SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV) — After years of complaints from drivers, a bill was introduced in the state house this month could ban school zone speeding cameras in Georgia.
Savannah State Rep. Ron Stephens is one of the sponsors of House Bill 225, the bill that would eliminate the school zone cameras.
"A few years ago, we allowed for cameras to go in schools to slow folks down," Stephens said. "They have not worked the way that we anticipated."
A piece of legislation passed in 2018 is what allowed cameras in school zones to begin with.
Since then, many Georgia drivers claim the cameras have targeted them unfairly.
"I'm a habitual one mile over violator, and I have had several of them," Mellanie Ferguson, a Chatham County driver and parent, said. "It's a nuisance. I love the idea of it, but it's to the point now where the very last one wasn't even sent to my house, and they suspended my registration. I had to pay that before I could get my registration back in my car."
According to the 2018 law, speeding fines should only be issued for drivers who go more than ten miles over the posted speed limit. The original legislation also said that fines should only be issued during school hours or one hour before and after.
"It was in the afternoon, like 6 p.m. to be honest with you, and it said I was speeding 35," Amanda Mills, also a Chatham County driver and parent, said. "I was doing the actual speed limit, but it caught me for the school zone time."
Another stipulation in the 2018 law is that all speeding fines collected in school zones should go toward improving school safety measures.
Stephens said that hasn't happened, either.
"You put these school zone cameras in place, and the revenue goes back to the taxing authority," he said. "That's the county or the city. Schools don't get one dime of that to upgrade their safety."
Lawmakers have yet to vote on HB 225, but if the bill passes in the state house, it will go to the state senate.