PRINTER'S NO. 2904
No. 2069 Session of 2007
INTRODUCED BY KENNEY, SCAVELLO, MANN, WATSON, WOJNAROSKI,
REICHLEY, MARSHALL, STEIL, NAILOR, CAUSER, KAUFFMAN, ROSS,
M. O'BRIEN, HERSHEY AND CLYMER, NOVEMBER 21, 2007
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION, NOVEMBER 21, 2007
AN ACT
1 Amending Title 75 (Vehicles) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
2 Statutes, providing for radar enforcement systems pilot
3 program.
4 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
5 hereby enacts as follows:
6 Section 1. Title 75 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
7 Statutes is amended by adding a section to read:
8 § 3368.1. Radar enforcement systems pilot program.
9 (a) General rule.--
10 (1) A city of the first class, a city of the second
11 class, one third class city, one first class township, one
12 second class township, one borough and one regional police
13 force encompassing any combination of municipalities, upon
14 passage of an ordinance, section 3368(c)(2) (relating to
15 speed timing devices) notwithstanding, are authorized to
16 enforce section 3362 (relating to maximum speed limits) on
17 highways owned by the municipality using electronic devices
18 such as radio-microwave devices, commonly referred to as
1 electronic speed meters or radar.
2 (2) This section shall only be applicable in the
3 municipalities as selected by the Local Government Commission
4 and the Secretary of Transportation who shall consider
5 selection based upon applications submitted by the
6 municipalities prior to June 30, 2008, provided that the
7 municipalities meet the following requirements:
8 (i) Officers must complete a training course
9 approved by the Pennsylvania State Police and the
10 Municipal Police Officers' Education and Training
11 Commission.
12 (ii) The municipalities chosen may only use full-
13 time police officers employed by the full-service police
14 department of a political subdivision or regional police
15 department.
16 (iii) Official warning signs indicating the use of
17 these devices are erected within 500 feet of the border
18 of the political subdivision on the main arteries
19 entering that political subdivision.
20 (iv) The speed limit for any roadway chosen for
21 speed enforcement under this section shall be certified
22 in advance through an engineering and traffic study as
23 authorized under section 6105 (relating to department to
24 prescribe traffic and engineering investigations) and
25 shall be available for public inspection. The engineering
26 and traffic study must be updated at least every two
27 years.
28 (b) Local ordinance required to enforce.--Prior to use of
29 radio-microwave speed timing devices used for speed timing by
30 local or regional police officers, the appropriate governing
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1 body must adopt an ordinance authorizing the local or regional
2 police department to employ such devices on roads within the
3 boundaries of the governing body and in accordance with section
4 6109(a)(11) (relating to specific powers of department and local
5 authorities) to address citizen complaints or demonstrable
6 traffic safety concerns, such as high crash rates or fatalities.
7 The Local Government Commission shall file an annual report with
8 the chairman and the minority chairman of the Transportation
9 Committee of the Senate and the chairman and minority chairman
10 of the Transportation Committee of the House of Representatives.
11 The report at a minimum shall include for the prior year:
12 (1) The number of violations and fines issued.
13 (2) A compilation of fines paid and outstanding.
14 (c) Penalty.--
15 (1) A fine is not authorized during the first 120 days
16 of operation of the automated system. During the time period
17 under this paragraph, a warning may be issued to the
18 violator.
19 (2) A penalty imposed under this section shall not be
20 deemed a criminal conviction and shall not be made part of
21 the operating record under section 1535 (relating to schedule
22 of convictions and points) of the individual upon whom the
23 penalty is imposed, nor may the imposition of the penalty be
24 subject to merit rating for insurance purposes.
25 (3) No surcharge points may be imposed in the provision
26 of motor vehicle insurance coverage. Fines collected under
27 this section shall not be subject to 42 Pa.C.S. § 3571
28 (relating to Commonwealth portion of fines, etc.) or 3573
29 (relating to municipal corporation portion of fines, etc.).
30 (d) Department approval.--No enforcement using radar may be
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1 used without the approval of the department, which shall have
2 the authority to promulgate regulations for the certification
3 and use of such systems.
4 (e) Revenue limitation.--The primary use of radar by local
5 or regional police officers is for traffic safety purposes. Each
6 local or regional police department that uses radar shall report
7 annually to the Pennsylvania State Police the municipal revenue
8 generated from speed enforcement citations on such forms as may
9 be prescribed by the Pennsylvania State Police. In the event the
10 municipal share of revenue generated from speed enforcement
11 citations exceeds 5% of the total municipal budget or 5% of the
12 regional police department budget, all sums in excess thereof
13 shall be remitted to the Pennsylvania State Police to be used
14 for traffic safety purposes.
15 (f) Definitions.--As used in this section, the following
16 words and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this
17 subsection:
18 "Full-service police department." A local or regional police
19 department which:
20 (1) is authorized by one or more political subdivisions;
21 (2) provides 24-hour-a-day patrol and investigative
22 services; and
23 (3) reports its activities monthly to the Pennsylvania
24 State Police in accordance with the Uniform Crime Reporting
25 System.
26 "Full-time police officer." An employee of a political
27 subdivision or regional police department who complies with all
28 of the following:
29 (1) Is certified under 53 Pa.C.S. Ch. 21 Subch. D
30 (relating to municipal police education and training).
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1 (2) Is empowered to enforce 18 Pa.C.S. (relating to
2 crimes and offenses) and this title.
3 (3) Is a regular full-time police officer under the act
4 of June 15, 1951 (P.L.586, No.144), entitled "An act
5 regulating the suspension, removal, furloughing and
6 reinstatement of police officers in boroughs and townships of
7 the first class having police forces of less than three
8 members, and in townships of the second class," or works a
9 minimum of 200 days a year.
10 (4) Is provided coverage by a police pension plan under:
11 (i) the act of May 24, 1893 (P.L.129, No.82),
12 entitled "An act to empower boroughs and cities to
13 establish a police pension fund, to take property in
14 trust therefor and regulating and providing for the
15 regulation of the same";
16 (ii) the act of June 23, 1931 (P.L.932, No.317),
17 known as The Third Class City Code;
18 (iii) the act of May 22, 1935 (P.L.233, No.99),
19 referred to as the Second Class City Policemen Relief
20 Law;
21 (iv) the act of May 29, 1956 (1955 P.L.1804,
22 No.600), referred to as the Municipal Police Pension Law;
23 or
24 (v) the act of July 15, 1957 (P.L.901, No.399),
25 known as the Optional Third Class City Charter Law.
26 The term does not include auxiliary, part-time or fire
27 police.
28 (g) Expiration.--This section shall expire December 31,
29 2013.
30 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 120 days.
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