www.kcci.com/article/kcci-investigates-prarie-city-iowa-makes-millions-on-speed-camera-tickets/43991126
KCCI Investigates: Small Iowa town makes millions on speed camera tickets
Windsor Heights had theres on University, a 4 lane road through a commercial area, and a 25 mph speed limit. No school, no residential zones, a Hy Vee and a strip mall. So they can have the $70 or so dollars they got from me driving 31 in a 25, but that’s the last dime that whole fake fucking town will see from me.
Windsor Heights years ago tried to get a speed camera placed one I-235 despite not even having an exit ramp at the time.
And the problem with Windsor Heights is it literally can't grow and has a lot of old folks on fixed income, so raising tax is problematic so speed cameras is how it can get more money. This of course is part of the problem with any major metro with a bunch suburbs. Most like Windsor Heights shouldn't exist and be merged together. Clive is another really stupid town.
They fixed that. They changed it from 4 lanes to two lanes in order to naturally slow down traffic.
It’s a residential area as well. Many houses along that road.
And it's 30 mph on University now
Just throw them away.
This is what happens when people don’t pay attention to the laws in their area and double check things.
There is literally zero, zero consequences for ignoring it and never thinking about it again. If they ever change the law, I’m sure you’ll hear about it, but I doubt it, it’d be an administrative and legal nightmare to collect at this point
Yeah uhhhh…. They changed the law so now it goes to collections and if you still don’t pay it comes out of your taxes. It says it right on the ticket.
I mean usually you should be certain of these types of things before you say them. You might want to re-research those laws. Don’t eat the information untrustworthy sources feed you. Don’t trust random sources. The news is not an actual source, just a preliminary one for getting clues where to find better sources.
It’s best to utilize things like the Iowa legislature website or other state/city run websites that state the code word for word.
Cameras are legal, collecting money for them is legal, giving a consequence for not paying them is not currently legal.
They can take civil action. Sure, but that’s not practical or beneficial to do for the city. Not on a wide scale.
And absolutely, positively, 100% guaranteed that they can’t take the money from your STATE taxes. All traffic enforcement cameras are city run. If they wanted to figure out a way to get the money from the local people who live there through taxes, they could, but that doesn’t cover people from out of town, so they won’t and don’t.
Can’t retroactively apply legislation either. The cities in Iowa with traffic enforcement cameras have been turning them off and on for years attempting various ways to gather that revenue, tons have been “forgiven” because they attempted to collect, couldn’t, and gave up.
If a city comes after you for it, fight it, you will win.
And absolutely, positively, 100% guaranteed that they can’t take the money from your STATE taxes.
Are you saying that they can’t LEGALLY do it or that they can’t LOGISTICALLY do it?
I had a city of Des Moines ambulance ride go to collections (long story, they didn’t bill me) and they 100% used this statute to garnish my state tax return to recover the $800 ambulance ride.
After a lengthy discussion, my lawyer neighbor offered to start a class action lawsuit because he believes the statute wouldn’t hold up in court but I didn’t want that kind of heat.
Garnishing your state refund for city fees like parking and speed camera tickets is definitely a thing in Iowa.
https://www.wdm.iowa.gov/government/finance-department/collections
Delinquent invoices turned over to MCA may also be provided to the state of Iowa’s Income Offset Program, which diverts state payments, such as tax refunds, from individuals who owe money to the state or other state agencies such as a city or county.
https://das.iowa.gov/state-accounting/offset-program/participant-information
I mean usually you should be certain of these types of things before you say them.
It’s all handled via DAS - https://das.iowa.gov/state-accounting/offset-program
Logistically, CR attempted once, had to pay half of it back. Legal precedent set there was that it was unlawful. That was in 2020, nothing new since then.
Legally, no, they can’t. Precedent has been set, new laws would need implemented to convince the courts to argue differently, in Iowa. Of course very specific circumstances can create exceptions for that, but you’ll know about it when it happens. Laws don’t get retroactively set.
