SB1443 - 492R

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Section 11-445, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE11-445. Fees chargeable in civil actions by sheriffs, constables and private process servers; authority of private process servers; background investigation; constables' logs

A. The sheriff shall receive the following fees in civil actions:

1. For serving each true copy of the original summons in a civil suit, sixteen dollars, except that the sheriff shall not charge a fee for service of any document pursuant to section 13‑3602 or any injunction against harassment pursuant to section 12‑1809 if the court indicates the injunction arises out of a dating relationship.

2. For summoning each witness, sixteen dollars.

3. For levying and returning each writ of attachment or claim and delivery, forty‑eight dollars.

4. For taking and approving each bond and returning it to the proper court when necessary, twelve dollars.

5. For endorsing the forfeiture of any bond required to be endorsed by him, twelve dollars.

6. For levying each execution, twenty‑four dollars.

7. For returning each execution, sixteen dollars.

8. For executing and returning each writ of possession or restitution, forty‑eight dollars plus a rate of forty dollars per hour per deputy or constable for the actual time spent in excess of three hours.

9. For posting the advertisement for sale under execution, or any order of sale, twelve dollars.

10. For posting or serving any notice, process, writ, order, pleading or paper required or permitted by law, not otherwise provided for, sixteen dollars except that posting for a writ of restitution shall not exceed ten dollars.

11. For executing a deed to each purchaser of real property under execution or order of sale, twenty‑four dollars.

12. For executing a bill of sale to each purchaser of real and personal property under an execution or order of sale, when demanded by the purchaser, sixteen dollars.

13. For services in designating a homestead or other exempt property, twelve dollars.

14. For receiving and paying money on redemption and issuing a certificate of redemption, twenty‑four dollars.

15. For serving and returning each writ of garnishment and related papers, forty dollars.

16. For the preparation, including notarization, of each affidavit of service or other document pertaining to service, eight dollars.

17. For every writ served on behalf of a justice of the peace, a fee established by the board of supervisors not to exceed five dollars per writ. Monies collected from the writ fees shall be deposited in the constable ethics standards and training fund established by section 22‑138.

B. The sheriff shall also collect the appropriate recording fees if applicable and other appropriate disbursements.

C. The sheriff may charge:

1. Fifty‑six dollars plus disbursements for any skip tracing services performed.

2. A reasonable fee for executing a civil arrest warrant ordered pursuant to court rule by a judge or justice of the peace. The fee shall only be charged to the party requesting the issuance of the civil arrest warrant.

3. A reasonable fee for storing personal property levied on pursuant to title 12, chapter 9.

D. For traveling to serve or on each attempt to serve civil process, writs, orders, pleadings or papers, the sheriff shall receive two dollars forty cents for each mile actually and necessarily traveled but, in any event, not to exceed two hundred miles, nor to be less than sixteen dollars. Mileage shall be charged one way only. For service made or attempted at the same time and place, regardless of the number of parties or the number of papers so served or attempted, only one charge for travel fees shall be made for such service or attempted service.

E. For collecting money on an execution when it is made by sale, the sheriff and the constable shall receive eight dollars for each one hundred dollars or major portion thereof not to exceed a total of two thousand dollars, but when money is collected by the sheriff without a sale, only one‑half of such fee shall be allowed. When satisfaction or partial satisfaction of a judgment is received by the judgment creditor after the sheriff or constable has received an execution on the judgment, the commission is due the sheriff or constable and is established by an affidavit of the judgment creditor filed with the officer. If the affidavit is not lodged with the officer within thirty days of the request, the commission shall be based on the total amount of judgment due as billed by the officer and may be collected as any other debt by that officer.

F. The sheriff shall be allowed for all process issued from the supreme court and served by the sheriff the same fees as are allowed the sheriff for similar services on process issued from the superior court.

G. The constable shall receive the same fees as the sheriff for performing the same services in civil actions, except that mileage shall be computed from the office of the justice of the peace originating the civil action to the place of service.

H. Notwithstanding subsection G of this section, in a county with a population of more than three million persons, if an office of a justice of the peace is located outside of the precinct boundaries, the mileage for a constable shall be calculated pursuant to subsection D of this section, except that the distance between the precinct boundaries and the office of the justice of the peace, as determined by the county and certified by the board of supervisors of that county, shall be subtracted from the mileage calculation. This certified mileage calculation shall be transmitted to the justice courts and the clerks of those courts shall calculate the mileage between the office of the justice of the peace and the location where the civil process, writ, order, pleading or paper was served and reduce the mileage used to calculate the mileage fee according to the certified mileage calculation for that respective jurisdiction.

