HB 741 2023
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to photographic enforcement of school 2
bus safety; creating s. 316.616, F.S.; defining the 3
terms "school bus" and "side stop signal arm 4
enforcement system"; authorizing school districts to 5
install and operate side stop signal arm enforcement 6
systems on school buses; requiring school districts to 7
post certain warning signs or stickers on such buses; 8
authorizing school districts to contract with a 9
private vendor or manufacturer to provide side stop 10
signal arm enforcement systems; requiring a sc hool 11
district to enter into a certain interlocal agreement 12
with one or more law enforcement agencies to establish 13
certain responsibilities; requiring manufacturers and 14
vendors to submit specified information to such law 15
enforcement agencies within a specif ied timeframe; 16
requiring such law enforcement agencies to review such 17
information to determine whether a violation occurred 18
and electronically certify a notice of violation under 19
certain circumstances; providing that certain 20
certificates sworn to or affirm ed by a law enforcement 21
officer are prima facie evidence; providing that 22
recorded images evidencing a violation shall be 23
admissible in any judicial or administrative 24
proceeding; providing a rebuttable presumption; 25
HB 741 2023
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
providing notice requirements and procedur es; 26
authorizing motor vehicle owners served a notice of 27
violation to take certain actions; providing that 28
payment of the fine operates as a final disposition of 29
the civil penalty; providing notice requirements and 30
procedures for unpaid civil penalties; req uiring the 31
Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to 32
refuse to renew the registration of motor vehicles and 33
prohibit the transfer of title under specified 34
circumstances; requiring the department to remove 35
penalties imposed on a motor vehicle owner upon 36
notification of proof of payment; requiring that side 37
stop signal arm enforcement system equipment be 38
incapable of automated or user -controlled remote 39
surveillance; specifying requirements of and 40
prohibitions on the use of recorded video and still 41
images captured by the side stop signal arm 42
enforcement system; providing that a motor vehicle 43
owner is not responsible for a violation if the 44
vehicle was reported stolen at the time the violation 45
occurred; providing construction; providing a civil 46
penalty; providing for distribution of such penalty; 47
requiring school districts operating a side stop 48
signal arm enforcement system to provide a summary 49
report to the Governor, the Legislature, and the 50
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
department annually by a specified date; requiring the 51
State Board of Education to establish specifications 52
for testing a side stop signal arm enforcement system 53
at regular intervals; authorizing the state board to 54
adopt rules; amending s. 1006.21, F.S.; conforming a 55
provision to changes made by the act; providing an 56
effective date. 57
58
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 59
60
Section 1. Section 316.616, Florida Statutes, is created 61
to read: 62
316.616 School buses; side stop signal arm enforcement 63
system.— 64
(1) As used in this section, the ter m: 65
(a) "School bus" has the same meaning as provided in s. 66
316.6145. 67
(b) "Side stop signal arm enforcement system" means a 68
camera system affixed to a school bus with two or more camera 69
sensors or computers that produce recorded video and two or more 70
film or digital photographic still images for the purpose of 71
documenting a motor vehicle being used or operated in a manner 72
that allegedly violates s. 316.172. 73
(2)(a) A school district may install and operate a side 74
stop signal arm enforcement system on a school bus for the 75
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
purpose of enforcing s. 316.172. The school district shall post 76
a warning sign or sticker on all school buses in which a system 77
is installed and operational indicating the use of such system. 78
(b) The school district may contract with a private vendor 79
or manufacturer to provide a side stop signal arm enforcement 80
system on each bus within its fleet, whether owned, contracted, 81
or leased, and for services including, but not limited to, the 82
installation, operation, and maintenance of the sys tem. The 83
school district's decision to establish a side stop signal arm 84
enforcement system must be based solely on the need to increase 85
public safety. 86
(c) The school district shall ensure that the side stop 87
signal arm enforcement system meets the require ments of 88
subsection (12). 89
(d) The school district shall enter into an interlocal 90
agreement with one or more law enforcement agencies authorized 91
to enforce violations of s. 316.172 within the geographic area 92
of the school district which jointly establishe s the 93
responsibilities of enforcement and the reimbursement of costs 94
associated with side stop signal arm enforcement system 95
violations consistent with this section. 96
(3) Each private manufacturer or vendor shall, within 30 97
days after an alleged violation is captured, submit the 98
following information to a law enforcement agency that has 99
entered into an interlocal agreement with the school district 100
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pursuant to paragraph (2)(d): 101
(a) A copy of the recorded image showing the motor 102
vehicle. 103
(b) The license plate number and state of issuance of the 104
motor vehicle. 105
(c) The date, time, and place of the alleged violation. 106
