The Leon County Commission voted unanimously Tuesday to halt plans for an automated school-zone speed enforcement program, rejecting vendor bids and effectively ending an initiative the county had been developing for nearly a year.
The 7-0 vote on Sept. 15 went further than the recommendation from county staff, which had proposed delaying implementation while courts consider a constitutional challenge involving automated traffic enforcement. Commissioners instead chose not to proceed with the school-zone speed detection system at this time, regardless of the eventual outcome of the pending litigation.
The decision represents a significant reversal from October 2025, when commissioners voted 6-1 to move forward with the program. Commissioner Bill Proctor cast the lone dissenting vote at the time. The county subsequently solicited proposals and selected RedSpeed Florida as its highest-ranked vendor.
The proposed county program was similar to the automated enforcement system already operating within the City of Tallahassee.
Under Florida law, local governments may use automated speed-detection systems in school zones. The systems can photograph or record vehicles exceeding applicable speed limits, with state law establishing requirements for signage, public notification and a warning period before enforcement begins.
However, legal questions surrounding automated traffic enforcement prompted county staff to recommend a delay.
A Broward County judge ruled earlier this year that a red-light-camera enforcement process was unconstitutional because it improperly shifted the burden of proof to vehicle owners. Although that case did not directly involve school-zone speed cameras, county officials noted similarities between the enforcement systems. The ruling is under review by the Fourth District Court of Appeal.
Other Florida counties have also reconsidered automated enforcement programs following the ruling. Okaloosa County moved to prohibit red-light and school-zone speed cameras, while Palm Beach County commissioners rejected a proposal involving school-zone cameras.
During Tuesday’s discussion, commissioners raised broader concerns about whether motorists understand how automated school-zone enforcement works and whether the process provides adequate due-process protections.
Commission Chairman Christian Caban criticized the automated enforcement process following the vote, saying motorists can be placed in the position of having to challenge an automatically generated violation. He said he supported the commission’s decision not to accept the vendor bids.
The county’s action comes as Tallahassee’s existing school-zone camera program has generated substantial enforcement activity. According to previously reported figures, the city program had produced more than 50,000 notices of violation as of June. With violations carrying a $100 penalty, the citations represented as much as $5 million in potential collections. The city operates 48 cameras along 27 roadways covering 20 school zones.
Tuesday’s vote does not affect Tallahassee’s program because the city and county operate under separate jurisdictions.
The school-zone decision came during the same meeting in which commissioners unanimously moved against automated license plate readers on county property and rights-of-way. The two votes involved different technologies — school-zone cameras are designed to document speeding violations, while automated license plate readers collect plate information for law-enforcement purposes — but commissioners raised similar concerns about automated surveillance, due process and public trust.
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