Also for parking tickets and all that, yea, in some places they can, in Iowa they can’t I believe, based on what I read surrounding the traffic cameras but I didn’t look up that specific legislation to double check there’s nothing else in there. This has been getting argued about for a while and while attempts have been made to make it logistically happen, I don’t believe legally anything has allowed this yet. In certain circumstances, some citizens can definitely be under the impression/fooled to believe from the state that they will incur some sort of punishment for not paying. This is false, and even when the state is telling you, it should always be fact checked. Lawyers are the easiest, most expensive way, most official way to do that, but the legislation is all online.
In these situations, specific legislature may be put in for specific situations. You’ll need to look it up for each individual thing like “parking tickets” or whatever. It’s not too difficult, you do have to be careful, but that’s why court cases and lawsuits are a bit easier to gauge if something is lawful or not. A lot of it is up for debate until it gets to court.
Where did my $800 go then?
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That is new information for me, it does sway my confidence a little bit, but I’d be more interested in holding out further comment until that kind of stuff has resolved.
I’m alright being wrong, this doesn’t actually prove that… yet, just a lot of misinformation here on Reddit based on who knows what. I’m not a lawyer or anything, just a wacko on the internet.
My conclusions from the information are definitely on the more confident side. I’m ok with that, I probably could be a little bit more wary about that confidence on Reddit, but I wasn’t today. It happens.
Thanks for the heads up.
I did this, and it worked...until it didn't. The crooks in the Iowa state tax office worked with the speed camera crooks in Cedar Rapids and got their pound of flesh 4 FRIGGIN YEARS AFTER my wife had originally gotten the ticket in the mail.
The same happened to me. But I got back about half of it back even later after Cedar Rapids lost a class action suit about this process
They put a lien on your license plates, the next time you renew you have to pay the fine or you don't get your license plate.
Hey y'all... Don't I remember reading that if you have these tickets and aren't paying, then when it comes time to renew your license, you have to pay then? Or not get the renew?
These are civil tickets not DOT. They literally mean squat and the town would have to sue ya to get their $$ out of you.
I got my license renewed online I don't remember seeing anything about having tickets but I didn't look real close
Ya, I could be wrong. Or I read that in relation to another state, and not Iowa.
I never paid 2 tickets I got from Prairie City. I recently got a new license and registered my car and there was no mention of it. I got the tickets like a year or two ago.
rom Prairie City. I recently got a new license and registered my car and there was no mention of it. I got the tickets like a year or two ago.
Good to know thanks. I received one in the mail for going 10 over. I was in a different state, granted it was my car. But I was NOT driving. I contested but they upheld the citation. Thinking about not paying because, like I said, it wasn't me.
My question was whether when sold vehicle if you'd have to pay on fine. The ticket says it's from Prairie City PD but not sure if they work with state on collecting since the ticket doesn't go on driving record or insurance...
I'm a Missouri resident and just got one on a trip to Des Moines through Praire City. I don't suppose then they have any recourse against me if I don't pay? They don't issue warrants I hope because I plan on making the same trip next year and don't want to get arrested for not paying this speed camera ticket.
Hi- Missouri resident here who got a ticket in the mail from Prairie City when I was driving to Des Moines for the marathon. We also plan on going back next year, same route, so I’m hoping someone chimes in here!
They’ve sent us one twice -not paying. The ticket was from Prairie City but payment to be mailed to Chattanooga Tenn. illegitimate.
What authorities don’t comprehend is the behavior erodes overall confidence in law enforcement.
THAT’S the behavior that erodes your confidence in law enforcement?!
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Tiny bullet? Tiny problem!
When authorities focus on revenue enhancement in partnership with private contractors, it most certainly diminishes their standing in regards to the general public.
I mean yeah I guess that’s on the list but also like civil forfeiture, arresting and charging journalists with BS crimes (that was literally Des Moines PD), racial disparities in arrests and charges, over-policing neighborhoods with higher minority populations, qualified immunity, and you know… murdering black folks with little to no accountability.
Its real when it actually impacts ME
What authorities don’t comprehend is the behavior erodes overall confidence in law enforcement.
It's not a flaw in the system. Its the way it's by design. They want us broke and afraid.
I got several notices and never paid mine. Nothing happened. I recently got a new license and registered my car. No problems. It's a money grab. Do not pay!
