2022 -- S 2510
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LC004669
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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2022
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AN ACT
RELATING TO MOTOR AND OTHER VEHICLES -- AUTOMATED SCHOOL ZONE-
SPEED-ENFORCEMENT SYSTEM ACT OF 2022
Introduced By: Senators Seveney, DiPalma, and Acosta
Date Introduced: March 01, 2022
Referred To: Senate Judiciary
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
1 SECTION 1. The title of Chapter 31-41.3 of the General Laws entitled "Automated School-
2 Zone-Speed-Enforcement System Act of 2016" is hereby amended to read as follows:
3 CHAPTER 31-41.3
4 Automated School-Zone-Speed-Enforcement System Act of 2016
5 CHAPTER 31-41.3
6 AUTOMATED SPEED-ENFORCEMENT SYSTEM ACT OF 2022
7 SECTION 2. Sections 31-41.3-1, 31-41.3-2, 31-41.3-3, 31-41.3-4, 31-41.3-6, 31-41.3-7,
8 31-41.3-8, 31-41.3-9, 31-41.3-10, 31-41.3-11, 31-41.3-13, 31-41.3-14 and 31-41.3-15 of the
9 General Laws in Chapter 31-41.3 entitled "Automated School-Zone-Speed-Enforcement System
10 Act of 2016" are hereby amended to read as follows:
11 31-41.3-1. Short title.
12 This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Rhode Island Automated School-Zone-
13 Speed-Enforcement System Act of 2016 2022."
14 31-41.3-2. Legislative findings.
15 (a) It is hereby found and declared that ever-increasing violations of the state's school-zone
16 speed laws and regulations place both motorists and students pedestrians using the state's streets
17 and roadways within school zones in danger. The legislature hereby declares that the use of
18 technology to reduce aggressive and dangerous speeding is in the best interest of public safety and
 1 therefore adopts a policy of authorizing the use of automated traffic-speed-enforcement systems in
2 school zones within the state of Rhode Island. This enabling legislation will authorize the cities and
3 towns to employ these systems at their discretion, and with the approval of the Rhode Island
4 department of transportation division of traffic safety. These systems shall be used in conjunction
5 with civil penalties imposed upon the owners of speeding vehicles in order to reduce speeding
6 violations.
7 Nothing in this chapter shall supersede any criminal or civil penalty or sanction against the
8 driver of a vehicle who is cited by a law enforcement officer for a speeding violation in a school
9 zone.
10 (b) While automated speed enforcement technology has made significant advances, any
11 question related to accuracy of identification of the cited vehicle (e.g. multiple vehicles in close
12 proximity on a multi-lane road) shall not result in any enforcement action.
13 (c) The intent of this legislation is to facilitate placement of these automated speed-
14 enforcement systems only in locations where genuine traffic safety/excessive speed issues exist.
15 The Rhode Island department of transportation/traffic safety division shall have approval authority
16 for installation of automated speed-enforcement systems based on results of a road safety audit.
17 (d) Automated speed-enforcement systems are not to be used for the purpose of revenue
18 generation. All proceeds collected through citations shall be restricted to the following uses:
19 (1) To defray state or municipal costs for vendor contracts, acquisition, operations and
20 maintenance of the automated speed-enforcement systems.
21 (2) Investment in state or municipal traffic safety programs, law enforcement traffic safety.
22 (3) All remaining proceeds from automated speed-enforcement systems will be collected
23 and placed into a restricted receipt account for use by the Rhode Island department of transportation
24 division of traffic safety to fund road safety audits.
25 (e) Nothing in this chapter shall supersede any criminal or civil penalty or sanction against
26 the driver of a vehicle who is cited by a law enforcement officer for a speeding violation.
27 31-41.3-3. Automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system authorized and defined.
28 Automated speed-enforcement system authorized and defined.
29 (a) The state department of transportation, state turnpike and bridge authority, and the
30 municipalities of this state are hereby authorized to operate "automated school-zone-speed-
31 enforcement systems" on all state and local roads and bridges within the State of Rhode Island.
32 (b) For the purposes of this chapter:
33 (1) An "automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system" is means an automated traffic-
34 speed-enforcement system operated within one-quarter (¼) mile of any type of school in the state
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 1 of Rhode Island;
2 (2) An "automated traffic-speed-enforcement system" is defined as means a system using
3 one or more vehicle detectors in combination with photography to identify and provide a
4 photographic image of vehicles which are exceeding the posted speed limit, or the speed limit
5 designated by state law or regulation, for a given school zone, location on a state or local road,
6 bridge, or “bridge zone, and may be in fixed or mobile configurations; and
7 (3) A "school bridge zone" is defined means as anywhere within a one-quarter (¼) mile
8 radius of any type of school in the state of Rhode Island a bridge structure owned and/or controlled
9 by the Rhode Island turnpike and bridge authority and all approaches thereto, including the
10 approach to the Newport Pell Bridge known as "Structure E".
