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Speed and Red Light Camera Laws

Automated enforcement uses technology to to capture images of vehicles committing traffic violations. Most automated enforcement laws apply to red light running or speeding, but some also address rail crossings, toll violations or other offenses.

21 states and the District of Columbia* have laws explicitly permitting at least one type of automated enforcement. In some cases, local ordinances are required. Others require an officer to be present.
10 states* have laws prohibiting all or certain types of automated enforcement.
25 states neither permit nor prohibit automated enforcement. However, jurisdictions in many of these states do have automated enforcement programs in place.
23 states and the District of Colubmia have red light camera programs currently operating. 12 states and the District of Columbia have speed camera programs currently operating.

Automated enforcement locations vary significantly: some states allow enforcement statewide, while others permit it only in communities meeting a certain population threshold or other criteria. The Insurance Institute of Highway Safety maintains a list of all communities operating automated enforcement at www.iihs.org/research/topics/auto_enforce_list.html.

Penalties vary as well. In most states, the registered owner of the vehicle is issued the citation. Often, the penalties for automated enforcement are different than traditional enforcement penalties for the same violations. Some states treat automated enforcement just like parking tickets: the owner is liable, points are not assessed and there is no record of the citation.

*Some states permit certain types of auotmated enforcement but prohibit others. These states are counted in both categories.

