Post by Logan on Feb 23, 2016 7:12:45 GMT -6
R.I. legislature to vote on bill that would target out-of-state drivers without insurance
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Fast-moving legislation that would allow the state to use electronic license-plate readers to nab "out-of-state drivers'' traveling Rhode Island highways without insurance is slated for a vote by a key House committee on Tuesday despite strenuous "privacy" concerns.
The bill's sponsor was the only person to speak in favor of the bill at a sparsely attended House Corporations Committee hearing on Feb. 9 that took place the same day public attention was keenly focused on State House action on Governor Raimondo's controversial, leadership-backed truck tolls.
Rep. Robert Jacquard, D-Cranston, predicted the state could net "upwards of $15 million" in new revenue by hiring a private company to install the technology in police cars — or perhaps, on gantries — to ID and send violation notices to out-of-state drivers who have been caught driving on Rhode Island roads without insurance.
"This is a public safety issue,'' Jacquard told colleagues.
But insurance industry lobbyists oppose the bill. The ACLU of Rhode Island's Hillary Davis cited "extreme risks to privacy." The state police, the Department of Motor Vehicles and the Department of Transportation have taken no position on the bill and the potential for mounting the plate-readers on the new tolling gantries.
Read more: www.providencejournal.com/news/20160222/ri-legislature-to-vote-on-bill-that-would-target-out-of-state-drivers-without-insurance
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Fast-moving legislation that would allow the state to use electronic license-plate readers to nab "out-of-state drivers'' traveling Rhode Island highways without insurance is slated for a vote by a key House committee on Tuesday despite strenuous "privacy" concerns.
The bill's sponsor was the only person to speak in favor of the bill at a sparsely attended House Corporations Committee hearing on Feb. 9 that took place the same day public attention was keenly focused on State House action on Governor Raimondo's controversial, leadership-backed truck tolls.
Rep. Robert Jacquard, D-Cranston, predicted the state could net "upwards of $15 million" in new revenue by hiring a private company to install the technology in police cars — or perhaps, on gantries — to ID and send violation notices to out-of-state drivers who have been caught driving on Rhode Island roads without insurance.
"This is a public safety issue,'' Jacquard told colleagues.
But insurance industry lobbyists oppose the bill. The ACLU of Rhode Island's Hillary Davis cited "extreme risks to privacy." The state police, the Department of Motor Vehicles and the Department of Transportation have taken no position on the bill and the potential for mounting the plate-readers on the new tolling gantries.
Read more: www.providencejournal.com/news/20160222/ri-legislature-to-vote-on-bill-that-would-target-out-of-state-drivers-without-insurance