Carroll Sponsors Legislation to Crack Down on Abuse of Red-Light Cameras

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – After numerous reports of unethical conduct regarding the operation of red-light cameras were brought to light, state Rep. Jonathan Carroll, D-Northbrook, is pushing to crack down on the use of these cameras as a mechanism for increasing local revenues.

“Let’s be completely clear: red-light cameras have a proven track record of breeding corruption in Illinois,” Carroll said. “What we’ve seen is that some public officials have abused the technology to leverage local revenues. This practice is woefully unethical and out of step with serving the public interest. To confront this reality, I am co-sponsoring legislation that would restrict the use of red-light cameras in specific counties within the state.”

House Bill 322, co-sponsored by Carroll, would effectively ban any non-home rule jurisdictions located within Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, Madison, McHenry, St. Clair or Will counties from utilizing red-light cameras. The legislation is designed to crack down on corruption originating from the use of these cameras.

“Red-light cameras are nothing more than a cash grab by municipal governments and are too often directly correlated with rampant corruption,” Carroll continued. “This legislation seeks to end a broken system and relieve an unfair burden on drivers, while demanding greater accountability from local governments.”