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UPDATE February 10,2022: Bill died in committee.

California Assembly Bill 550 would allow cities throughout the state to install and operate speed cameras.

Sponsored by Assembly member David Chiu, D-San Francisco, the bill calls for the California Department of Transportation to come up with guidelines for local governments to setup speed camera pilot programs. Fines would be capped at $125. No points would be added to an offender’s license. Additional details about the programs would be determined by a state working group.

The bill has already passed the Assembly Transportation Committee and is under consideration in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

The NMA is opposed to automated traffic enforcement, including speed cameras, for a number of reasons including:

• Photo radar can generate false readings
• This type of automated enforcement emphasizes ticket volume
• There is no certifiable witness to the alleged violation
• The driver of the vehicle is not positively identified by the camera which means, by default, the owner of the vehicle receives the ticket whether or not he/she was the driver at the time of the alleged violation
• Speed cameras have not been shown to improve traffic safety