11 31-41.3-4. Automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system operational
12 requirements and certification. Automated speed-enforcement system operational
13 requirements and certification.
14 (a) No automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system shall be used in the state of
15 Rhode Island unless the system has been approved and certified for use in the state by the director
16 of the department of transportation, or for “bridge zones”, by the director of the Rhode Island
17 turnpike and bridge authority. The director of the department of transportation Each director, in
18 cooperation with the state police, shall require that any automated school-zone-speed-enforcement
19 system approved and certified for use in the state of Rhode Island meets the following requirements:
20 (1) All automated school-zone-speed-enforcement systems operated under this chapter
21 shall record the speed of vehicles within plus or minus one mile per hour of the actual speed.
22 (2) All automated school-zone-speed-enforcement systems operated under this chapter
23 shall record at least two (2) photographic images of the vehicle exceeding the speed limit, one of
24 which shall include the license plate attached to the rear of the vehicle.
25 (3) All automated school-zone-speed-enforcement systems operated under this chapter
26 shall, at the time of violation, imprint upon the photographic images of vehicles exceeding the
27 speed limit:
28 (i) The date and time of the violation; and
29 (ii) The identity of the highway, street, or school zone bridge or bridge zone being
30 monitored, and location upon that highway, street, or within that school zone bridge or within the
31 bridge zone, including the direction of travel and lane of travel; this requirement may be met with
32 code designations; and
33 (iii) The posted or lawfully designated speed limit for the highway, street, bridge or bridge
34 zone or school zone being monitored; and
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 1 (iv) The monitored speed of the vehicle identified in the photographic images as exceeding
2 the posted or lawfully designated school zone speed limit; and
3 (v) The consecutive event number of each photograph taken.
4 (4) At least one hundred feet (100') prior to entering an automated school-zone area where
5 a speed-enforcement system is being operated, and on each approach to that area, four (4) signs,
6 each measuring three feet (3') in height by four feet (4') in width, shall be erected in locations where
7 the view is unobstructed, warning motorists that they will be entering an area monitored by an
8 automated speed-zone-enforcement system and that violators of speed limitations may be
9 prosecuted. The automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system shall be operational only from
10 seven o'clock a.m. (7:00 a.m.) to six o'clock p.m. (6:00 p.m.) on school days of the promulgated
11 one-hundred-eighty-day (180) school calendar year adopted in the applicable community. Signs
12 indicating that speed limits are enforced by automated speed-enforcement systems shall be clearly
13 posted in areas where the systems are in use, at least one hundred feet (100’) and not more than two
14 hundred feet (200’) before the location of each system, warning motorists that they will be entering
15 an area monitored by an automated speed-enforcement system and that violators of speed
16 limitations may be prosecuted.
17 (5)(b) It shall be the vendor's responsibility to furnish an annual report, with all pertinent
18 data required pursuant to § 31-41.3-14, to the speaker of the house, and the senate president and
19 the agency or municipality authorizing installation of the automated speed-enforcement system.
20 31-41.3-6. Maintenance of system.
21 The state department of transportation, municipalities and/or the municipalities Rhode
22 Island turnpike and bridge authority, may enter into an agreement with a private corporation or
23 other entity to provide automated school-zone-speed-enforcement systems equipment services and
24 to maintain the systems. A contract between a government agency and a manufacturer or supplier
25 of automated traffic-speed-enforcement systems shall be based on the value of such equipment and
26 related support services and shall not be based on a percentage of the revenue generated by the
27 automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system.
28 31-41.3-7. Citation precedent.
29 In the event a law enforcement officer stops and issues a citation to the driver of a vehicle
30 for a speeding violation, which violation is also captured by an automated school-zone-speed-
31 enforcement system, the citation issued to the driver by the law enforcement officer shall have and
32 take precedence, and the automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system citation shall be
33 dismissed.
34 31-41.3-8. Procedure -- Notice.
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 1 (a) Except as expressly provided in this chapter, all prosecutions based on evidence
2 produced by an automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system shall follow the procedures
3 established in chapter 41.1 of this title, chapter 18 of title 8, and the rules promulgated by the chief
4 magistrate of the traffic tribunal for the hearing of civil traffic violations. Citations may be issued
5 by an officer solely based on evidence obtained by use of an automated school-zone-speed-
6 enforcement system. All citations issued based on evidence obtained from an automated school-
7 zone-speed-enforcement system shall be issued within fourteen (14) days of the violation.
