Under current law, the governing body of a city, village, or town (municipality)
may not enact a traffic ordinance unless the ordinance strictly conforms to current
state traffic law or the ordinance is expressly authorized by law. State law imposes
liability on the owner of a vehicle that is observed violating certain laws or local
ordinances, including laws or local ordinances that prohibit fleeing a traffic officer,

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failing to yield the right-of-way to an emergency vehicle or funeral procession,
passing a fire truck or school bus, and parking in a parking space designated for
vehicles with special registration plates.

This bill authorizes the governing body of a county or municipality to enact an
ordinance that permits the use of a traffic control photographic system (TCPS) on
highways under the jurisdiction of the county or municipality to detect and identify
motor vehicles that fail to stop at red traffic signals at intersections and to wait for
a green signal (red light violations). A TCPS is defined as an electronic system that
consists of a photographic, video, or electronic camera and a vehicle sensor that work
in conjunction with a traffic control signal to automatically produce photographs,
stamped with the time and date, of motor vehicles traveling through an intersection.
With exceptions, the vehicle owner is subject to a forfeiture for the red light violation
detected by a TCPS, but if the vehicle owner successfully asserts certain defenses,
the lessee or operator of the vehicle is subject to a forfeiture for the violation. The
bill requires the ordinance to include a provision that allows a traffic officer employed
by the county or municipality to issue a citation to the owner of a vehicle for a red light
violation that is detected by a TCPS or, in limited circumstances, to the operator of
such a vehicle. The ordinance must require the local authority to provide to the
owner, or in limited circumstances the lessee or operator, of the vehicle, by personal
service or certified mail, the traffic citation and a duplicate of the photograph, video,
or digital image of the vehicle failing to stop at a red traffic signal. The ordinance
also must require that any photograph or other image produced by the TCPS be
focused on the rear license plate of the vehicles moving through an intersection. The
governing body of a county or municipality that uses a TCPS is required to place
signs near the limits of the county or municipality on all county trunk highways and
connecting highways under its jurisdiction informing motorists that intersections in
the county or municipality may be monitored by traffic control photographic
systems.

If an owner is issued a traffic citation for a violation of the local ordinance, it
is not a defense that the owner was not in control of the vehicle at the time of the
violation, except that the owner may assert the following defenses:

1. The vehicle was reported stolen before the violation occurred or within five
business days after the violation occurred.

2. If the vehicle is owned by, and registered in the name of, a lessor, a lessee who
is identified by the lessor had possession of the vehicle at the time of the traffic signal
violation. The lessee may be issued a citation for the red light violation.

3. If the vehicle is owned by a motor vehicle dealer, the vehicle was being
operated by another person on a trial run and the dealer provided a traffic officer
with the person's name, address, and operator's license number. The vehicle
operator may be issued a citation for the red light violation.

4. Any other defense established by the county or municipality that is specified
in the ordinance.

Except for the service requirements described above, the procedure applicable
to citations for red light violations detected by a TCPS is the same as that applicable
to citations for nonmoving traffic violations (parking tickets), including potential

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vehicle registration suspension for unpaid citations. A person convicted of a red light
violation detected by a TCPS is subject to a forfeiture of not more than $50 but is not
subject to additional surcharges, costs, or fees. The person's operating privilege may
not be suspended or revoked and the person may not be assessed any demerit points
on his or her driving record.