HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

2175

THIRTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2020

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

relating to automated speed enforcement systems.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 

PART I

     SECTION 1.  The Hawaii Revised Statutes is amended by adding a new chapter to title 17 to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"Chapter

AUTOMATED SPEED ENFORCEMENT SYSTEMS

     §   -1  Definitions.  As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:

     "Automated speed enforcement system" means a device used for traffic enforcement that includes a vehicle sensor that works in conjunction with a speed measuring device and a camera or similar device to automatically produce a photographic, digital, or other visual image of:

     (1)  A motor vehicle traveling at a prohibited rate of speed in violation of part X of chapter 291C; and

     (2)  The driver of that motor vehicle.

     "County" means one of the counties of Hawaii, Kauai, or Maui, or the city and county of Honolulu.

     "County highway" has the same meaning as used in section 264-1.

     "Department" means the department of transportation.

     "Motor vehicle" has the same meaning as used in section 291C‑1.

     "State highway" has the same meaning as used in section 264‑1.

     §   -2  Automated speed enforcement systems program; established.  There is established the automated speed enforcement systems program that may be implemented by any county on state or county highways within the respective county to enforce the speed restriction laws of the State.

     §   -3  County powers and duties.  (a)  In accordance with this chapter, each county may establish and implement an automated speed enforcement system that imposes monetary liability on the operator of a motor vehicle for failure to comply with speed restriction laws.  Each county may provide for the procurement, location, installation, operation, maintenance, and repair of the automated speed enforcement system.  Where the automated speed enforcement system affects state property, the department shall cooperate with and assist the county as needed to install, maintain, and repair the automated speed enforcement system.

     (b)  Each county shall pay the vendor that installs an automated speed enforcement system a negotiated lump sum regardless of the number of citations issued or expected to be issued through the use of the installed automated speed enforcement system.

     §   -4  Automated speed enforcement system requirements.  (a)  Automated speed enforcement system equipment shall be operated from a fixed pole, post, or other fixed structure on a state or county highway.

     (b)  Signs and other official traffic-control devices indicating that speed restriction laws are enforced by an automated speed enforcement system shall be posted on all major routes entering an area utilizing an automated speed enforcement system.

     (c)  Proof of a speed restriction violation shall be evidenced by information obtained from an automated speed enforcement system.  A certificate, sworn to or affirmed by the county's agent or employee, or a facsimile thereof, based upon inspection of any photograph, microphotograph, videotape, or other recorded image produced by the system, shall be prima facie evidence of the facts contained therein.  Any photograph, microphotograph, videotape, or other recorded image evidencing a violation shall be available for inspection in any proceeding to adjudicate liability for the violation.

     (d)  A summons or citation based on the automated speed enforcement systems program shall not be issued unless it contains a clear and unobstructed photographic, digital, or other visual image of the driver of the motor vehicle.

     (e)  The conditions specified in this section shall not apply when the information gathered is used for highway safety research or to issue warning citations not involving a fine, court appearance, or a person's driving record.

     §   -5  Summons or citations.  (a)  Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, whenever any motor vehicle is determined, by means of an automated speed enforcement system, to have exceeded a speed restriction in violation of part X of chapter 291C, the county shall issue a summons or citation to the registered owner of the vehicle at the address on record at the vehicle licensing division.  The summons or citation shall be:

     (1)  Sent by certified or registered mail;

     (2)  Sent with a return receipt; and

     (3)  Postmarked within seventy-two hours of the time of the incident.

If the end of the seventy-two hour period falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or state holiday, then the ending period shall run until the end of the next day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or state holiday.

     (b)  The form and content of the summons or citation shall be as adopted or prescribed by the administrative judge of the district courts and shall be printed on a form commensurate with the form of other summonses or citations used in modern methods of arrest, so designed to include all necessary information to make the summons or citation valid within the laws of the State; provided that any summons or citation issued pursuant to the automated speed enforcement systems program shall contain a clear and unobstructed photographic, digital, or other visual image of the driver of the motor vehicle, that shall be used as evidence of the violation.

     (c)  Every summons or citation shall be consecutively numbered and each copy thereof shall bear the number of its respective original.