I think the company gets like 50-60% of the revenue. It’s a racket.
Got one there too September 29. I guess I won't pay.
Well if you want social workers to respond to call not police, and you are anti police this seems like a great idea.
What people don't understand is, don't speed and you won't get a ticket
Contractors operating photocop at intersections were caught modifying the stoplight timings to generate more moving violations. Small towns are notorious for setting speed traps with very abrupt rate changes.
I dutifully paid the last ticket issued by uniformed patrol WHICH I SIGNED as an acknowledgment that I was the driver.
You don't see automated ticketing as an issue? What's next - we get jaywalking tickets based on GPS data? Cars publish your speed to law enforcement? To quote Edward Snowden: "America’s fundamental laws exist to make the job of law enforcement not easier but harder. This isn’t a bug, it’s a core feature of democracy"
In the case of speeding cameras. There are TONS of signs on 380 warning drivers there are speeding cameras and there is ample time to adjust your speed. If you live in the area you just already know they are there. If you use Google maps it warns you that there are traffic cameras. Yet people CHOOSE to ignore all the signs. Action meets consequence.
It sounds like you'd be OK if a vehicle's software reported your speed to insurance and law enforcement agencies, and any time you were to speed, you'd get a ticket, and your insurance would increase. Is this accurate? In this case, you'd know this was the case, and if you were to speed, you'd choose to do so; therefore, your actions would meet the consequences. Maybe we could automate every single possible offense!
This was clearly a cash grab. The mayor would rather set up speeding cameras to bring in revenue than raise taxes. When speeding tickets make up 47% of your revenue, you have a problem. My main issue with the camera on 163 was that people were getting tickets for going just 5 over the limit. I think they have since raised it.
Exactly. This town of 2000 pop. brought in $2 mil. in revenue, while Des Moines brought in $1 mil in revenue in same time frame from cameras.
Also, if you have this many people speeding that it is driving the budget like this, something is clearly wrong. Either your speed limit is set too low or your road design in that area is poor. Either they need to raise the limit, or they need to be looking at redesigning things in those sections of road to add natural traffic calming elements that will cause people to slow down. But generating this amount of revenue off of the people over the limit disincentivizes doing either of those things
Honestly, it feels entirely intentional.
Find a road that is super wide (as we do with every freaking road here), drop the speed limit 10MPH, install camera, profit.
It's straight up malice. Not concerned for public safety, only the revenue.
Not sure about the 25mph zone but their other hot spot is Hwy 163, which will never go to 70 for speed limit. Most people go 70-80 on there and then have to slam on their breaks around PC.
How? The supreme court made speed camera tickets uninforceable - they can't be sent to collections or impact your credit score, and don't apply to to your driving history without court order.
Unless you've racked up dozens in the past year or two, it's always a net loss to try and prosecute, and all you have to do is claim you wern't the one driving the vehicle and then plead the fifth, and they can't convict - this is why the SC prevented them from being sent to collections or hitting your credit score, the rear plate cameras can't prove who was driving so the state can't demonstrate fault, or levy fines on the owner.
E: I was incorrect, the SC has apparently made a major U turn on this in 2019. https://www.thegazette.com/government-politics/iowa-supreme-court-again-sides-with-cedar-rapids-on-speed-cameras/
Depressing, everything I say below is how it used to, and should be.
They can take them from your state tax return, it’s their only recourse
still means failure to pay will result in a bench warrant... so either way you are going to court...
the police have a saying... you can beat the ticket/charges but you won't beat the cuffs/ride.
Similar thing here except you still have the inconvenience of going to court and pleading your case.
No the fines aren't automatically enforceable, a DA would have to push the case, prove you were driving, and get a court order for payment. The state can't assess fines without proof of wrong doing - the cams can't prove who was driving.
The cities can send letters to the car owner telling them to pay - they are uninforceable without court order, and unless you owe into the thousands in fines it's not worth the cost to try and push charges.
This is how it’s supposed to work but the DA works with criminal matters at the district level, your issue with your red light ticket is a traffic matter, which is a separate issue from the DA, it’s more up to your local city attorney and if they want to seem “tough on crime” they’ll chase every ticket they can.
