The City of New Orleans is challenging the legality of Louisiana’s school zone traffic camera laws, which the state Attorney General last month accused the city of violating.
The city filed a lawsuit in the 19th Judicial District Court in East Baton Rouge Parish this month that claims the state overstepped its authority by enforcing the laws. The outcome of the case could determine whether the city has to return about $1.4 million in speeding fines it collected over the past year.
One of the laws in question, which lawmakers passed in 2024, requires municipalities to split revenues from tickets issued by school zone cameras with their local school districts. It also bars municipalities from issuing tickets until revenue-sharing agreements are in place. Another law, which took effect in August, requires school zones to have specific markings and allows public officials to be charged with malfeasance in office for violating the laws…