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D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray Proposes More Speed Cameras to Balance Budget [Commuter Tax Hike]
NBC Washington ^ | 4/7/2014 | tom sherwood

Posted on 04/08/2014 3:43:33 AM PDT by markomalley

More roadside speed cameras could be Washington D.C.'s future as Mayor Vincent Gray's new budget calls for the city to collect an additional $50 million in speeding fines over the coming year. One council member called it "gotcha" government.

Gray said his budget is balanced in part by that steep rise in speed camera fines from more speed cameras on different streets at different times. The mayor's budget director said Motorists too often avoid permanent cameras, said the mayor’s budget director, Eric Goulet.

“What you've found as residents, when the mayor goes out and when I’ve been at budget town halls, particularly, complain about people slowing down for the fixed traffic cameras and then speeding up as soon as those are and then speeding through neighborhoods,” Goulet said.

At-large Council member David Catania, an independent candidate for mayor, suggested the city ought to better warn motorists.

“I think we need to do a public service announcement, to some extent, or a push that lets people know this because nothing makes people angrier than this gotcha mentality of this government that balances its budgets by these kinds of mechanisms,” Catania said.

Despite that concern, city police are moving ahead, according to the mayor’s office.

“What MPD has tried to do is have more mobile devices so that when they’re not needed in one location you can move them someplace else and then address people who may be speeding through our neighborhoods,” Goulet said. “So that would be the goal would be to move the cameras in a way to really discourage speeding throughout the city.”


TOPICS: Extended News; Government; US: District of Columbia
KEYWORDS:
Geez...just what is needed, even more speed cameras.

One thing I'll say: at least he's honest about the reason why he wants them...

1 posted on 04/08/2014 3:43:33 AM PDT by markomalley
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To: markomalley
Despite that concern, city police are moving ahead, according to the mayor’s office.

Once more let's hear it for our heroes who are out there to make the streets safe a better source of revenue for the government.

2 posted on 04/08/2014 3:59:27 AM PDT by from occupied ga (Your government is your most dangerous enemy)
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To: markomalley

Motorists too often avoid permanent cameras
&
Motorists will “too often”? avoid high tax locales
Must be a dialect thing?


3 posted on 04/08/2014 4:13:22 AM PDT by Recompennation (Constitutional protection for all not ju st selectively for Democrats.)
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To: markomalley

I was thinking the same - at least they’re done insulting our intelligence by talking about “safety” and they’re publicly stating the REAL REASON for the cameras.


4 posted on 04/08/2014 4:36:09 AM PDT by BobL
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To: markomalley

Why not just have the cops shakedown the commuters and save the cost of the cameras? The U.S. is quickly heading to the medieval robber baron era anyway. Just put a credit card reader in every patrol car. We have to keep all of the “Prince Johns” and their minions supplied with money.


5 posted on 04/08/2014 5:14:08 AM PDT by MCF
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To: markomalley

Wait... so they’re really all about revenue, and not safety?

“When government financially benefits from lawbreaking, it becomes in its interest to prohibit as many things as possible...”


6 posted on 04/08/2014 5:15:44 AM PDT by coloradan (The US has become a banana republic, except without the bananas - or the republic.)
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To: BobL

That’s the way the left operates.
Get something implemented under some “cover” reason,
get people used to it or hooked on it,
then admit what it was really about.


7 posted on 04/08/2014 5:16:32 AM PDT by MrB (The difference between a Humanist and a Satanist - the latter admits whom he's working for)
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To: All

They want a commuter tax and this is a defacto tax on commuters.


8 posted on 04/08/2014 5:17:45 AM PDT by newnhdad (Our new motto: USA, it was fun while it lasted.)
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To: MrB

I’m not sure that I agree with the “admitting” part - I think this just slipped out. I’m still waiting to hear the left admit a lot of things:

1) They were wrong on the Cold War
2) They made a COMPLETE MESS of education
3) Welfare causes dependency
4) Bilingual Education exists to keep kids from Spanish-speaking households from learning English, so they can remain an identifiable, impoverished, culture, and thus be reliant on Democrats
5) Big government doesn’t work, ever
6) They want to jail conservatives (or worse) but just don’t have a way to do that yet (the best they have is the IRS and Mozilla-type silencing).

Lots of things...on this particular one they simply don’t see any credible risk with being honest, so they are.


9 posted on 04/08/2014 5:25:41 AM PDT by BobL
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To: BobL

All but the last of those are admissions that their ideas were wrong. No - you won’t ever get that.

The last one does address what I was referring to - lying about the goals. They are still in the stage where they still have to lie about the goals on that one, because they haven’t disarmed us yet.


10 posted on 04/08/2014 5:34:09 AM PDT by MrB (The difference between a Humanist and a Satanist - the latter admits whom he's working for)
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To: markomalley

Many State legislators are writing laws to ban speed and red light cameras and DC is moving to ad them.
Says a lot...........


11 posted on 04/08/2014 5:58:42 AM PDT by SECURE AMERICA (Where can I go to sign up for the American Revolution 2014 and the Crusades 2014?)
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To: markomalley

(Mayor Vincent Gray’s new budget calls for the city to collect an additional $50 million in speeding fines over the coming year.)

And you thought it was about safety!!!


12 posted on 04/08/2014 5:59:55 AM PDT by SECURE AMERICA (Where can I go to sign up for the American Revolution 2014 and the Crusades 2014?)
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