Traffic cameras operating in Columbus and other communities across the state could soon disappear. The Ohio House voted 58-31 yesterday to approve a bill requiring police to place an officer at every intersection equipped with a camera. Most cities, including Columbus, say that requirement would make it financially impossible to continue using the cameras. The Senate is expected to concur with the bill, and Gov. John Kasich is expected to sign it.

Traffic cameras operating in Columbus and other communities across the state could soon disappear.

The Ohio House voted 58-31 yesterday to approve a bill requiring police to place an officer at every intersection equipped with a camera. Most cities, including Columbus, say that requirement would make it financially impossible to continue using the cameras.

The Senate is expected to concur with the bill, and Gov. John Kasich is expected to sign it.

Lawmakers heard from a number of police departments in opposition to the bill, including Lt. Jeffrey Sulewski, commander of the Toledo police traffic section, who told a committee yesterday that the city has 44 cameras, including one mobile speed camera.

From 2000 through 2011, Toledo saw a decrease ranging from 2 percent to 17 percent in overall accidents at locations with red-light cameras, Sulewski said. Usage of the mobile speed camera has led to a 70 percent reduction in the number of violations in those areas.

�I�m not looking to issue a lot of tickets. I�m looking to alter that traffic pattern,� he said.

Lawmakers pushed through dozens of policy changes in one of the final days of this General Assembly. For example, towing companies could take possession of some vehicles after 60 days if the owners do not claim them under a bill that also includes some new predatory-towing protections.

The House added one amendment to the traffic-camera bill, requiring an annual report on the number of texting-while-driving violations in the state. Rep. Rex Damschroder, R-Fremont, said the change was made only to block him from offering an amendment to make texting a primary offense � meaning a driver can be pulled over just for texting.

In November, Cleveland and Maple Heights voters voted to essentially end traffic cameras there. Rep. Matt Huffman, R-Lima, noted that an Allen County village, Fort Shawnee, voted itself out of existence after police there were ticketing people for barely going over the 35-mph speed limit. Now, he said, the speed limit there is 50 mph.

�Just because there�s a posted speed limit, in reality, doesn�t mean that�s reasonable,� Huffman said.

Rep. John Patrick Carney, D-Columbus, said it makes sense to pass reasonable reforms to ensure police departments aren�t �playing gotcha� with the cameras. But the cameras reduce accidents and should not be eliminated, he said.

�I�ve gotten these tickets before,� he said, adding that he now slows down out of fear of getting caught at a light. �That�s what these cameras are intended to do.�

Rep. Mike Dovilla, R-Berea, said he has concerns with the appeals process for the tickets: �It�s very likely that once the ticket is issued, it�s not likely to be canceled.� He also doesn�t like the high percentage of tickets written for right-turn-on-red violations, and he thinks some cities see them as a revenue generator.

In other legislative action:

� Under the towing bill, which passed the House and needs Senate concurrence, after 60 days and three notices to the owner, a towing company can obtain title to a motor vehicle if it is valued at less than $3,500.

Repair shops already have a similar process in place, though the bill raises the maximum vehicle value for them to take possession from $2,500 to $3,500.

�This bill provides proper protections for the consumer to ensure they have adequate time and information to claim their vehicle if that is their desire while also giving towing companies a way out if a car has actually been abandoned,� said Sen. Jim Hughes, R-Columbus, the bill sponsor.

Leaders combined Hughes� bill with parts of a predatory-towing bill from Reps. Mike Duffey, R-Worthington, and Heather Bishoff, D-Blacklick.

Among the consumer protections:

� A towing company must deliver the vehicle to the storage facility within two hours.

� The vehicle owner can retrieve personal items from a towed vehicle without charge.

� The towing company must take photographs to prove the vehicle is clearly parked on private property in a tow-away zone.

� The towing company must notify law enforcement of a vehicle�s removal within two hours.

Dean Fadel of the Ohio Insurance Institute said the bill is a step forward but lacks the price-gouging protections and mediation process that were included in the bill that passed the House.

�Consumers are down a touchdown, and we�re kicking a field goal,� Fadel said.

Hunters could use a noise suppressor on their guns and Ohioans who want a concealed-carry permit would need fewer training hours under a bill that now heads to the governor.

House Bill 234, which passed the House 69-16, �contains several good Second Amendment provisions that will make us all a little bit freer,� said Rep. Terry Johnson, R-McDermott.

Concealed-carry permit training would be reduced from 12 to eight hours, including two hours on a live-firing range.

The House voted 71-8 to approve a three-day sales-tax holiday aimed at back-to-school shopping. It would run Aug. 7-9, 2015, and would exempt clothing items up to $75 each and supplies up to $20 an item.

The bill, which needs approval from the Senate, had several amendments, including an additional $10 million for townships, $7.2 million for a handful of local projects and a measure that would give CAPA and other arts organizations a greater ability to get federal tax credits.

Judges and other elected officials who haven�t seen a pay raise since 2008 apparently will have to wait longer.

The legislature sets pay rates for township trustees, county and state officials, but lawmakers have not voted on a pay-raise bill since 2000. That bill granted cost-of-living increases through 2008. Since then, Ohio judicial salaries have fallen to among the lowest in the nation, and some smaller counties are concerned that their salaries are too low to attract quality candidates.

The House passed a bill granting raises starting next year for most officials, and 2017 for state officeholders. The Senate passed a constitutional amendment that, if approved by voters, would have a commission set future pay increases, with the legislature getting veto power.

Yesterday, the House Finance Committee scheduled hearings on the Senate proposal but then canceled them a few hours later.

�It appears there is no activity on (the House plan), and our offer to move forward with (the Senate proposal) was attached to that action,� said Rep. Ron Amstutz, R-Wooster, the committee chairman. �Since the action doesn�t appear to be forthcoming, we have canceled our plans to go forward.�

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