I. Private process servers who are duly appointed or registered pursuant to rules established by the supreme court may serve all process, writs, orders, pleadings or papers required or permitted by law to be served before, during or independently of a court action, including all such as That are required or permitted to be served by a sheriff or constable, except writs or orders requiring the service officer to sell, deliver or take into the officer's custody persons or property, or as that may otherwise be limited by rule established by the supreme court. A private process server is an officer of the court. As a condition of registration, the supreme court shall require each private process server applicant to furnish a full set of fingerprints to enable a criminal background investigation to be conducted to determine the suitability of the applicant. The completed applicant fingerprint card shall be submitted with the fee prescribed in section 41‑1750 to the department of public safety. The applicant shall bear the cost of obtaining the applicant's criminal history record information. The cost shall not exceed the actual cost of obtaining the applicant's criminal history record information. Applicant criminal history records checks shall be conducted pursuant to section 41‑1750 and Public Law 92‑544. The department of public safety is authorized to exchange the submitted applicant fingerprint card information with the federal bureau of investigation for a federal criminal records check. A private process server may charge such fees for services as may be that are agreed on between the process server and the party engaging the process server.

J. A person who serves as a law enforcement officer in this state and who is certified by the Arizona peace officer standards and training board may, when the person is off duty, serve all process, writs, orders, pleadings or papers permitted by law to be served before, during or independently of a court action, including all that are permitted to be served by a sheriff or constable, and including traffic complaints resulting from the state photo enforcement system as defined in section 28-1602. The law enforcement officer may not serve writs or orders requiring the law enforcement officer to sell, deliver or take into the officer's custody persons or property. The supreme court may establish other limitations by rule. A law enforcement officer may charge fees for services that are agreed on between the law enforcement officer and the party engaging the law enforcement officer.

J. K. Constables shall maintain a log of work related activities including a listing of all processes served and the number of processes attempted to be served by case number, the names of the plaintiffs and defendants, the names and addresses of the persons to be served except as otherwise precluded by law, the date of process and the daily mileage.

K. L. The log maintained in subsection I K of this section is a public record and shall be made available by the constable at the constable's office during regular office hours. Copies of the log shall be filed monthly with the clerk of the justice court and with the clerk of the board of supervisors. END_STATUTE

Sec. 2. Transfer and renumber

Section 28-654, Arizona Revised Statutes, is transferred and renumbered for placement in title 28, chapter 3, article 21, Arizona Revised Statutes, as section 28-1204.

Sec. 3. Section 28-1201, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE28-1201. Definition of photo enforcement system

In this article, unless the context otherwise requires, "photo enforcement system": has the same meaning prescribed in section 28‑601 and

1. Means a device substantially consisting of a radar unit or sensor linked to a camera or other recording device that produces one or more photographs, microphotographs, videotapes or digital or other recorded images for the purpose of identifying violators of articles 3 and 6 of this chapter.

2. Includes a state photo enforcement system established pursuant to section 41‑1722. END_STATUTE

Sec. 4. Title 28, chapter 3, article 21, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 28-1203, to read:

START_STATUTE28-1203. Photo enforcement system placement; speed limit change

A photo enforcement system shall not be placed on a street or highway within six hundred feet of a posted speed limit change except that a photo enforcement system may be placed in an area around a school crossing that is delineated by signs as prescribed by section 28‑797, subsection D. END_STATUTE

Sec. 5. Section 28-1204, Arizona Revised Statutes, as transferred and renumbered by this act, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE28-1204. Photo enforcement zones; signage; standards; citation dismissal

A. Except as provided in subsection F of this section, every local authority or agency of this state using a photo enforcement system shall adopt standards and specifications that indicate to a person operating a motor vehicle that a photo enforcement system is present and operational.

B. The standards and specifications adopted pursuant to subsection A of this section shall include both all of the following:

1. At least two signs shall be placed in a location before a photo enforcement system. One sign shall be in a location that is approximately three hundred feet before the photo enforcement system. Placement of additional signs shall be more than three hundred feet before a photo enforcement system to provide reasonable notice to a person that a photo enforcement system is present and operational.

2. A sign that clearly states the posted speed limit shall be placed between the two signs prescribed by paragraph 1. If the photo enforcement system is on a highway that consists of three or more lanes of traffic in one direction, a sign that clearly states the posted speed limit shall be placed on each side of the highway between the two signs prescribed by paragraph 1.

2. 3. Signs indicating a photo enforcement system shall be removed or covered when the photo enforcement system is no longer present or not operating for more than twenty‑four hours.

C. Signs erected by a local authority or agency of this state as prescribed in this section shall contain a yellow warning notice and correlate with and as far as possible conform to the system set forth in the most recent edition of the manual on uniform traffic control devices for streets and highways adopted by the director pursuant to section 28-641.

D. If the standards and specifications prescribed pursuant to this section are not in effect during the operation of a photo enforcement system, the court may dismiss any citation issued to a person who is identified by the use of the photo enforcement system.

E. During the time a vehicle containing photo enforcement equipment is being used to identify violators of this article and article articles 3 and 6 of this chapter, the rear of the vehicle shall be clearly marked to indicate that the vehicle is functioning as a photo enforcement vehicle. This subsection does not apply to a vehicle that does not contain a an automated photo enforcement system and that is used by a law enforcement officer.

