Safer American Streets Act

Safer American Streets Act - Directs the Secretary of Transportation (DOT), for FY2015 and subsequent fiscal years, to withhold 10% of a state's apportionment of specified federal-aid highway program funds for any state or municipal government that employs an automated traffic enforcement system on a federal-aid highway.

Prohibits:

• the Mayor of the District of Columbia from using an automated traffic enforcement system to detect a moving infraction, and
• the use of any information obtained through such a system as proof of an infraction in an administrative adjudication.

Repeals title IX of the Fiscal Year 1997 Budget Support Temporary Amendment Act of 1996 (relating to automated traffic enforcement in the District of Columbia).

[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5755 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5755

 To withhold certain highway funds from a State that uses an automated 
          traffic enforcement system on a Federal-aid highway.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           November 20, 2014

Mr. Stockman (for himself and Mr. Bentivolio) introduced the following 
    bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and 
   Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on Oversight and 
 Government Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
  Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
           within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To withhold certain highway funds from a State that uses an automated 
          traffic enforcement system on a Federal-aid highway.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Safer American Streets Act''.

SEC. 2. WITHHOLDING OF FUNDS FOR USEAGE OF AUTOMATED TRAFFIC 
              ENFORCEMENT SYSTEMS.

    (a) Withholding of Funds for Usage of Automated Traffic Enforcement 
Systems.--Chapter 1 of title 23, United States Code, is amended by 
adding after section 156 the following:
``Sec. 157. Withholding of funds for usage of automated traffic 
              enforcement systems
    ``(a) Withholding of Funds for Noncompliance.--
            ``(1) For fiscal year 2015 and thereafter.--Beginning on 
        October 1, 2015, and every fiscal year thereafter, the 
        Secretary shall withhold 10 percent of the amount required to 
        be apportioned to any State under each of sections 104(b)(1), 
        104(b)(3), and 104(b)(4) of this title in which the State or 
        any municipal government therein employs an automated traffic 
        enforcement system on a Federal-aid highway.
            ``(2) Requirement.--A State meets the requirement of this 
        paragraph if the State certifies not later than 90 days before 
        the beginning of each fiscal year that neither the State nor 
        any municipal government therein employs an automated traffic 
        enforcement system on a Federal-aid highway.
    ``(b) Effect of Withholding of Funds.--No funds withheld under this 
section from apportionment to any State shall be available for 
apportionment to that State.
    ``(c) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
            ``(1) Automated traffic enforcement system.--The term 
        `automated traffic enforcement system' means equipment that 
        takes a film or digital camera-based photograph which is linked 
        with a system that can detect a moving infraction and 
        synchronize the taking of a photograph with the occurrence of 
        such an infraction.
            ``(2) Moving infraction.--The term `moving infraction' 
        means any violation of State or local traffic law or ordinance 
        committed by the driver of a vehicle while it is in motion.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for such chapter is amended 
by adding at the end the following:

``157. Withholding of funds for usage of automated traffic enforcement 
                            systems.''.

SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON THE USE OF AUTOMATED TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT SYSTEMS 
              IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

    (a) Detection of a Moving Infraction.--The Mayor of the District of 
Columbia may not use an automated traffic enforcement system to detect 
a moving infraction in the District of Columbia.
    (b) Evidence of a Moving Infraction.--Information obtained through 
the use of an automated traffic enforcement system may not be used as 
proof in an administrative adjudication under title II of the Traffic 
Adjudication Act of 1978 (sec. 50-2302.01 et seq., D.C. Official Code).

SEC. 4. CONFORMING AMENDMENT.

    Title IX of the Fiscal Year 1997 Budget Support Temporary Amendment 
Act of 1996 (sec. 50-2209.01 et seq., D.C. Official Code) is repealed.

SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Automated traffic enforcement system.--The term 
        ``automated traffic enforcement system'' means equipment that 
        takes a film or digital camera-based photograph which is linked 
        with a system that can detect a moving infraction and 
        synchronize the taking of a photograph with the occurrence of 
        such an infraction.
            (2) Moving infraction.--The term ``moving infraction'' 
        means any conduct subject to administrative adjudication under 
        title II of the Traffic Adjudication Act of 1978 and with 
        respect to which the Attorney General of the District of 
        Columbia does not commence a proceeding in the Superior Court 
        of the District of Columbia.
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