State	State Law	Violations	Location	Citation Issued To / Liability	Image / Privacy	Penalties (Traditional Penalties)	Defenses
Ala.	No law	Red light	Montgomery
Alaska	No law
Ariz.	Prohibited at state level (local govt's may use for speed)
Ark.	Prohibited except at school zones or rail crossings; officer must be present and citation issued at time of offense
Calif.	Permitted	Red light; rail crossing	Various	Registered owner / Driver	Tag and driver / May be used only for purposes of the Act; available only to registered owner or driver	$100; 1 point (same)	Driver not owner – owner must identify driver
Colo.	Permitted	Any violation (except speed)	Various	Registered owner / Driver	Tag and driver	$75 for red light ($111; 4 points and $11 surcharge)	Driver not owner
Colo.	Permitted	Speed	Various construction zones, school zones, residential areas or adjacent to municipal park	Registered owner / Driver	Tag and driver	$40 max.; $80 in school zones; no points or record; warning only for 1st offense if w/in 10 mph of limit ($39; 4 points and surcharge)	Driver not owner
Conn.	No law
Del.	Permitted	Red light	Various	Registered owner	2 or more images of vehicle	$75 plus fees; not a record or conviction offense; not to be used by insurers ($75-$230)	Owners of commercial vehicles must identify driver or be held responsible
D.C.	Permitted	Moving infractions	Various	Registered owner	Not addressed	$75 max.; 2 points (same)	Driver not owner; yielding to emergency vehicle; funeral procession or responding to officer direction
Fla.	Permitted	Red light	Various	Registered owner	Tag and traffic control device	$158; no points ($125; 3 points)
Ga.	Permitted	Red light	Various	Registered owner	License tag, intersection and light / Images and info. not part of public record; must not show identity of any person in vehicle	$70 max.; not a conviction or record offense; no points; not a moving violation; not to be used by insurers ($1,000 max.; 3 points)	Owner not driver
Hawaii	No law
Idaho	No law
Ill.	Permitted	Speed	Various construction zones or IL Toll Authority roads	Registered owner / Driver	Tag and driver / Avail. only to alleged driver, gov't agencies for adjudicating offense or statistical or other gov't. purpose; admissable in any proceeding resulting from citation	$250 or 25 hrs. community service ($250 mandatory; 20 points)	Workers not present in zone at time of citation
		Red light	Various; local ordinance required	Registered owner	2 or more images of vehicle and tag / Avail. only to alleged driver, gov't agencies for adjudicating offense or statistical or other gov't. purpose; admissable in any proceeding resulting from citation	$100; not a moving violation or record offense ($500 max.; 20 points)	Cccurred as part of funeral procession; driver yielding to emergency vehicle; vehicle or tags stolen
		Rail crossing	Various; cooperation w/ IL DOT and IL Commerce Commis- sion; local ordinance required; pilot program authorized	Registered owner / Driver (owner if driver not identified by owner)	Vehicle, driver and tag / Avail. only to the alleged driver; state may use images as part of a safety study	$250 or 25 hrs. community service ($250 max. 1st offense; $500 2nd & subsequent offenses, w/ discretionary 6 month suspension	Owner not driver – owner must identify driver
		Speed	Other	Use by local authorities is prohibited. The state may use speed cameras, but only when a law enforcement officer is present and witnesses the event.
Ind.	No law
Iowa	No law	Red light; speed	Various
Kan.	No law
Ky.	No law
La.	No state law, except to restrict reporting convictions on driving record	Red light; speed	Various			Not reported on driving record
Maine	No law
Md.	Permitted	Red light	Various	Registered owner	2 or more images of rear of vehicle and tag in any medium / Avail. only to owner and in limited circumstances to law enforcement	$100 max. civil penalty; no points or record; not a moving violation; may not be used by insurers ($500 max.; 2 points)	Driver in funeral procession or yielding to emergency vehicle; vehicle or tags stolen; owner not driver – owner must identify driver
Md.	Permitted	Speed	Various school zones and residential districts in Montgomery Co.	Registered owner		$40 max.; no points ($500 max. in residential district; $1,000 in school zone; points depend on speed)	Vehicle or tag stolen; owner not driver – must identify driver; other issues the court finds pertinent
Mass.	No law	Speed	Blackstone
Mich.	No law
Minn.	No law
Miss.	Prohibited
Mo.	No law	Red light	Various
Mont.	Red light cameras prohibited
Neb.	No law
Nev.	Prohibited unless hand-held by an officer or installed in vehicle or law enforcement agenc					$1,000 max.; 4 points.
N.H.	Prohibited unless specific statutory authorization	Toll enforcement
N.J.	Prohibited unless local jurisdictions w/ ordinance; must apply apply to Transportation Commissioner (pilot program) - 22 towns in the pilot program	Red light		Registered owner / Registered owner and driver are jointly liable	2 or more images of vehicle and tag	At least $85 and higher, plus court costs; no points	Not addressed
N.M.	No law, except to limit penalties and require posted warning sign and beacon	Red light; speed	Various			$75 max. civil penalty; no points or criminal sanctions; municipality may retain operating costs; balance transferred to programs for court construction, drug courts and DWI prevention
N.Y.	Permitted	Red light	Cities of at least 1,000,000; up to 100 sites per city (New York City)	Owner	2 or more images of rear of vehicle and tag in any medium / May not include images of the driver, passengers or contents of the vehicle	$50; not a record or conviction offense; may not be used by insurers ($100 max.; 3 points)	Driver convicted; vehicle stolen; vehicle leased or rented by another; owner may seek indemnifi- cation by driver
N.C.	Permitted	Red light	Various	Owner	Photo, video, electronic image	$75 max. civil penalty; no points ($100 max.; 3 points)	Owner not driver – owner must identify driver; vehicle stolen
N.D.	No law
Ohio	No law	Red light; speed	Various
Okla.	No law
Ore.	Permitted	Red light	Various	Registered owner or driver, if identifiable / Registered owner	Photos; digital images	$355 max. (same)	Owner not driver – owner must identify driver
Ore.	Permitted	Speed	Limited		Photos; digital images	$355 max. (same)	Not addressed
Pa.	Permitted	Red light	Philadelphia	Registered owner	Photos / Images and information not part of public record	$100 max.; not on operating record ($25 max.; 3 points)	Owner not driver; vehicle stolen; did not own vehicle at time of violation
R.I.	Permitted	Red light	Providence	Registered owner	2 or more images of vehicle and tag in any medium / Not part of public record; must be kept private and destroyed w/in 90 days if no violation and w/in one year of disposition for those w/ violation	$75 max.; not a criminal or record offense; not a moving violation; not to be used by insurers until final adjudication ($75 max.)
R.I.	Permitted	School bus safety violations		Registered owner		$500; not a criminal or record offense; not a moving violation; not to be used by insurers ($500)
S.C.	No law
S.D.	No law	Red light	Sioux Falls
Tenn.	Permitted	Red light; speed	Various	Registered owner	Not addressed	Not reportable; no points ($50 max.; points)	Not addressed
Texas	Prohibited	Speed
Texas	Permitted; requires local ordinance	Red light	Various	Registered owner	2 or more photos or digital images of tag	$75 max.; not a criminal or record offense ($200 max.)	Not addressed
Utah	Permitted only in school zones or where limit is 30 mph or less; officer must be present, signs posted, and citation accompanied by photo of violation; requires local ordinance	Speed		Not addressed	Photo	Not reportable; no points ($1,000 max.; 50 points)	Not addressed
Vt.	No law
V.I.	No data	Moving infraction at beginning or end of highway	No data	Driver or registered owner	Photo electron image	$25 or 2 to 12 points	No data
Va.	Permitted; requires local ordinance; 1 site per 10,000 residents; (exception for metro DC: up to 10 sites or 1 site per 10,000, whichever is greater)	Red light		Registered owner / Driver	2 photos or other recorded images / Contractor may not obtain driver records; information only used for enforcing violations; not available to the public, sold, or disclosed except by court order; purged no later than 60 days after collection of penalty	$50 max.; no court costs; not a criminal offense; no points; may not be used by insurers ($200 max.; 4 points)	Owner not operator; vehicle stolen
Wash.	Permitted	Red light	Where two arterial roads intersect	Registered owner	Vehicle, license tag / Only when a violation occurs; photo may not reveal faces	Up to the max. for parking violations; no record; no points ($250 max.)	Owner not operator; rental companies with conditions; vehicle stolen or sold
		Speed	School zones
		Rail crossing	Various
W.Va.	Prohibited
Wis.	Prohibited
Wyo.	No law
Totals	Permitted: 21 + D.C. Prohibited: 10 No law: 25	Red light: 23 + D.C. Speed: 12 + D.C.	Varies	Varies	Varies	Varies	Varies

Sources: National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and State Highway Safety Offices.