ATLANTA – The Georgia House of Representatives passed two bills Tuesday aimed at reining in abuses in the use of speed-detection cameras in school zones.
One of the bills would ban the cameras altogether, while a second would put restrictions on the use of the cameras without prohibiting them.
House Bill 225, the legislation repealing the cameras, passed the House 129-37, seven years after the General Assembly first authorized their use.
“Operation of these cameras has not improved public safety but become a highly profitable revenue stream for private corporations and local governments,” said Rep. Dale Washburn, R-Macon, the bill’s chief sponsor.
Washburn also argued the use of speed-detection cameras in school zones is unfair because there’s no way for motorists to contest a ticket.
The second measure, House Bill 651, takes a less dramatic approach. It would limit the hours speed cameras could be operated to two hours in the morning before school starts and two hours in the afternoon after school lets out.
The cameras would have to be accompanied by flashing signs that would warn motorists when they’re driving too fast through a school zone.
Only half of the fines levied against violators could be retained by the local government, while the other half would have to go to local schools to be used for safety improvements.
“It ceases to be a revenue-driving device for local governments,” said Rep. Alan Powell, R-Hartwell, the bill’s chief sponsor.
Powell’s bill also would give motorists accused of speeding through school zones based on evidence from a camera the right to contest the ticket through the local courts.
It’s unusual for a legislative chamber to pass two bills on the same subject during the same session. Powell said that was done because the state Senate hasn’t been willing to address speed-detection cameras in the past.
“This House of Representatives is very serious about dealing with this problem,” he said. “We want to give them a second choice.”
The House passed Powell’s bill 164-8.