professionals note traditional traffic enforcement with officers stopping violators has the indirect benefit of locating wanted fugitives, stolen cars, and drug shipments.
Under the new law, speed cameras cannot be set up within ½ mile of a speed limit change of ten miles an hour or greater. That provision does not apply to school zones.
The location where speed or red light cameras are set up must have 4-foot by 4-foot bright yellow signs reading, “photo enforcement devices at use.”
Vehicles using speed cameras must be marked as law enforcement vehicles; if the officer is outside the vehicle, a reflective vest must be worn.
The new law provisions on administering a camera enforcement program are so onerous that few jurisdictions are likely to use them. An adjudication process must be followed that places greater burdens on the municipalities operating such programs.
The new law prohibits the reporting of unpaid citations to credit bureaus. Motorists who receive a mailed citation can sign the back and mail it in to void it and waive the fine if they were not driving the vehicle.
Any cameras in school zones can only operate during school hours and only after a cooperative endeavor with the local school district where revenues are shared between the district and the municipality.
