The Arizona Republic
The Arizona Republic
From the houses of anti-speed-camera advocates to the state House of Representatives, speed-enforcement cameras in Arizona are under siege.
This session, the Legislature has produced at least 14 bills filed on the topic, with most aiming to eliminate it or make tickets less punitive.
In the state Senate, a pair of resolutions would put the question of whether and how to use photo enforcement on highways to Arizona voters.
Just in case lawmakers choose not to act on the bills in front of them, two initiatives and a Constitutional amendment have been filed with the Secretary of State’s Office.
Organizers are gathering signatures every day, they say.
“We can’t print the petitions fast enough,” said D.T. Arneson, a volunteer with camerafraud.com, which opposes photo enforcement of traffic violations. “The response is explosive.”
Others aren’t so sure. A January poll of registered voters by Public Opinion Strategies said that 61 percent of voters surveyed support the use of cameras to catch speeders on freeways that run through Arizona cities, with 67 percent supporting cameras on city streets.
The poll was sponsored by American Traffic Solutions, which holds photo-enforcement contracts in Phoenix, Mesa, Tucson, Pima County and more than 125 municipalities and government agencies in the United States and Canada.
James Tuton, the CEO of ATS, said his company had no influence on the poll’s results. He said they affirm the basic desire of most Arizonans to use cameras to supplement law enforcement.
Tuton said the system should be improved. He opposes grouping cameras closely together, for example, and says a better public-awareness campaign would improve the system’s effectiveness and public support for it.
“We have a ‘fix it, don’t kill it’ concept,” Tuton said.
Photo enforcement
under siege
A sampling of some of the proposals to eliminate or modify photo enforcement.
• House Bill 2106
What it would do: Prohibit photo enforcement on state highways.
Where it stands: Passed out of committee, but was stricken from a House consent calendar. Awaits a further vote.
• House Bill 2124
What it would do: You could not be ticketed unless you were going more than 20 mph over the posted speed limit, or faster than 35 mph in a school zone.
Where it stands: Awaits a committee hearing.
• Senate Bill 1347
What it would do: Require various signs in advance of enforcement zones, including one that says you have to be going 11 mph over the posted speed to get a ticket.
Where it stands: Awaits a committee hearing.
• Senate Bill 1364
What it would do: Make cities determine the speed of 85 percent of the vehicles on a highway with speed cameras and then set the cameras to issue tickets only to vehicles traveling at least 11 mph over that speed.
Where it stands: Awaits a committee hearing.
• Arizona Photo Enforcement Act
What it would do: Proposed Constitutional amendment would prohibit the use of photo enforcement except within school-crossing zones while school is in session.
Where it stands: Supporters attempting to gather 230,047 signatures to get it on the 2010 ballot.
• Arizona Citizens Against Photo Radar
What it would do: Proposed initiative would ban the issuance of citations from speed cameras.
Where it stands: Supporters attempting to gather 153,365 signatures to get it on the 2010 ballot.