Florida Senate committee votes to outlaw red-light cameras

TALLAHASSEE -- A Senate committee in the Florida Legislature approved a bill Thursday along partisan lines to outlaw the use of red-light cameras.

State Sen. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, has sponsored legislation for the past few years in an attempt to outlaw or limit use of red-light cameras, citing data showing camera use actually makes intersections more dangerous and increases the incidence of crashes. All his previous measures on red-light cameras have failed.

The Transportation Committee was the bill's first stop in the Senate, where it was approved 4-3. The House version has also been approved by one committee.

"Red-light cameras are not being used to increase safety," Brandes said. "They are essentially a back-door tax increase."

Brandes cited a Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles report that looked at crashes in an intersection before and after a red-light camera was installed.

After the cameras were installed crashes at the intersections studied increased 14.7 percent, rear-end crashes went up 10.2 percent, inca

pacitating injuries increased 29.3 percent and crashes involving nonmotorists jumped 16.8 percent.

Crashes at Manatee County intersections with red-light cameras increased 9 percent from 100 to 109, rear-end crashes went up 11.4 percent from 44 to 49 and incapacitating injuries increased 60 percent from 10 to 16.

Fatalities remained the same with one before and after.

Bradenton information was not included in the FHSMV report.

The study notes between 2011 and 2014 there was about a 50 percent increase in accidents statewide, which the study says can possibly be blamed on increased driving time in Florida, up 4.7 percent during that period. The other possibility is increasingly accurate reporting information.

Melissa Wandall, who championed the state law standardizing red-light cameras after her husband, Mark, was killed when hit by a red-light runner, said legislators are using the cameras as political fodder rather than paying close attention to the issue.

"These intersections had a much lower increase in crashes than the state as a whole," Wandall said. "These absolutely are a deterrent."

Noting it took her husband's death to prompt the Mark Wandall Traffic Safety Act, she said every day there are crashes, injuries or fatalities caused by inattentive drivers. Red-light cameras serve as an extra reminder. Her husband would have turned 43 on Thursday.

State Sen. Oscar Braynon II, D-Miami Gardens, voted against the bill, saying it's a stretch to say red-light cameras cause more accidents. He noted Florida's population keeps increasing, and cellphone use while driving has become more common.

The fine for a red-light camera ticket is $158, according to the bill analysis. Local government nets $75 and $83 goes to the state.

Between June 2014 and July 2015, the state made $55.1 million off red-light camera tickets.

State Sen. Geraldine F. Thompson, D-Orlando, said they shouldn't be telling local governments what to do in the interest of public safety.

"We don't have enough money to put a police officer at an intersection 24/7," Thompson said. "But we can have a camera there 24/7."

Brandes said he believes Thompson's view is part of the problem. By having cameras assessing fines, he said, people lose the critical, human part of law enforcement. He said an officer can assess situation factors, such as if a mother runs a light to get her children to school on time and is driving a car that suggests she's struggling financially.

"I believe he'd think: 'I'm a human, and this is a person who can't afford $158,'" Brandes said. "It's the cold, calculated nature of this that I find objectionable."

The committee also approved an amendment to make the bill effective July 1, 2019, so contracts with red-light camera operators would have time to expire.

Manatee County operates eight red-light cameras and the city of Bradenton operates seven, according to the FHSMV.

Manatee County assessed 9,970 red-light camera violations between July 2014 and June 2015, and 7,630 were paid at the time of the report, resulting in $572,250 in county revenue.

The city of Bradenton assessed 7,375 violations and 5,388 were paid resulting in $404,100 for the city.

Manatee County and Bradenton representatives said the cameras also serve the important function of identifying suspects in vehicle thefts and fault in traffic crashes.

A few city and county representatives from around the state voiced opposition to the bill at the hearing, and Brandes said it's because local municipalities didn't want to see red-light camera revenue dry up.

"They don't get up here and talk about safety because the data doesn't support that," Brandes said.

Kate Irby, Herald online/political reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7055. You can follow her on Twitter @KateIrby

This story was originally published February 4, 2016 at 11:31 PM with the headline "Florida Senate committee votes to outlaw red-light cameras ."