The campaign to extinguish Leon Valley's red light cameras is slowly gaining traction as the City Council maps out its latest strategy to support state legislation aimed at making the city's controversial contract with the photo enforcement company null and void. Despite a statewide ban on traffic cameras that passed in 2019, the city's 14 red light cameras have remained operational, due in part to a previous contract extension set to last until 2039. This long-term deal, inked just prior to the ban taking effect, has become a persistent point of contention for both citizens and current city officials.
These cameras, a source of much debate, have accumulated almost $7 million in fines over a span of five years, according to records obtained by the Express-News. The revenue stream, while substantial, appears to take a backseat to the current council's determination to phase out the cameras, which they argue are not only controversial but also against the spirit of the law. The council's backing of abolishing the cameras, signaled through a resolution, aligns with proposed bills hovering in the state legislature awaiting a push to become decisive action.
In a push to clarify their stance, city council members have repeatedly pointed to the safety and legality concerns surrounding the cameras. The previous mechanisms for extending the city’s contract with Arizona-based American Traffic Solutions—the firm behind Leon Valley's red light camera infrastructure—appear to be at odds with the city council's current perspective on the matter. Sidelined city officials who originally extended the contract have either been voted out or recalled, but despite these political shifts, Leon Valley remains one of the last holdouts in Texas with active red light enforcement.
Leon Valley Police Chief David Gonzalez, when reached for comment, conveyed a sense of finality about the issue, stating, "there is no new information about the red light cameras in LV. All of the questions you were asking have been answered in previous interviews," as detailed in a response to KENS 5. The stance mirrors the reticence of other officials to engage with media inquiries on this contentious topic. Meanwhile, the police chief of Balcones Heights, another city previously operating red light cameras, announced that any outstanding citations would soon become null and void, emphasizing that even though cameras were no longer active, safety remained a priority.
In the respective chambers of Texas Legislature, efforts continue to dismantle the loophole that allows Leon Valley to keep its red light cameras active. Both State Rep. Philip Cortez and State Sen. Jose Menendez are leading the charge, with legislation set to quash the remaining contracts. Menendez, discussing proposed Senate Bill 446, expressed a clear sentiment: "Current law says you can’t collect," he told KENS 5. "They [Leon Valley] can’t use it against you." These bills, though slow to move forward, are expected to resurface in the next legislative session in 2025, offering a glimmer of hope to those awaiting the final switching off of the cameras.