Downvote me all you want it’s just how the system works.
"I wasn't driving my vehicle, I'm not obliged to say who was, per the 5th, the state has no substantial evidence to convict me personally."
If the DA wants to harass people they can, but that is the logic by which the SC ruled them uninforceable. State can't prove it was you speeding.
Again it’s not up to a district attorney… it’s up to your local city attorney… DA won’t take traffic tickets unless it’s a criminal offense against the state is involved. DA is busy harassing people for smoking pot.
Wrong! I got a speed camera ticket in Iowa and when you do not pay it, it goes against you. It will show up on your driving record and when you go to renew plates or update your DL, guess what? Pay up. It does not matter if they cannot see who is driving. It is your vehicle. If the vehicle is stolen there should be a police report that you filed as proof.
This is a load of horseshit.
Due process, otherwise they can eat shit.
Ive updated my registration twice with multiple unpaid camera tickets. Thats just my personal experience, but im thinking its probably similar for most people in DSM.
It does not show up on your driving record. Thats just...not true.
Unless this has changed in the last few years, every ticket I got, as every damn camera found me said on it, it can go on your license if unpaid. Plus you will pay late penalty later, and when you do renew you may not be able. It all depends on if they are going to stick it to you.
What happens if I don't pay my speed camera ticket in Iowa?
For any traffic or traffic related offense, if you have not paid the court debt 30 days after it was assessed by a court order, your driver's license will be suspended by the Department of Transportation. Your driver's license or motor vehicle registration may be suspended until you enter into a payment plan.
Call the DMV and ask them. Read the ticket that you get. It says it right on there.
Why would I? I processed my renewal 2 years in a row without paying. Clearly I don't actually have to pay camera tickets.
It may catch up to you later. Just sayin.
I called was told this.
What happens if I don't pay my speed camera ticket in Iowa?
For any traffic or traffic related offense, if you have not paid the court debt 30 days after it was assessed by a court order, your driver's license will be suspended by the Department of Transportation. Your driver's license or motor vehicle registration may be suspended until you enter into a payment plan.
Sounds like you fell for the governmemt line my friend.
Well it said it on my ticket, so when you try to renew one year do not be shocked when you have to pay plus penalty MY FRIEND.
I bet you do not pay your student loans either.
While it is true that the speed camera citation is not an Iowa Traffic Code Violation, but actually a civil code (municipal/city ordinance) infraction. If you do not pay them in a timely fashion (the timeframe I am not familiar with… likely 90-120 days), they cannot go against your DOT record or driver’s license like an actual traffic ticket.
So now you can rest assured that as a civil infraction, your insurance should not go up. But what about paying one of these infractions or, not paying it? Sheriff Thompson does not advise tearing up the ticket and throwing it in the trash.
...They can place a civil lien against your license plates, so when you try to renew your registration, the penalty can catch up to you there. That is but one way that the city can collect the fine… there are several civil remedies available to them.
In other words, if you get a speeding ticket via a traffic camera in Cedar Rapids, the city can come after you. Get one in Waterloo, they can do the same.
Read More: Should You Skip Out on Iowa Traffic Camera Tickets? | https://krna.com/iowa-traffic-cameras/?utm\_source=tsmclip&utm\_medium=referral
My wife got one recently from the stupid camera on 163 in PC. I'm looking right at the notice right now. It says "Please take notice that the vehicle described and pictures herein was photographed violating public safety by exceeding the posted speed. Therefore, under Prairie City Ordinance 380, as the registered owner(s) or lessee, you are liable for the Violation. The penalty for this Violation is $100. No points will be assessed against your driver's license
They had to do the last part because they can't prove who was behind the wheel when it happened. Which was the big part of the case that was before the state SC when they originally ruled them unenforceable. But somehow another case got put before a different set of SC judges and they ruled the opposite way. Yay legislating from the bench.
It doesn't need to be stolen, they can't hold you personally liable without proof you committed a crime, and you're not obliged to say who was driving per the fifth. Doesn't matter if you were in the car at the time, the fine has to go to the driver, the state has no evidence of who was driving.
