(A) Detection. As used in this section, AUTOMATED TRAFFIC LAW ENFORCEMENT SYSTEM means a device within the village with one or more motor vehicle sensors working in conjunction with a red light signal to produce recorded images of motor vehicles entering an intersection against a steady or flashing red signal indication in violation of ILCS Ch. 625, Act 5, § 11-306, and §§ 70.30 and 70.31. The automated traffic law enforcement system shall not be used to enforce speed limit regulations. The recorded images produced by the automated traffic law enforcement system, which consist of either two or more photographs, two or more micrographs, two or more electronic images or a video recording showing the motor vehicle, shall capture and display images of the vehicle allegedly violating traffic-control signals, together with the registration plate on such vehicle, and shall also show the time, date and location of the violation.
(B) Signage. Any intersection equipped with an automated traffic law enforcement system must have a sign posted which is visible to approaching traffic indicating that the intersection is being monitored by an automated traffic law enforcement system.
(C) Procurement. When purchasing the equipment and services required implementing the automated traffic law enforcement system, the contract price must reflect the value of the equipment and services provided and may not be based on the number of citations issued or a percentage of the revenue generated by the system.
(D) Notice of violation. When the automated traffic law enforcement system records a motor vehicle entering an intersection in spite of a steady or flashing red signal indication in violation of ILCS Ch. 625, Act 5, § 11-306, and §§ 70.30 and 70.31, the village shall issue a written notice of the violation to the registered owner or lessee of the vehicle, which shall be delivered by first class mail within 30 days after the Illinois Secretary of State notifies the village of the identity of the registered owner or lessee of the vehicle, and in no event later than 90 days following the violation. Each notice of violation associated with an automated traffic law violation shall require a review of the associated recorded image by a technician employed or contracted by the village, who shall inspect the image and determine whether the motor vehicle violated ILCS Ch. 625, Act 5, § 11-306, and/or §§ 70.30 and 70.31, or whether one of the defenses enumerated below in division (F) is visibly applicable upon inspection. Upon determination that the recorded image captures a violation of one of the foregoing provisions and that no defense applies, the notice of violation shall be served upon the registered vehicle owner in the manner provided for below. The Traffic Compliance Administrator shall retain a copy of all violation notices, recorded images and other correspondence mailed to the alleged violator. Each notice of violation, which shall constitute evidence of the facts contained in the notice and is admissible in any proceeding alleging a violation of the above-noted statutory and local provisions and shall establish prima facie evidence of a violation, subject to rebuttal on the basis of the defenses established in division (F) of this section, shall include the following:
(1) The name and address of the registered owner or lessee of the vehicle, as indicated by the records of the Secretary of State, or, if such information is outdated or unattainable, then the last known address recorded in a United States Post Office approved database;
(2) The registration number of the motor vehicle involved in the violation;
(3) The violation charged, with specific reference to that section of the village code allegedly violated;
(4) The location where the violation occurred;
(5) The date and time of the violation;
(6) A copy of the recorded images;
(7) The amount of the civil penalty imposed under divisions (G)(2), (H)(1) or (M) of this section and the date by which the civil penalty should be paid if liability for the violation is not going to be contested;
(8) A statement that the recorded images are evidence of a violation of a red light signal;
(9) A warning that failure to either pay the civil penalty or to contest liability within 21 days of the mailing of the notice of violation is an admission of liability and may result in a suspension of the driving privileges of the registered owner or lessee of the vehicle in addition to the specified penalties for failing to appear at the hearing or pay the fine in advance of the hearing; and
(10) A statement that the registered owner or lessee of the vehicle may elect to proceed either by paying the fine stated in the notice of violation or by challenging the charge in an administrative hearing or, for non-residents of the village, by mail in accordance with division (L) of this section, and that failure to pay the stated fine within the allotted time will operate to process the violation notice within the administrative adjudication system and give rise to a mandatory appearance at the administrative hearing.
(E) Notice of determination of liability. If the registered owner fails to pay or contest the notice of red light violation within 21 days a notice of determination of liability will be sent to the owner indicating that a fine in the amount of $100 is due. The notice will also state that the registered owner can petition the village to set aside the determination of liability before it becomes final. If the owner does not pay the $100 as specified in the notice or petition the municipality to set aside the determination within 14 days, a notice of final determination will be sent to the owner indicating that the owner has exhausted all challenge options and the $100 fine is a debt due and owing to the village and must be paid within 14 days. The owner will also be notified that the failure to pay the $100 fine within 14 days will result in a late fee of $100 added to the original fine.
(F) Defenses. The following are the only defenses available for an alleged violator contesting his or her liability for a violation, which shall be weighed by the Hearing Officer and shall only rebut the prima facie case established by the notice of liability insofar as one or more of the following defenses are established by a preponderance of the evidence:
(1) The motor vehicle or registration plates were stolen before the violation occurred and were not under the control of or in the possession of the owner at the time of the violation, which may be demonstrated through the submission of a certified copy of a report concerning the stolen motor vehicle or registration plates was filed with a law enforcement agency in a timely matter;
(2) The driver of the vehicle passed through the intersection in spite of a red light either to yield the right-of-way to an emergency vehicle or as part of a funeral procession.