     (d)  Upon receipt of the summons or citation, the registered owner shall respond as provided for in chapter 291D.  A mail receipt signed by the registered owner is prima facie evidence of notification.  The registered owner shall be determined by the identification of the vehicle's registration plates.

     (e)  The county, or the county's agent or employee, shall be available to testify as to the authenticity of the information provided pursuant to this section.

     §   -6  Registered owner's responsibility for a summons or citation.  In any proceeding for a violation of this chapter, the information contained in the summons or citation mailed in accordance with section    -5 shall be deemed prima facie evidence that the registered vehicle violated part X of chapter 291C.

     §   -7  Prima facie evidence.  (a)  Whenever an automated speed enforcement system determines a motor vehicle to be in violation of part X of chapter 291C, evidence that the motor vehicle described in the summons or citation issued pursuant to this chapter was operated in violation of that section, together with proof that the person to whom the summons or citation was sent was the registered owner of the motor vehicle at the time of the violation, shall constitute prima facie evidence that the registered owner of the motor vehicle was the person who committed the violation.

     (b)  The registered owner of the vehicle may rebut the evidence of a violation in subsection (a) by any one of the following:

     (1)  Submitting a written statement as provided in section 291D-6(b)(2);

     (2)  Testifying in open court under oath that the person was not the operator of the vehicle at the time of the alleged violation;

     (3)  Calling witnesses to testify in open court under oath that the person was not the operator of the vehicle at the time of the alleged violation;

     (4)  Extrinsic evidence that the person was not the operator of the vehicle at the time of the alleged violation;

     (5)  Presenting to the court adjudicating the alleged violation, prior to the return date established on the citation or summons issued pursuant to this chapter, a letter of verification of loss from the police department indicating that the vehicle had been reported stolen; or

     (6)  Identifying the person who was the actual driver of the vehicle at the time of the alleged violation.

     §   -8  Failure to comply with summons or citation.  If the registered owner of the vehicle does not answer a summons or citation within twenty-one days of receipt of the summons or citation, the district court shall issue a notice of entry of judgment by default to the registered owner of the vehicle pursuant to section 291D-7(e).

     §   -9  Liability for rental or U‑drive motor vehicle.  Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, if the registered owner of record is the lessor of a rental or U‑drive motor vehicle, as defined in section 286‑2, pursuant to a written lease agreement, the lessee at the time of the violation shall be responsible for the summons or citation; provided that:

     (1)  The lessor shall be responsible for the summons or citation if the lessor does not provide the court having jurisdiction over the summons or citation with the name and address of the lessee within thirty days after a notice containing the date, time, and location of the alleged violation and the license number of the vehicle is sent to the lessor; and

     (2)  The administrative judge of the court having jurisdiction over the summons or citation may waive the requirement of providing the name and address of the lessee and impose on the lessor an administrative fee of $         per citation.

     §   -10  Penalty.  The penalties for a speed restriction violation determined by an automated speed enforcement system shall be as provided in section 291C‑161.

     §   -11  Fines for unauthorized disclosure.  All personal and confidential information made available by any government agency to an agent of any county for the automated speed enforcement systems program shall be kept confidential and shall be used only for the purposes for which the information was furnished.  Any officer, employee, or agent of a county who intentionally discloses or provides a copy of personal and confidential information obtained from an automated speed enforcement to any person or agency without authorization shall be fined not more than $        ; provided that the fine shall not preclude the application of penalties or fines otherwise provided for by law.

     §   -12  Automated speed enforcement systems program special fund; established.  (a)  There is established the automated speed enforcement systems program special fund to be administered by the department.

     (b)  All fines collected pursuant to this chapter shall be deposited into the automated speed enforcement systems program special fund.  Any moneys in the fund shall be expended by the department of transportation in the county in which the fine was imposed, for purposes that include the establishment, operation, management, and maintenance of an automated speed enforcement system.

     §   -13  Rules.  The department shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 to effectuate the purposes of this chapter."

PART II

     SECTION 2.  Section 291C-161, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "§291C-161  Penalties[.]; automated speed enforcement system fines.  (a)  It is a violation for any person to violate any of the provisions of this chapter, except as otherwise specified in subsections (c) and (d) and unless the violation is by other law of this State declared to be a felony, misdemeanor, or petty misdemeanor.

