Hearing set on Monroe traffic camera initiative
Published 12:01 am Wednesday, August 24, 2011
MONROE — A Sept. 21 hearing has been set for a legal showdown over whether Monroe voters will get a chance to weigh in on traffic-enforcement cameras.
The City Council has asked a Snohomish County Superior Court judge to rule against Monroe Initiative No. 1, an initiative that would let voters decide the fate of enforcement cameras in the city.
The lawsuit asks a judge to find that Monroe Initiative No. 1 “in its entirety is invalid because it is beyond the scope of local initiative power, and therefore null and void.”
The initiative seeks to remove enforcement cameras that already have been installed, to reduce fines levied from camera-generated tickets, and to require voter approval before any more enforcement cameras are installed.
Named as defendants in the case are the groups who gathered the signatures from Monroe voters: Washington Campaign for Liberty; Seeds of Liberty; Bancams.com and Voters WantMoreChoices.com.