(G) Expired registration plates.
(1) No person shall operate a vehicle, nor shall any person permit the operation of a vehicle, which is required to have motor vehicle registration plates under Section 3-413 of the Illinois Vehicle Code or the laws of another state in order to be operated upon the public highways, upon which is displayed an invalid or expired registration plate, plates or registration sticker issued by the State of Illinois or another state when such vehicle is on a public street in the village, or in a parking lot owned by the village.
(2) A vehicle found upon a public street in the village, or in a parking lot owned by the village, in violation of this division shall subject the owner thereof to a fine of not less than $50 nor more than $100 for each day that such vehicle remains in violation of this division.
(3) Any images recorded by the automated traffic law enforcement system showing a vehicle with expired or otherwise invalid vehicle registration plates, issued by the State of Illinois or any other state, may be used to enforce this division (G). All such recorded imagery must comply in all respects with the mandates of ILCS Ch. 625, Act 5, § 11-208.6, including, but not limited to, the requirements that the recorded image provide a clear image of the vehicle and the vehicle's license plate and display the time, date and location of the violation.
(4) Violations of this division shall be deemed vehicle compliance violations related to the condition and use of vehicle equipment and be subject to the village's system of administrative adjudication.
(H) Administrative adjudication.
(1) All vehicular standing and parking violations, violations concerning the condition and use of vehicle equipment, violations regarding the display of municipal wheel tax licenses, the display of expired Illinois registration plates and stickers and automated traffic law violations shall be resolved through the village's system of administrative adjudication, codified in Chapter 32 of this Code of Ordinances. All such offenses are civil in nature and are to be adjudicated through the administrative system with fines levied up to $250 upon a finding of liability, except for those violations detected by the automated traffic law enforcement system, for which no uniform traffic citation is issued at the time of the offense, in which case the maximum fine shall be $100, with additional penalties of up to $100 for delinquent payment.
(2)
The Village President, with the advice and consent of the Board of Trustees, shall appoint a Traffic Compliance Administrator for a term not to exceed that of the Village President's current term of office, who shall oversee the administration of all sections of the village code pertaining to parking, standing, condition and use of vehicle equipment, display of municipal wheel tax licenses, display of Illinois registration plates and stickers and automated traffic law regulations. The Traffic Compliance Administrator is authorized to adopt, distribute and process parking, compliance and automated traffic law violation notices, collect money paid as fines and penalties for the above-noted violations, operate the traffic compliance division of the administrative adjudication system and make certified reports to the Secretary of State regarding a registered vehicle owner’s failure to pay fines and penalties in accordance with Illinois state law. The Traffic Compliance Administrator is hereby vested with all of the powers and duties granted to the Code Administrator in §§ 32.109(B) and 32.114(E) with respect to violations to be adjudicated under this section of the village code, and shall have all of the powers granted by ILCS Ch. 625, Act 5, § 11-208.3(b)(1), the provisions of which are incorporated herein by reference.
(3) Officers, independent contractors and employees involved with the portion of the administrative adjudication system that adjudicates alleged violations occurring under this section shall be vested with the power, authority and limitations as set forth in Chapter 32 of this Code of Ordinances.
(4) Violation notices concerning parking, standing, condition and use of vehicle equipment, display of municipal wheel tax licenses, the display of expired Illinois registration plates and stickers and automated traffic law regulations shall contain the information specified in § 32.114(B) and (C) of this Code of Ordinances and provide a hearing date on which the violation may be contested on its merits and notify the alleged violator of his or her right to be represented by legal counsel at the administrative hearing.
(5) Violation notices shall be served in the following manner:
(a) Violations concerning parking, standing, condition and use of vehicle equipment, or display of municipal wheel tax licenses, and the display of expired Illinois registration plates and stickers shall be served in accordance with § 32.114(B) of this Code of Ordinances.
(b) Violation notices for automated traffic law regulations must be mailed to the address of the registered owner or lessee of the cited vehicle as recorded with the Secretary of State within 30 days after the Secretary of State notifies the village of the identity of the registered vehicle owner, but no later than 90 days after the date of the violation. If the notice of violation is returned as undeliverable, then the notice of violation must be sent to the last known address recorded in a United States Post Office approved database, which notice shall still be sent within 90 days of the violation.
(6) Any person on whom a violation notice has been served pursuant to this section shall within 21 days from the date of the notice either pay the indicated fine or request an administrative adjudication hearing. In the event that the registered vehicle owner elects to contest the merits of the alleged violation in lieu of paying the civil penalty, an administrative hearing shall be held not less than 30 days and no more than 40 days after the mailing of the notice of violation, which date shall be provided on the notice of in-person hearing, together with the pre-hearing date on which the penalty shall be due in order to generate a final disposition and obviate the administrative adjudication process.
(7) Except as specifically noted herein, hearings shall be conducted in accordance with the procedures established in § 32.112 of this Code of Ordinances. Hearings shall be tape recorded.