The Supreme Court is bought and paid for now too. It’s going to get worse before it gets better unfortunately
The people defending this shit are the same people who said "you have nothing to worry about if you have nothing to hide."
These braindead losers sold out your right to privacy already. Next up - your right to due process.
If you can't prove it was me driving, I'm not going to pay your ticket.
There's another shitty little small town in Iowa called Le Claire that has a speed camera on I-80 out by Davenport. You'll get a ticket in the mail for going 5 over on the interstate. Pretty sure it's also 65 there instead of 70. It's fucking insane.
Been there for decades. The I-80 bridge ovee the Mississippi drops down from Illinois right into their city limits, on I80. Bridge is on a steep decline towards Iowa, so people routinely go over the speed limit, often by a lot. LeClaire Cops will either sit in the median, or on the first overpass.
Yep. Dad and wife got nailed by this one in the last year. That town has to be rich as fuck since installing that thing.
and it gets interstate traffic! We all complained about that also.
Watch out for Strawberry Point too
My dad got a ticket from strawberry point going 6-10 over? Says $75 but he's from out of town and says he wasn't speeding. Would he have to pay this?
MO generally isn't a model to be copying these days, but they had similar issues with small towns giving little to no warning about speed limit drops and raking in the cash from speeding violations -- MO state passed a law that said no municipality can make more than 10-20% of their revenue from speeding tickets.
Doesn't stop this practice completely, but certainly doesn't allow it to be a big, big moneymaker.
If excessive speed was deemed unsafe, that officer had a clear duty to pull over the speeder and issue the citation right there. Sending a bill in the mail implies that issuing speed citations is about revenue generation and not about safety.
All fines like this should go to the state general fund, especially if you look at the way Prairie City hooks a little bit of their city limits over the state highway so they can extract tickets from travelers, but not provide any services.
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The Iowa State Supreme Court in 2019 ruled they were legal.
The way I've always wanted to challenge this in court: there is no way for them to prove you were driving with most of these cameras. When I got one of these tickets in FL (not sure if it's the same), it asked me to provide the name of who was driving the car if it wasn't me. But I have 0 legal obligation to help the police do their job. Saying "it wasn't me" places the burden of proof on the police to prove it was.
More beer money for Kimmy!
I always assumed she was more of a Wild Turkey or Black Velvet kind of drunk.
andddd what are they doing with the money? lol
They nailed me once. $100 for going 76 in a 65.
I just got my ticket in the mail today for 76 in a 65. And the guy in the news story also was magically going 11 over as well. Coincidence?
How do they afford the lobbyist's to keep it legal? ohhh wait....
We need the kind of camera retaliation they practice in the UK.
I always show down and speed back up once I pass this camera lol. Mile marker 18 on 163. That highway could easily bump the speed limit up to 75mph, cars are safer than they were in the 70s
Cars may be safer but people aren’t. Lots of people pull out onto the roadway with no clue or care of how fast the vehicles are traveling on the highway.
But it's for $afety.
No sympathy from me. 11 over in a 25mph zone? That's like 30% too fast. If you're trying to walk across the street, or trying to pull out, people going that fast ARE a hazard. I live in DSM and need to use 31st to get to the freeway. Speed limit is 30 miles an hour but people coming off the freeway frequently are doing 40 plus. I defy you to pull out in front of those people to do a 90° turn in a 25 ft arc in the amount of time that you get from these 40 mph cars. It's basically impossible. So if these cameras help slow down the traffic to the legal limit, I'm all for it. What I do think is bs, is 40% going to an out-of-state for profit company.
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It doesn't deter speeding if you don't know about it until you get a ticket in the mail...
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I'm not going to argue semantics around the language I used, you're saying you're ok with a system where the burden of proof is on the citizen to prove to the state that their charge is bullshit? Cuz usually it's up to the state to provide proof that their charge is warranted before a defense is necessary. This is the opposite of that.
Ya, that's a separate issue for sure, and is screwed up. As I mentioned, I hate the fact that this isn't run by the state so that all the funds created are used for things like stated in the article.
