NDP: "Proceeds From Photo Radar Should Remain With Municipalities"
MJ Independent
It's been finalized. Those photo radar boxes you seen around town are here to stay. The Sask Party has made them officially permanent.
With this change comes some controversy. The government opposition NDP is calling the Sask Party out for, in words the of Doyle Fox, NDP Caucus, "scooping proceeds from photo radar tickets into the province’s general revenue fund. Revenue that was previously distributed to municipalities for local traffic safety initiatives and programs will now be administered by the province instead, with 25% diverted directly to the general revenue fund."
The NDP says that proceeds from photo radar fines should remain with municipalities.
“The Sask. Party hasn’t balked at any opportunity to offload additional costs onto municipalities, and now they’re unilaterally changing the rules to deny municipalities this needed revenue,” said NDP SGI Critic Carla Beck. “This cash grab is a direct hit on cities’ ability to invest in needed infrastructure that will serve the community and make it safer.”
She also added: “This looks like nothing more than a cash grab from a government desperate to plug the holes in its budget. It's not fair for municipalities to have to give up this revenue stream because the Sask. Party has so badly managed the province’s finances."
We spoke with Moose Jaw North MLA and asked him to comment on whether or not this move is a cash grab. He said "this is not about revenue. We are hoping there will be less revenue, because our goal is zero tickets and zero crashes. People who obey speed limits don't get speeding tickets."
Michelson also responded about the money remaining with municipalities:
“It is not just residents of Moose Jaw who get PSE tickets in Moose Jaw. The Highway 1 location results in a lot of tickets from people passing through. However, if municipalities have a camera, they will get a portion of the ticket revenue it generates to invest in traffic safety initiatives. We want all communities to be able to receive funds to improve traffic safety as well. The new Provincial Traffic Safety Fund is a way for all communities to benefit from the revenues of the program.”
Beck said if the purpose of the photo radar program is to improve road safety, as the minister has claimed, then the revenues should stay with local traffic safety initiatives and programs, not be skimmed into the general revenue fund.
Doyle Fox added that "the concern remains that revenues previously shared 50/50 with municipalities to fund local traffic safety initiatives will now be administered entirely by the province, stripping hundreds of thousands of dollars from those municipalities’ traffic safety programs each year."
SGI will continue to divert 25% of photo radar revenues to the general fund, as it has done in the past.
To read MLA Michelson’s entire commentary on the photo radar controversy click here
Read: A Financial Breakdown of Photo Radar and find out exactly how much money those machines bring in and cost to maintain
