An Arizona lawmaker has plate," Moloney said. "I
proposed a statewide ban on would say save the money and
covers or substances used to control your right foot."
obstruct photo-enforcement Joe Scott, public relations
systems from capturing officer for Harrisburg, Pa.,-
license plate information. based PhantomPlate, disagrees.
Rep. Steve Farley, D-Tucson, "Our products have been
who authored the bill, said a tested by several police
ban would help prevent departments ... and numerous
lawbreakers from escaping the TV stations, and the products
consequences of speeding or work when they are tested,"
red-light running. Scott said.
"We should not allow people Consumers use covers and
who are breaking the law to sprays to protect themselves
conceal their identity," he from unfair invasions of
said. privacy, he said, adding that
Current law allows officers the public tends to distrust
to cite drivers who obstruct reports from the police about
their plates from view, but their effectiveness.
HB 2013 would specifically "Every time the cops say the
prohibit the use of covers, product doesn't work, our
films or substances designed sales go through the roof,"
to look normal but hide the he said. "Why would they make
plate during the flash from a a product illegal if it
photo enforcement system. didn't work?"
Mark Clark, a spokesman for Restricting covers and
Scottsdale Police Department, substances might result in a
said license covers make greater number of citations
enforcement difficult because and tickets, but Farley said
officers who review the his bill wasn't motivated by
images cannot issue citations a need to increase revenue.
without driver and plate "This isn{hbox}t about a
information. revenue issue," he said. "The
But plate covers don't work cities and counties who are
every time, he said, and using this are seeing that
officers can stake out areas it{hbox}s not increasing
where repeat offenders, known their revenues as much as it
as "frequent fliers," tend to is increasing safety on the
drive. roadways."
"It's 50-50 whether they The real issue is preventing
actually block the photo potential speeders and light
radar," Clark said. runners from taking the risk
Bill Moloney, Scottsdale's in the first place, Farley
program manager for photo said.
enforcement, said about 2,100, But Scott said bans only
or 4 percent, of the roughly promote the private interests
54,000 photos captured by his of companies that contract
department's cameras in 2010 with cities to run photo
couldn't result in citations radar systems.
due to plate obstruction or "If people didn't run red
illegibility. lights, then the companies
"The strobes are so powerful behind those cameras would be
that they tend to blast out of business," he said.
through, and you're "And they aren't in the
reasonably able to discern business of going out of
characters on the license business."
Tags: Arizona, bill, covers, license, plate, targets