Side note, come on you speeders, you can surely get more down votes than that. Hell, I'll log into my throwaway and down vote so that you don't feel so alone.
The problem is that they don't actively deter speeders. An officer there actively slows down traffic. A camera does passively slow down locals (briefly), who know about the camera. But it does nothing to slow down people visiting the area and don't know about the cameras. So, then it's just a money generator tourist speed trap.
Then, the other issue is the due process rights. Most of these cameras are set up so that if you want to appeal the ticket, you go in front of a board, set up by the local police station, not a judge. That's now how our system of government is supposed to work! You're supposed to get an opportunity to go in front of a judge who will determine the case. Not a board of cronies chosen by the department that set up the cameras.
Not to mention the 6th amendment issue. You have the right to face your accuser. Obligatory not a lawyer, but my understanding is a law can not circumvent a right.
But it does nothing to slow down people visiting the area and don't know about the cameras
Hypothetically, once there are enough cameras in every town and county then everyone everywhere will just assume there's cameras at every intersection.
The problem is they don't want to do that, because then the revenue stream disappears. There's a perverse incentive to encourage speeding so the cameras still generate cash. If there were too many cameras people would just never speed anywhere, and then how would they pay for the cameras??
Specifically referring to I380 but there are TONS of signs that warn drivers that there are speeding cameras ahead. If that doesn't change your mind to slow down then you deserve the fine they mail you.
If the owner is the driver. Remember, they ticket the vehicle owner, not necessarily the driver. This is another legal issue I didn't bring up before. What other instance(s) is it acceptable to potentially charge a person who didn't commit the offense?
The problem is that's not where the camras are located, which tells you the most of the time they have zero to do with safety. The portion of 235 that has the cameras never had an issue with a lot of accidents and that hasn't changed over time. It's a money grab, plain and simple.
Agreed. Thats not a part of 235 that has many accidents anyway. Its all about the benjamins.
I can't disagree with the primary objective being a cash grab. And then they use the reduction in avg speed as justification. But that didn't negate my previous point.
I don't like speed cameras don't get me wrong....but if you are in a 25 or 35mph while in a city and you knowingly speed....you deserve the ticket. Now, on a 4-lane passing through/by a larger city? Different story but these cameras in Prairie City seem to be in the aforementioned speed zones. Good for the city
They hooked a little bit of their city limits out over state highway 163, which is a 4 lane highway. I'm sure that is what is generating the majority of their tickets.
ahhhh maybe I missed that part then. I had to check a map to be sure but there is no reason for them to pulling tickets from hwy 163. Fuck that noise but I stand by what I said in regards to 25/35 zones
mr. mayor??
lmao, if only
I can't even look at my gas pedal without breaking 25. If your car is in drive you can hit 25 just rolling down a modest hill.
If anything should be illegal it's a 25mph speed limit on a fucking Highway.
....cars idle at like 5mph....just say you are bad at driving lmao
If you think idling at 5mph on the highway is okay, I don't think you're in any position to judge who is a bad driver.
you completely missed my point which also proves my point, thank you
How can they prove you were driving the car?
Seriously, why can we get these banned in this state? Every year a republican bring this up and no democrats support it. I don't get why this is a partisan issue.
The Republicans control the government, they should be able to get it done.
I'll have to double check, but as I recall, not enough Republicans supported it. For years they have the majority, if they wanted them gone they could have done it. You have to admit they passed every other single thing that they wanted, they must like these cameras and to be honest this is the modus operandi of the rental administration. GOP is all about moving money from citizens to Private industry.
ok, some republicans held out. What about democrats?
I don't see the point. GOP has total control. The house, the Senate and the Gov. And the gov has her own personal Attorneys General. Dems couldn't stop a bill if their lives depends on it. Tell me you don't pay attention to politics without telling me you don't pay attention to politics.
we don't have very many of them anymore.
Conservatives: We need to stop the communist, socialist, sinister, groomer, Antifa, globalist agenda by any means necessary. The liberal cabal is indoctrinating kids with CRT and litter boxes.
Also conservatives: why won’t you work with us????!!!! Why does everything have to be partisan?
