Stoplight bill dead from word go, speaker says

Allan Bense objects to a measure to authorize using cameras to catch red light runners.

By STEVE BOUSQUET
Published February 25, 2005

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TALLAHASSEE - On the day a coalition called for cameras to catch stoplight runners, Florida House Speaker Allan Bense declared the idea dead.

"I hate it," Bense, R-Panama City, said Thursday. "It will not go through the Florida House. ... I just think it's government intrusion in our lives."

Bense's firm opposition is a departure from his usual style of searching for common ground or gleaning where House members stand on an issue.

But installing cameras at intersections is an invitation for cities and counties to use them as "cash cows," Bense said.

Red light runners killed 115 people and injured 13,000 in Florida in 2003.

Lawmakers have pushed for cameras at traffic lights for years. Sen. Stephen Wise, R-Jacksonville, and Rep. Ron Reagan, R-Bradenton, filed bills this year, arguing that the technology saves lives.

Reagan conceded defeat. "The reality is, if the speaker is not going to bring it up, we know the bill's dead," he said.

Supporters include sheriffs, police chiefs, the AARP, the Florida Medical Association, counties and cities, including St. Petersburg.

Senate President Tom Lee, R-Brandon, has reservations but said he would not block a vote. "It's all about profits, under the guise of public safety," Lee said.

Separate legislation would increase the fine for running a red light from $60 to $125, and add a fourth penalty point to a motorist's record. The extra money would support trauma centers.

That bill was filed after an Orlando motorist ran a red light in October and killed two girls.

Times staff writer Alisa Ulferts contributed to this report.