Will Cincinnati get red-light cameras? Councilman wants voters to decide
A Cincinnati city councilman wants voters this November to decide whether cameras can be used to enforce traffic laws.
Cincinnati voters in 2008 said "no" and passed a charter amendment that severely restricts the use of red-light cameras with 51% of the vote.
Councilman Jeff Cramerding proposed on Monday an amendment to the city charter that would repeal that law and allow the city to use traffic-enforcement cameras to issue citations. If council passes the amendment, it would go before voters in November for final approval. City council members have debated the idea for more than a year as a way to make the streets safer.
"I've gone door to door across the city," Cramerding told The Enquirer on Monday. "Traffic enforcement is one of the biggest issues I hear about. I've encountered many voters who are aware of the traffic camera ban, voted for it and now say they made a mistake and want to vote for it again."
In 2008 when the city council had proposed red-light cameras, it was a way to generate revenue.
This time, it's not about raising revenue, Cramerding said.
For municipalities with traffic-enforcement cameras, sttate law reduces the amount of state funding by the amount of revenue received from the use of the cameras.
"It's clear whatever we're doing is for traffic enforcement and public safety purposes as it will be revenue neutral," Cramerding said. "We will not be making any money off of this."
Many details would still have to be worked out. Cramerding said he doesn't know how many cameras there would be, where they would go and which traffic laws they would enforce ‒ speeding, red lights or other traffic laws.
"One of the reasons I want to put it on in November is because all of council will be campaigning," Cramerding said. "And I want to hear people's thoughts on where the need is. Is it red lights? Is it speeding? That's where a lot of community engagement and conversation will have to be."
Traffic cameras have long been a topic of debate across Ohio and at the center of a battle between state lawmakers and local governments. In 2015, a law passed by the Ohio General Assembly required municipalities with traffic cameras to place a full-time police officer with each camera
Two years later, that law was struck down by the Ohio Supreme Court.
The courts, however, in 2022 upheld the state's right to deduct money from local governments who use traffic cameras.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: What is Cincinnati councilman's red-light camera charter amendment?