What do speed cameras have to do with any of this? So are you saying the each party should just vote opposite of the other party on every issue just because?
I’m saying conservatives/republicans/MAGAs like to engage in hyper partisanship even though they have had 7 years of full control of state government. Even with 7 years of control they are somehow still blaming Democrats for problems.
You, the voter, see speed cameras as something that both parties could regulate. But because of hyper partisanship both sides don’t have an incentive to negotiate on an issue like this.
Go drink your raw milk, attend a Moms for Liberty meeting, and apply for your Jesus school voucher. You got what you voted for.
I actually voted for Suresh Reddy, who is a democrat so....
Your post history is frequently critical of Democrat opposition to Republican legislation and leans supportive of the Republican legislation.
While I understand not everyone is 100$ one side or the other Democrats tend to get more undeserving blame.
I see no way with this legislature that a bipartisan bill for traffic cameras would pass.
A Democrat introduced bill wouldn’t even get out of committee. I would have to understand Republican/Democrat viewpoints on traffic cameras better but I don’t see Democrats using any negotiation power they may have on a traffic on a bi-partisan traffic camera bill.
Correct, I don't just vote straight down the party line.
I know it's shocking but I find things I disagree/agree with on both sides. I'm pro choice, I think the 32 trillion in debt is a huge problem that needs to be addressed by both spending cuts as well as raising taxes, I support gay marriage, I don't think anyone born a man should be able to compete in woman's sports, I think climate change is real, I took and support vaccines but I think requiring them was insane, I don't believe the U.S. can properly handle Universal Healthcare, I think we should send back every person crossing the border illegally, I think we should increase legal immigration, I think property taxes in the DSM metro are ridiculous, I oppose speed cameras, I never voted for Trump, I did vote for Ron Paul, I voted for Biden because I thought he was the least offensive of the two, etc.
LeClaire Iowa is another small town making a ton of money. For those of you that are anti police here is your solution, just put up a camera we can send you ticket.
I called my local DMV and got this response.
What happens if I don't pay my speed camera ticket in Iowa?
For any traffic or traffic related offense, if you have not paid the court debt 30 days after it was assessed by a court order, your driver's license will be suspended by the Department of Transportation. Your driver's license or motor vehicle registration may be suspended until you enter into a payment plan.
Yeah, these don't get a court order though as they're not a criminal offense. The city, if it chooses, has to go to court to seek a judgment which generally does not happen because cities don't want to spend the money on attorney fees.
Prairie city no more Goldie’s for us.
We all know why they use cameras. If you think cops are worried about your safety just look at some of the Uvalde school shooting footage.
Don’t speed. Problem solved. I’m so tired of entitles drivers acting like they shouldn’t receive consequences for breaking the law. You absolutely should be ticketed for going 11 over the speed limit. As long as there is adequate signage indicating the presence of speed cameras, I’m fine with them because they are a non-biased way to enforce traffic laws.
The government totally sucks
Ironically I just got a ticket in the mail for going 11 over in Prairie City after leaving Pella. As a Minnesotan do you think they have any means of recourse against me if I don't pay it?
I wouldn’t pay it as an Iowan lol
These tickets aren’t enforceable. DO NOT PAY THEM.
nogasforiowa is something I saw. I'm out of state and I make every effort not to spend a penny in Iowa. They get zero dollars of roaduse tax or tourism from me.
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3mo
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3mo
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those things are a joke I haven't been through to or even close to cedar rapids for many years but here a year or two ago I got one of those in the mail saying I was speeding🤔 I can't remember if it was my wife or my daughter had my Tahoe but how can the supreme Court rule that it's not unconstitutional when you're not even driving it but the tickets written out to you that makes no sense 🤦
I don’t care about speed cameras per se, but some places combine a speed camera with an absurd speed limit drop and use it to exploit people.
Windsor Heights had theres on University, a 4 lane road through a commercial area, and a 25 mph speed limit. No school, no residential zones, a Hy Vee and a strip mall. So they can have the $70 or so dollars they got from me driving 31 in a 25, but that’s the last dime that whole fake fucking town will see from me.