Who is trying to save Texas Red Light Cameras?

You already know red light cameras in Texas are a raw deal for drivers. Texas Campaign for Liberty has been leading the charge against these dangerous and unconstitutional Automatic Ticket Machines (ATMs) for nearly ten years now and you supported our efforts all the way. Each legislative session we get closer to the finish line with a bill that would actually ban red light cameras all across Texas, only to have the rug pulled out from under us at the last moment by those trying to appease the greedy cities and camera companies. We hoped this year would be different, but I am concerned about what just happened in Austin this week. In a nutshell, a “grandfather clause” was inserted so many existing cameras can remain in place. If the grandfather clause bill gets to the floor, the compromisers will support the weaker bill and a real ban will never get through. I’ll tell you more in a minute, but I need your help right away! Please contact the Senate Transportation Committee members below and demand they reject any camera ban bill with a grandfather clause in it. Robert Nichols 512-463-0103 [email protected].gov Kelly Hancock 512-463-0109 [email protected] Carol Alvarado 512-463-0106 [email protected].gov Juan Hinojosa 512-463-0120 [email protected] Lois Kolkhorst 512-463-0118 [email protected].gov Charles Perry 512-463-0128 [email protected] Jose Rodriguez 512-463-0129 [email protected].gov Charles Schwertner 512-463-0105 Charles.Schwertner@senate.texas.gov Royce West 512-463-0123 [email protected] I fear if any bill containing a grandfather clause passes committee, the red light cameras are here to stay in Texas. Up until Wednesday morning, we had two real red light camera ban bills — one in each house. Representative Jonathan Stickland’s HB 1631, which has the support of over two-thirds of the House members, and also Senator Bob Hall’s SB 653, which had a public hearing this week. Your Texas Campaign for Liberty team was there to testify in favor of SB 653 — until Senator Bob Hall surprised the room by changing his bill at the last minute, adding in an unacceptable grandfather clause that would save many red light cameras in Texas for decades to come! We aren’t sure why Senator Hall would change his bill from a real ban to making sure red light cameras will stay in Texas. We do know he made several public promises to pass a bill that would ensure all of the cameras go dark — with no grandfather clause — and it appears he has changed his mind. We know the red light camera industry is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on lobbyists in Austin to protect their camera revenue. For them this is a life or death struggle that may cause them to go bankrupt if they lose the millions of dollars they steal from Texas drivers every year. We also know that the cities raking in millions of dollars from violating your rights have been putting pressure on legislators to save their camera programs. We may never know who got Senator Hall to go back on his word and change his bill from banning the cameras to saving them, but we still have a good chance of getting a real ban passed this session. But I need your help NOW while there is still time! So please contact the Senate Transportation Committee members listed above and tell them to reject any red light camera ban bill that has a grandfather clause in it! Thankfully, Representative Jonathan Stickland’s bill, HB 1631, is a real ban bill with no grandfather clause. In fact, Representative Stickland has promised he will not accept a bill containing a grandfather clause. This means if a bill does pass out of the Senate with a grandfather clause, it will likely die in the House since it will be a “poison pill” that will be unacceptable to those that want a real ban. That will slow down the entire process and give the camera lobbyists plenty of time to try to kill the bill altogether. So don’t delay taking action. Without your help, the real camera ban bills could die in committee. In Liberty, Byron Schirmbeck State Coordinator Texas Campaign for Liberty