The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Wednesday advanced legislation to shut down the District’s expansive traffic camera system, a move that the bill’s supporters said would end a money grab by D.C. leaders who have long hailed the devices as a boon for road safety.
Lawmakers in the Republican-controlled committee voted along party lines to unplug the roughly 550 speed, red-light and stop-sign cameras around the nation’s capital. The cameras have generated $600 million in revenue for the city over the past three years alone.
“The residents and commuters of Washington are both sick and tired of being fleeced for hundreds of dollars of petty, automated traffic fines, all in the name of alleged safety,” said Rep. Scott Perry, Pennsylvania Republican and the bill’s chief sponsor…