     (b)  Except as provided in subsections (c) and (d), every person who is determined to have violated any provision of this chapter for which another penalty is not provided shall be fined:

     (1)  Not more than [$200] $        for a first violation[thereof];

     (2)  Not more than [$300] $        for a second violation committed within one year after the date of the first violation; and

     (3)  Not more than [$500] $        for a third or subsequent violation committed within one year after the date of the first violation.

     (c)  Every person convicted under or found in violation of section 291C-12, 291C-12.5, 291C-12.6, 291C-13, 291C-14, 291C‑15, 291C-16, 291C-72, 291C-73, 291C-95, 291C-102, 291C-103, 291C-104, or 291C-105 shall be sentenced or fined in accordance with those sections.

     (d)  Every person who violates section 291C-13 or 291C-18 shall:

     (1)  Be fined not more than [$200] $        or imprisoned not more than ten days for a first conviction [thereof];

     (2)  Be fined not more than [$300] $        or imprisoned not more than twenty days or both for conviction of a second offense committed within one year after the date of the first offense; and

     (3)  Be fined not more than [$500] $        or imprisoned not more than six months or both for conviction of a third or subsequent offense committed within one year after the date of the first offense.

     (e)  The court may assess a sum not to exceed $50 for the cost of issuing a penal summons upon any person who fails to appear at the place within the time specified in the citation issued to the person for any traffic violation.

     (f)  All revenues from fines collected for a violation of part X of chapter 291C pursuant to an automated speed enforcement system established by chapter      shall be deposited into the automated speed enforcement systems program special fund established under section    -12 and shall be expended in the county in which the fine was imposed, for purposes that include the establishment, operation, management, and maintenance of an automated speed enforcement system in that county.

     [(f)] (g)  The court may require a person who violates any of the provisions of this chapter to attend a course of instruction in driver retraining as deemed appropriate by the court, in addition to any other penalties imposed."

     SECTION 3.  Section 291C-163, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:

     "(a)  This chapter shall not be deemed to prevent counties with respect to streets and highways under their jurisdiction from:

     (1)  Regulating or prohibiting stopping, standing, or parking except as provided in section 291C-111;

     (2)  Regulating traffic by means of police officers or official traffic-control devices;

     (3)  Regulating or prohibiting processions or assemblages on the highways;

     (4)  Designating particular highways or roadways for use by traffic moving in one direction;

     (5)  Establishing speed limits for vehicles in public parks;

     (6)  Designating any highway as a through highway or designating any intersection as a stop or yield intersection;

     (7)  Restricting the use of highways;

     (8)  Regulating the operation and equipment of and requiring the registration and inspection of bicycles, including the requirement of a registration fee;

     (9)  Regulating or prohibiting the turning of vehicles or specified types of vehicles;

    (10)  Altering or establishing speed limits;

    (11)  Requiring written accident reports;

    (12)  Designating no-passing zones;

    (13)  Prohibiting or regulating the use of controlled-access roadways by any class or kind of traffic;

    (14)  Prohibiting or regulating the use of heavily traveled streets by any class or kind of traffic found to be incompatible with the normal and safe movement of traffic;

    (15)  Establishing minimum speed limits;

    (16)  Designating hazardous railroad grade crossing;

    (17)  Designating and regulating traffic on play streets;

    (18)  Prohibiting pedestrians from crossing a roadway in a business district or any designated highway except in a crosswalk;

    (19)  Restricting pedestrian crossing at unmarked crosswalks;

    (20)  Regulating persons propelling push carts;

    (21)  Regulating persons upon skates, coasters, sleds, and other toy vehicles;

    (22)  Adopting and enforcing [such] temporary or experimental regulations [as] that may be necessary to cover emergencies or special conditions;

    (23)  Adopting maximum and minimum speed limits on streets and highways within their respective jurisdictions;

    (24)  Adopting requirements on stopping, standing, and parking on streets and highways within their respective jurisdictions except as provided in section 291C-111;

    (25)  Prohibiting or regulating electric personal assistive mobility devices on sidewalks and bicycle paths; [and]

    (26)  Implementing an automated speed enforcement system pursuant to chapter    ; and

   [(26)](27)  Adopting [such] other traffic regulations [as are] specifically authorized by this chapter."