(8) Alleged violators who have requested an administrative hearing but fail to pay the indicated fine prior to the hearing and do not appear on their scheduled hearing date shall have a default judgment entered against them, which shall constitute a final determination of liability.
(9) The Hearing Officer must enter either a default judgment or a determination of liability or non-liability, in accordance with consideration of the facts and testimony. The Hearing Officer shall issue a written determination, based on the evidence presented at the hearing, of whether a violation of the village code exists. The determination shall include findings of fact, a decision and order setting forth the fine, penalty or action with which the person found liable must comply, impose penalties consistent with applicable village code provisions and assess costs upon finding a party liable for the charged violation, which costs shall include payment of a $40 administrative adjudication fee. The administrative adjudication fee and any other costs shall be assessed against any violator found to be in default, found to be liable, or where the alleged violator has corrected a violation prior to the hearing but where the hearing officer finds that a violation existed at the time of issuance of the citation.
(10) The determination of liability issued by the Hearing Officer shall constitute a final determination for purposes of judicial review and shall be subject to review under the Illinois Administrative Review Law, ILCS Ch. 735, Act 5, §§ 3-101, et seq.
(11) Upon expiration of the period in which judicial review under the Illinois Administrative Review Law may be sought for a final determination of a village code violation, the findings, decision and order of the Hearing Officer may be enforced in the same manner as a judgment entered by a court of competent jurisdiction.
(12) Upon expiration of the period in which judicial review under the Administrative Review Law may be sought for a final determination of a village code violation, a notice of final determination of liability shall be sent to the registered owner or lessee of the cited vehicle, stating that the unpaid fine or penalty is a debt due and owing the village. The notice of final determination shall also warn the liable party that a failure to pay any fine or penalty due and owing the village within 14 days of the issuance of the notice of final determination may result in the village's filing of a petition in the Circuit Court to have the unpaid fine or penalty rendered a judgment, or may result in suspension of the liable party's driver's license and/or immobilization of the violator's registered vehicle where such party has failed to pay fines or penalties for ten or more standing, parking or compliance violations or five or more automated traffic law violations.
(13) Nothing contained in this section shall prevent the village from pursuing all available remedies, allowed by law, to collect money judgments.
(I) Petition to set aside determination of liability.
(1) Any person owing an unpaid fine or penalty to the village in light of a determination of liability by a Hearing Officer and the expiration of the period for judicial review may file a petition with the Traffic Compliance Administrator in-person within 14 days of the village's issuance of a notice of determination of liability, as provided above in division (H)(9). The petition to set aside the determination of liability must be premised on one of the following grounds:
(a) The petitioner was not the registered owner or lessee of the cited vehicle on the date that the violation notice was issued;
(b) The petitioner already paid the fine or penalty for the violation in question; or
(c) Was excused from appearing at the administrative hearing and has an excusable basis for failing to request a new date for hearing.
(2) Upon receipt of a timely petition to set aside the determination of liability, the Traffic Compliance Officer is vested with discretion to grant or deny the petition, in writing, within seven days of receiving the petition. In the event that the Traffic Compliance Officer grants the petition and sets aside the determination of liability, the registered owner or lessee of the cited vehicle shall be provided with another hearing date on the merits of the violation.
(J) Notice of impending driver's license suspension. This notice shall be sent via first class United States mail, postage prepaid, to the address recorded with the Secretary of State of any person liable for any fine or penalty due and owing the village for ten or more standing, parking or compliance violations or five or more unpaid automated traffic law violations in accordance with the procedures set forth in § 32.118 of this Code of Ordinances.
(K) Vehicle immobilization. The program of vehicle immobilization established in § 32.117 of this Code of Ordinances is hereby expanded to facilitate enforcement of the automated traffic enforcement provisions set forth in this section, together with any and all vehicular standing, parking, compliance or automated traffic law regulations found elsewhere in the village code, in accordance with the procedures delineated in § 32.117. Vehicles are eligible for immobilization in accordance with the criteria established in § 32.117(B)(1) or for accumulating three or more unpaid automated traffic law violations.
(L) Procedures for non-residents. Where the registered owner or lessee of the cited vehicle is not a resident of the village but seeks to contest the merits of the alleged violation, such persons may contest the charges using the same available defenses as stated above, but rather than attend the administrative hearing, they may submit any and all documentary evidence to the Traffic Compliance Administrator no later than the hearing date referenced in the notice of liability, together with a written statement reflecting that they are non-residents of the village. The Traffic Compliance Officer shall forward all timely-submitted materials to the Hearing Officer for review and determination.
(M) Penalty. Any person violating any provision of ILCS Ch. 625, Act 5, § 11-306, §§ 70.30, 70.31 or 70.42 or any subparts thereof shall be fined not less than $50 or more than $100 for each offense. Failure to pay the original fine within 14 days of the issuance of the notice of final determination shall result in an additional $100 late payment penalty.
(Ord. 06-71, passed 6-21-06; Am. Ord. 7-1, passed 1-10-07
; Am. Ord. 10-14, passed 2-10-10
)