Chapter 640
AN ACT
HB 2508
Relating to photo red light; amending ORS
810.434 and 810.436.
Be It Enacted by the People of
the State of
SECTION 1. ORS 810.434 is amended to read:
810.434. (1) Any city [with a
population of 30,000 or more] may, at its own cost, operate cameras
designed to photograph drivers who violate ORS 811.265 by failing to obey a
traffic control device. [Notwithstanding
the population requirement of this section, the City of
(2) Cameras operated
under this section may be mounted on street lights or put in other suitable
places.
(3) A city that chooses
to operate a camera shall:
(a) Provide a public
information campaign to inform local drivers about the use of cameras before
citations are actually issued; and
(b) Once each biennium,
conduct a process and outcome evaluation for the purposes of subsection (4) of
this section that includes:
(A) The effect of the
use of cameras on traffic safety;
(B) The degree of public
acceptance of the use of cameras; and
(C) The process of
administration of the use of cameras.
(4) By March 1 of the
year of each regular session of the Legislative Assembly[:],
[(a) The Department of Transportation shall provide to the Legislative
Assembly an executive summary of the process and outcome evaluations conducted
by cities under subsection (3) of this section; and]
[(b)] each city that operates a camera under this section shall
present to the Legislative Assembly the process and outcome evaluation
conducted by the city under subsection (3) of this section.
[(5)(a) Except as otherwise provided in
paragraph (b) of this subsection, a city authorized to operate cameras under
this section may not operate the cameras at more than eight intersections in
the city.]
[(b) A city with a population of 300,000 or more may not operate cameras
at more than 12 intersections in the city.]
SECTION 2. ORS 810.436 is amended to read:
810.436. (1)
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, if a city [authorized to do so by ORS 810.434] chooses to operate a camera
that complies with this section and ORS 810.434, a citation for violation of
ORS 811.265 may be issued on the basis of photographs from a camera taken
without the presence of a police officer if the following conditions are met:
(a) Signs are posted, so
far as is practicable, on all major routes entering the jurisdiction indicating
that compliance with traffic control devices is enforced through cameras.
(b) For each traffic
control device at which a camera is installed, signs indicating that a camera
may be in operation at the device are posted before the device at a location
near the device.
(c) If the traffic
control device is a traffic light, the yellow light shows for at least the
length of time recommended by the standard set by the
(d) The citation is
mailed to the registered owner of the vehicle, or to the driver if
identifiable, within 10 business days of the alleged violation.
(e) The registered owner
is given 30 days from the date the citation is mailed to respond to the
citation.
(f) A police officer who
has reviewed the photograph signs the citation. The citation may be prepared on
a digital medium, and the signature may be electronic in accordance with the
provisions of ORS 84.001 to 84.061.
(2) If the person named
as the registered owner of a vehicle in the current records of the Department
of Transportation fails to respond to a citation issued under subsection (1) of
this section, a default judgment under ORS 153.102 may be entered for failure
to appear after notice has been given that the judgment will be entered.
(3) A rebuttable
presumption exists that the registered owner of the vehicle was the driver of
the vehicle when the citation was issued and delivered as provided in this
section.
(4) A person issued a
citation under subsection (1) of this section may respond to the citation by
submitting a certificate of innocence or a certificate of nonliability under
subsection (6) of this section or any other response allowed by law.
(5) A citation for
violation of ORS 811.265 issued on the basis of photographs from a camera
installed as provided in this section and ORS 810.434 may be delivered by mail
or otherwise to the registered owner of the vehicle or to the driver if the
driver is identifiable from the photograph.
(6)(a) A registered
owner of a vehicle may respond by mail to a citation issued under subsection
(1) of this section by submitting, within 30 days from the mailing of the
citation, a certificate of innocence swearing or affirming that the owner was
not the driver of the vehicle and by providing a photocopy of the owner’s
driver license. A jurisdiction that receives a certificate of innocence under
this paragraph shall dismiss the citation without requiring a court appearance
by the registered owner or any other information from the registered owner
other than the swearing or affirmation and the photocopy. The citation may be
reissued only once, only to the registered owner and only if the jurisdiction
verifies that the registered owner appears to have been the driver at the time
of the violation. A registered owner may not submit a certificate of innocence
in response to a reissued citation.
(b) If a business or
public agency responds to a citation issued under subsection (1) of this
section by submitting, within 30 days from the mailing of the citation, a
certificate of nonliability stating that at the time of the alleged violation
the vehicle was in the custody and control of an employee or was in the custody
and control of a renter or lessee under the terms of a motor vehicle rental
agreement or lease, and if the business or public agency provides the driver
license number, name and address of the employee, renter or lessee, the
citation shall be dismissed with respect to the business or public agency. The
citation may then be reissued and delivered by mail or otherwise to the
employee, renter or lessee identified in the certificate of nonliability.
(7) The penalties for
and all consequences of a violation of ORS 811.265 initiated by the use of a
camera installed as provided in this section and ORS 810.434 are the same as
for a violation initiated by any other means.
(8) A registered owner
or an employee, renter or lessee against whom a judgment for failure to appear
is entered may move the court to relieve the owner or the employee, renter or
lessee from the judgment as provided in ORS 153.105 if the failure to appear
was due to mistake, inadvertence, surprise or excusable neglect.
Approved by the Governor June 26, 2007
Filed in the office of Secretary of State June 27, 2007
Effective date January 1, 2008
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