     SECTION 4.  Section 291C-165, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:

     "(b)  In every case when a citation is issued, the original of the citation shall be given to the violator; provided that:

     (1)  In the case of an unattended vehicle, the original of the citation shall be affixed to the vehicle as provided for in section 291C-167; or

     (2)  In the case of:

          (A)  A vehicle utilizing the high occupancy vehicle lane illegally; [or]

          (B)  A vehicle illegally utilizing a parking space reserved for persons with disabilities, where the violator refuses the citation; or

          (C)  A motor vehicle determined by an automated speed enforcement system established pursuant to chapter       to have exceeded a speed restriction in violation of part X of chapter 291C;

the original of the citation shall be sent by certified or registered mail, with a return receipt that is postmarked within forty-eight hours of the time of the incident, as provided in section 291C-223 for vehicles illegally utilizing the high occupancy vehicle lane, or within seventy-two hours of the time of the incident for vehicles illegally utilizing a parking space reserved for persons with disabilities[,] or for vehicles exceeding a speed restriction in violation of part X of chapter 291C as determined by an automated speed enforcement system, to the registered owner of the vehicle at the address on record at the vehicle licensing division.  If the end of the applicable forty-eight or seventy-two hour period falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or state holiday, then the ending period shall run until the end of the next day which is not a Saturday, Sunday, or state holiday; provided that the administrative judge of the district courts may allow a carbon copy of the citation to be given to the violator or affixed to the vehicle and provide for the disposition of the original and any other copies of the citation."

     SECTION 5.  Section 291C-194, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (c) to read as follows:

     "(c)  Any person who is convicted of violating this section shall be subject to penalties as provided under section 291C‑161(b) and [[(f)].] (g)."

PART III

     SECTION 6.  (a)  The department of transportation shall establish an automated speed enforcement task force to review this Act and recommend any necessary amendments, including any proposed legislation, for consideration by the legislature during the regular session of 2021.

     (b)  The department of transportation shall invite the following to participate on the automated speed enforcement task force:

     (1)  The deputy chief court administrator for the district court of the first circuit, or the deputy chief court administrator's designee;

     (2)  The state public defender, or the state public defender's designee; and

     (3)  A representative of each of the counties of Hawaii, Kauai, and Maui, and of the city and county of Honolulu, from each of the respective following agencies:

          (A)  The police department, selected by the respective chief of police;

          (B)  The prosecutor's office or department, selected by the respective prosecuting attorney of the county; and

          (C)  The department having jurisdiction over county highways and roads, selected by the respective department head.

     (c)  The automated speed enforcement task force shall submit a report to the legislature of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2021.

PART IV

     SECTION 7.  There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $          or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2020-2021 for the purposes of establishing the photo red light imaging detector systems program to be allocated as follows:

     (1)  $        to the city and county of Honolulu department of transportation services;

     (2)  $        to the county of Maui department of public works;

     (3)  $        to the county of Hawaii department of public works; and

     (4)  $        to the county of Kauai department of public works.

     The sum appropriated shall be expended by the department of transportation for the purposes of this Act.

PART V

     SECTION 8.  It is the intent of this Act not to jeopardize the receipt of any federal aid nor to impair the obligation of the State or any agency thereof to the holders of any bond issued by the State or by any such agency, and the governor may modify the strict provisions of this Act only to the extent necessary to effectuate this intent; provided that the governor shall promptly report any modification with reasons therefor to the legislature at its next regular session thereafter.

     SECTION 9.  If any provision of this Act, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance, is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of the Act that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this Act are severable.

     SECTION 10.  This Act does not affect rights and duties that matured, penalties that were incurred, and proceedings that were begun before its effective date.

     SECTION 11.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 12.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2020; provided that part I of this Act shall take effect on July 1, 2021.

 

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

 

 

Report Title:

Department of Transportation; Traffic; Highway Safety; Automated Speed Enforcement Task Force; Automated Speed Enforcement System; Appropriation

 

Description:

Establishes an automated speed enforcement task force.  Establishes the automated speed enforcement systems program, effective 7/1/2021.  Authorizes the State or counties to administer the program.  Requires fines collected for violations on a county highway to be expended for the operation of the program.  Appropriates funds.

 

 

 

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