(4)(a) Each law enforcement agency that has entered into 107
an interlocal agreement with a school district pursuant to 108
paragraph (2)(d) shall review the information submitted by the 109
private manufacturer or vendor as provided under subsection (3) 110
to determine whether there is sufficient evidence that a 111
violation of s. 316.172 occurred and, if the evidence shows a 112
violation occurred, shall electro nically certify a notice of 113
violation. 114
(b) A certificate or a facsimile of a certificate based on 115
inspection of recorded images produced by a side stop signal arm 116
enforcement system and sworn to or affirmed by a law enforcement 117
officer authorized to enfo rce violations pursuant to paragraph 118
(2)(d) shall be prima facie evidence of the facts contained in 119
it. Upon request by the law enforcement agency, the school 120
district shall provide written documentation that the side stop 121
signal arm enforcement system was operating correctly at the 122
time of the alleged violation. 123
(c) A recorded image evidencing a violation of s. 316.172 124
shall be admissible in any judicial or administrative proceeding 125
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
to adjudicate the liability for the violation. 126
(d) A rebuttable presum ption shall exist that the 127
registered owner of the motor vehicle was the driver at the time 128
of the alleged violation. 129
(5)(a) Within 30 days after receiving the information 130
provided under subsection (3), a law enforcement agency 131
authorized to enforce viol ations pursuant to paragraph (2)(d) or 132
an agent authorized by such law enforcement agency shall send by 133
first-class mail a notice of violation to the registered owner 134
of the motor vehicle involved in the violation. Mailing the 135
notice of violation constitut es notification. 136
(b) In the case of joint ownership of a motor vehicle, the 137
notice of violation shall be mailed to the first name appearing 138
on the registration. However, if the first name appearing on the 139
registration is a business entity, the second nam e appearing on 140
the registration may be used. 141
(c) The notice of violation must include all of the 142
following: 143
1. A copy of the recorded image showing the motor vehicle 144
involved in the violation. 145
2. A citation for the violation indicating the date, time , 146
and location of the alleged violation. 147
3. The amount of the civil penalty and the date by which 148
such penalty must be paid. 149
4. A copy of the certificate described in subsection (4) 150
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and a statement of the inference therein. 151
5. Instructions on how to request a hearing to contest 152
liability or notice. 153
6. A warning that failure to pay the civil penalty or to 154
contest liability within 30 days after the notice is mailed 155
shall waive the right to contest liability. 156
(d) The registered owner of the motor veh icle involved in 157
a violation may: 158
1. Admit responsibility for the violation and pay the fine 159
as indicated on the notice of violation. Payment of the fine 160
operates as a final disposition of the civil penalty; or 161
2. Within 20 days after receiving the not ice of violation, 162
request a hearing in a county court to contest the violation. 163
(6)(a) If a violation has not been contested and the civil 164
penalty has not been paid within 30 days after a notice required 165
under subsection (5) is mailed, the law enforcemen t agency or an 166
agent authorized by the law enforcement agency shall send by 167
first-class mail a final notice of the unpaid civil penalty. The 168
final notice must inform the registered owner of the motor 169
vehicle that the law enforcement agency or the agent aut horized 170
by the law enforcement agency shall send an electronic referral 171
to the department, in a form prescribed by the department, if 172
the civil penalty is not paid within 30 days after the final 173
notice was mailed and that such referral shall result in the 174
nonrenewal of the registration of such motor vehicle and 175
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
prohibit the title transfer of such motor vehicle within this 176
state. 177
(b) Within 5 days after receipt of a referral under 178
paragraph (a), the department shall enter the referral into the 179
department's motor vehicle database and shall refuse to renew 180
the registration of the motor vehicle and prohibit the title 181
transfer of the motor vehicle within this state until the civil 182
penalty is paid. 183
(c) The department shall remove the penalties imposed 184
under paragraph (b) upon receipt of notification, in an 185
electronic format and method prescribed by the department, that 186
the registered owner of the motor vehicle or any other person 187
has presented the department with adequate proof that the civil 188
penalty has been paid. 189
(7)(a)1. Notwithstanding any other law, equipment deployed 190
as part of a side stop signal arm enforcement system as provided 191
under this section must be incapable of automated or user -192
controlled remote surveillance by means of recorded video or 193
still images. 194
2. Recorded images collected as part of the side stop 195
signal arm enforcement system may only be used to document 196
violations of s. 316.172 and may not be used for any other 197
surveillance purposes. 198
3. To the extent practicable, a side stop signal arm 199
enforcement system must use necessary technology to ensure that 200
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
personal identifying information contained in the recorded video 201
or still images produced by the system which is not relevant to 202
the alleged violation, including, but not limited to, the 203