8 (b) It shall be sufficient to commence a prosecution based on evidence obtained from an
9 automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system, provided that a copy of the citation and
10 supporting documentation be mailed to the address of the registered owner kept on file by the
11 registry of motor vehicles pursuant to § 31-3-34. For purposes of this section, the date of issuance
12 shall be the date of mailing.
13 (c) The officer issuing the citation shall certify under penalties of perjury that the evidence
14 obtained from the automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system was sufficient to demonstrate
15 a violation of the motor vehicle code. Such certification shall be sufficient in all prosecutions
16 pursuant to this chapter to justify the entry of a default judgment upon sufficient proof of actual
17 notice in all cases where the citation is not answered within the time period permitted.
18 (d) The citation shall contain all the information provided for in the uniform summons as
19 referred to in § 31-41.1-1 and the rules of procedure promulgated by the chief magistrate of the
20 traffic tribunal.
21 (e) In addition to the information in the uniform summons, the following information shall
22 be attached to the citation:
23 (1) Copies of two (2) or more photographs, or microphotographs, or other recorded images
24 taken as proof of the violation; and
25 (2) A signed statement by a trained law enforcement officer that, based on inspection of
26 recorded images, the motor vehicle was being operated in violation of chapter 14 of title 31 relating
27 to speed restrictions; and
28 (3) A statement that recorded images are evidence of a violation of this chapter; and
29 (4) A statement that the person who receives a summons under this chapter may either pay
30 the civil penalty in accordance with the provisions of § 31-41.1-3, or elect to stand trial for the
31 alleged violation.
32 31-41.3-9. Hearings.
33 Evidence from an automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system shall be considered
34 substantive evidence in the prosecution of all civil traffic violations. Evidence from an automated
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 1 school-zone-speed-enforcement system approved by the director of the department of
2 transportation shall be admitted without further authentication and such evidence may be deemed
3 sufficient to sustain a civil traffic violation. In addition to any other defenses as set forth herein,
4 any defenses cognizable at law, with the exception of that available under § 31-41.1-7, shall be
5 available to the individual who receives the citation commencing a prosecution under this chapter.
6 31-41.3-10. Driver/registered owner liability.
7 (a) The registered owner of the motor vehicle shall be primarily responsible in all
8 prosecutions brought pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, except as otherwise provided in this
9 section.
10 (b) In all prosecutions of civil school-zone violations based on evidence obtained from an
11 automated traffic-speed-enforcement system, the registered owner of a vehicle which has been
12 operated in violation of a civil traffic violation, may be liable for such violation. The registered
13 owner of the vehicle may assume liability for the violation by paying the fine, or by defending the
14 violation pursuant to the remedies available under the law.
15 (c) The lessee of a leased vehicle shall be considered the owner of a motor vehicle for
16 purposes of this section.
17 31-41.3-11. Use of evidence in criminal and civil cases.
18 Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit the use of evidence produced by an automated school-
19 zone-speed-enforcement system in a criminal or civil proceeding; provided, that the admissibility
20 of such evidence shall follow the applicable laws and rules of procedure and rules of evidence
21 which apply in criminal and civil proceedings.
22 31-41.3-13. Security of records.
23 (a) The recorded images produced by an automated school-zone-speed-enforcement
24 system shall not be deemed "public records" subject to disclosure pursuant to § 38-2-2, and shall
25 not be subject to disclosure pursuant to the provisions of chapter 2 of title 38.
26 (b) All recorded images that do not identify a violation shall be destroyed within ninety
27 (90) days of the date the image was recorded, unless otherwise ordered by a court of competent
28 jurisdiction.
29 (c) All recorded images that identify a violation shall be destroyed within one year after
30 the citation is resolved by administrative payment, trial, or other final disposition of the citation,
31 unless otherwise ordered by a court of competent jurisdiction.
32 (d) The privacy of records produced pursuant to this chapter shall be maintained; provided,
33 that aggregate data not containing personal identifying information may be released.
34 31-41.3-14. Reports.
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 1 (a) The agency or municipality authorizing the installation of automated school-zone-
2 speed-enforcement systems shall prepare require the vendor providing and/or servicing an
3 automated speed-enforcement system to produce and provide an annual report as required in § 31-
4 41.3-4 (b) containing data on:
5 (1) The number of citations issued at each particular school zone location;
6 (2) The number of those violations paid by mail;
7 (3) The number of those violations found after trial or hearing;
8 (4) The number of violations dismissed after trial or hearing;
9 (5) The number of accidents at each school zone location;
10 (6) A description as to the type of accident;
11 (7) An indication regarding whether there were any injuries involved in any accident
12 reported;
13 (8) The cost to maintain the automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system; and
14 (9) The amount of revenue obtained from the automated school-zone-speed-enforcement
15 system.
16 31-41.3