SB 385

This bill allows law enforcement agencies in a first class city (presently only

Milwaukee) to use an automated speed enforcement system (ASES) to identify speed

limit violations and allows the leadership of a first class city to enact an ordinance

that permits the use of a traffic control photographic system (TCPS) on highways

under the jurisdiction of the city to identify traffic signal violations.

Under current law, law enforcement officers may not use any radar device

combined with photographic identification of a vehicle to determine compliance with

motor vehicle speed limits. Under this bill, local law enforcement agencies in a first

class city may use an ASES to determine compliance with speed limits. With

exceptions, the vehicle owner is subject to a forfeiture for a speed limit violation

detected by an ASES. However, no traffic citation may be issued for a speed limit

violation for which the ASES indicated a speed of less than 20 miles per hour above

the speed limit alleged to be violated. The owner is subject to the same forfeiture that

would be applicable to the vehicle operator for the violation. The bill also imposes

a number of administrative requirements on a municipality that uses an ASES to

determine compliance with speed limits. The authorization of the use of ASES to

determine compliance with speed limits expires five years after this bill takes effect.

This bill also authorizes the leadership of a first class city to enact an ordinance

that permits the use of a TCPS on highways under the jurisdiction of the city to detect

motor vehicles that fail to properly stop at red traffic signals at intersections. A TCPS

is an electronic system that automatically produces photographs of motor vehicles

traveling through an intersection. With exceptions, the vehicle owner may be subject

to a forfeiture for a traffic signal violation detected by a TCPS of not more than the

amount provided for a traffic signal violation under current law, currently between

$40 to $100. The authorization of the use of a TCPS to detect traffic signal violations

expires five years after this bill takes effect.

Forfeitures collected under either of these authorizations must be appropriated

for use by the agency providing police service in the city that collected the forfeiture.