identity of the driver and any passenger of a motor vehicle, the 204
interior or contents of a motor vehicle, the identity of an 205
uninvolved person, a number identifying the address of a private 206
residence, and the contents or interior of a private residence, 207
is sufficiently obscured so as not to reveal such personal 208
identifying information. 209
4. A notice of a violation issued under this section may 210
not be dismissed solely because a recorded video or still images 211
reveal personal identifying information as provided in 212
subparagraph 3. as long as a reasonable effort has been made to 213
comply with this subsection. 214
(b) Any recorded video or still image obtained through the 215
use of a side stop signal arm enforcement system must be 216
destroyed within 90 days after the final disposition of the 217
recorded event. The vendor of a side stop signal arm enforcement 218
system shall provide the school district with written notice by 219
December 31 of each year that such records have been destroyed 220
in accordance with this section. 221
(c) Notwithstanding any other law, registered motor 222
vehicle owner information obtained as a result of the operation 223
of a side stop signal arm enforcement system is not the property 224
of the manufacturer or vendor of the system and may be used only 225
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
for the purposes of this section. 226
(8) The registered owner of a motor vehicle is not 227
responsible for a violation of this section if the vehicle 228
involved was reported to a state or local law enforcement agency 229
as stolen at the time the violation occurred. 230
(9) This section supplements the enforcement of s. 316.172 231
by a law enforcement officer when a driver fails to stop while a 232
school bus is stopped and does not prohibit a law enforcement 233
officer from issuing a traffic citation for a violation of s. 234
316.172. 235
(10)(a) The registered owner of a motor vehicle who is 236
found in violation of s. 316.172 by a side stop signal arm 237
enforcement system is subject to a civil penalty of $200 for a 238
violation of s. 316.172(1)(a) and $400 for a violation of s. 239
316.172(1)(b). Notwithstanding s . 318.18(5)(a), (b), and (c), 240
the civil penalty shall be paid to the school district in which 241
the violation occurred and must be used for the installation or 242
maintenance of side stop signal arm enforcement systems on 243
school buses, for any other technology that increases the safety 244
of the transportation of students, or for the administration and 245
costs associated with enforcement of such violations. In 246
addition to the civil penalty for a violation of s. 247
316.172(1)(a) or (b), an additional $65 shall be collect ed from 248
the registered owner of a motor vehicle and dedicated to the 249
safe schools allocation provided to school districts by the 250
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
Department of Education pursuant to s. 1011.62(12). 251
(b) For each violation under this section, the registered 252
owner of the motor vehicle shall be liable for the imposed 253
penalty unless the owner is convicted of the same violation 254
under s. 316.172 or unless the motor vehicle was stolen at the 255
time of the violation as provided under subsection (8). 256
(c) A violation for which a c ivil penalty is imposed 257
pursuant to this section is not considered a moving violation 258
for the purpose of assessing points under s. 322.27(3). Such 259
violation is noncriminal, and imposition of a civil penalty 260
pursuant to this section does not constitute a co nviction, may 261
not be made a part of the driving record of the person upon whom 262
such liability is imposed, and may not be used for any purposes 263
in the provision of motor vehicle insurance. 264
(11) By December 31, 2023, and annually thereafter, a 265
school district operating a side stop signal arm enforcement 266
system shall provide a summary report to the Governor, the 267
President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of 268
Representatives, and the department regarding the use and 269
operation of the system under this se ction, including the number 270
of citations issued and the amount of funds collected for the 271
preceding state fiscal year. 272
(12) A side stop signal arm enforcement system must meet 273
specifications established by the State Board of Education and 274
must be tested at regular intervals according to specifications 275
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
prescribed by state board rule. The state board must establish 276
such specifications by rule on or before December 31, 2023. 277
However, any such equipment acquired by purchase, lease, or 278
other arrangement under an agreement entered into by a school 279
district on or before July 1, 2024, or equipment used to enforce 280
violations of s. 316.172 on or before July 1, 2024, is not 281
required to meet the specifications established by the state 282
board until July 1, 2024. 283
(13) The State Board of Education may adopt rules to 284
address student privacy concerns that may arise from the use of 285
a side stop signal arm enforcement system. 286
Section 2. Paragraph (h) is added to subsection (3) of 287
section 1006.21, Florida Statutes, to read : 288
1006.21 Duties of district school superintendent and 289
district school board regarding transportation. — 290
(3) District school boards, after considering 291
recommendations of the district school superintendent: 292
(h) May install and operate, or enter into an agreement 293
with a private vendor or manufacturer to provide, a side stop 294
signal arm enforcement system for each school bus pursuant to s. 295
316.616. 296
Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023. 297