GOP-led Iowa House opts to regulate speed cameras rather than ban them

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While a full ban on speed cameras failed to pass the Iowa House of Representatives on Tuesday, the chamber passed a bipartisan effort to regulate them. House File 2681 passed 85-12 after it was amended.

Republican State Rep. Phil Thompson offered the amendment. He said the amendment will create statewide regulations for the use of speed cameras. Local authorities will be required to apply for a permit from the Department of Transportation in order to operate an Automated Traffic Enforcement system. The local authority is limited to one permit, but will be allowed multiple sites with that one permit.

A local authority will be restricted from issuing citations unless the vehicle is moving at least 10 miles an hour over the speed limit. A local authority with a population of less than 20,000 will not be allowed to use mobile units. Every image of a vehicle must be deleted after 30 days unless the images are relevant to an ongoing criminal investigation.

It also requires signage to be placed ahead of ATE systems and sets a statewide standard for penalties for citations. Owners are allowed an opportunity to prove they were not operating the vehicle and allow the citation to be amended. Revenue used from the citations will not be allowed to be used for anything other than transportation infrastructure or to offset costs for police and fire services.

A local authority with existing systems must submit a list of locations to the DOT by July 1, 2024. Justification for the placement of the systems must be included. The systems may continue operating until the DOT makes a determination on the permit if it was in place prior to Jan. 1 of 2024. If the local authority began using the system after Jan. 1, 2024, then it will not be issued a permit until July 1, 2026, at the earliest.

Republican State Rep. Brian Best, who managed the bill and voted against an amendment to ban speed cameras, said the legislature has to “do something.”

“Without (Thompson’s) amendment and this bill we will be doing nothing,” Best said.

Sixteen House Republicans joined the Democrats in blocking the effort to fully ban the speed cameras. Those 16 Republicans are:

Author: The Iowa Standard