F. Subsection B of this section does not apply to a mobile photo enforcement vehicle during the time a mobile photo enforcement vehicle is deployed on streets with a posted speed limit of forty miles per hour or less. END_STATUTE

Sec. 6. Title 28, chapter 3, article 21, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding sections 28‑1205, 28‑1206 and 28‑1207, to read:

START_STATUTE28-1205. Photo enforcement systems; limitation on citation issuance; applicability

A. Notwithstanding any other law, this state or a local authority that has jurisdiction over a photo enforcement system may cause the photo enforcement system to issue a complaint or notice of violation for a violation of article 6 of this chapter only if a vehicle is traveling at least eleven miles per hour faster than the posted speed limit.

B. This section does not apply to An area around a school crossing that is delineated by signs as prescribed by section 28‑797, subsection D. END_STATUTE

START_STATUTE28-1206. Annual report

Beginning August 1, 2010 and on or before August 1 of each year thereafter, the governor's office of highway safety, in conjunction with the department of transportation and the department of public safety, shall submit a report to the governor, the president of the senate and the speaker of the house of representatives and shall provide a copy of this report to the secretary of state. This report shall include traffic statistics relating to the state photo enforcement system established pursuant to section 41‑1722 and shall include the total monies received from citations or notices of violation resulting from the state photo enforcement system established pursuant to section 41‑1722. END_STATUTE

START_STATUTE28-1207. Local authorities; law enforcement

After paying all expenses and court costs that cover the processing of photo enforcement violations and citations, a local authority shall spend at least thirty‑five per cent of all remaining monies it receives from citations or complaints issued as a result of a photo enforcement system for law enforcement purposes. END_STATUTE

Sec. 7. Section 28-1592, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE28-1592. Commencement of action

A. A civil traffic violation case is commenced by issuance or filing of a uniform traffic ticket and complaint as provided in this article.

B. A civil traffic violation case shall be commenced as follows:

1. If a case is commenced by issuance, it shall be issued within sixty days of the alleged violation.

2. If the case is commenced by filing, it shall be filed within sixty days of the alleged violation and shall be served within ninety days from the filing date.

3. Except as provided in paragraph 4, within one hundred eighty days of the alleged violation if the alleged violation is under investigation in conjunction with a traffic accident.

4. Within one year of the alleged violation if the alleged violation is under investigation in conjunction with a traffic accident resulting in death.

5. If the alleged violation is detected by the state photo enforcement system established pursuant to section 41‑1722, the case shall be filed within onE hundred twenty days of the alleged violation. END_STATUTE

Sec. 8. Section 28-1593, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE28-1593. Service of uniform traffic ticket and complaint

A. Except as provided in section 28‑1602, a traffic complaint may be served by delivering a copy of the uniform traffic ticket and complaint citation to the person charged with the violation or by any means authorized by the rules of civil procedure. At the discretion of the issuing authority, a complaint for a violation issued after an investigation in conjunction with a traffic accident may be sent by certified mail, return receipt requested and delivered to addressee only, to the address provided by the person charged with the violation. Service of the complaint is complete on filing the receipt in the court having jurisdiction of the violation.

B. Except as provided in section 28‑1602, subsection A, the original complaint shall be filed in a court having jurisdiction of the violation within ten court days of the time the complaint was issued. A peace officer, or duly authorized agent or someone paid to act on behalf of a traffic enforcement agency, may issue the traffic complaint and act as an agent to testify on behalf of the traffic enforcement agency at traffic hearings.

C. Notwithstanding subsection B of this section, a civil traffic violation issued pursuant to section 41‑1722 may be issued pursuant to a notice of violation before a citation is filed in court.

D. C. If a person fails to respond to the a notice of violation or contests responsibility, a uniform traffic ticket and complaint citation shall be served and filed as otherwise provided in this section, except that the complaint resulting from the state photo enforcement system as defined in section 28-1602 shall not be filed in court before the person is personally served with the complaint.

E. D. The supreme court shall establish rules governing the issuance, service and processing of the notice of violation, including rules allowing a person to admit responsibility before a citation uniform traffic ticket and complaint is filed in court. END_STATUTE

Sec. 9. Title 28, chapter 5, article 4, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 28-1602, to read:

START_STATUTE28-1602. Photo enforcement; notice of violation; complaint; penalties; crimes; definition

A. A notice of violation for a civil traffic violation detected by the state photo enforcement system may be issued before a uniform traffic ticket and complaint is filed in court.

B. A notice of violation and a uniform traffic ticket and complaint resulting from a photo enforcement system as defined in section 28‑1201 is not required to be mailed with prepaid postage to the person charged with the violation.

C. The civil penalty or fine for a uniform traffic ticket and complaint filed or a notice of violation issued as a result of the state photo enforcement system is one hundred sixty‑five dollars and is not subject to any surcharge except the surcharge imposed by section 16‑954. The civil penalties and fines shall be deposited, pursuant to sections 35‑146 and 35‑147, in the photo enforcement fund established by section 41‑1722. A county board of supervisors may establish a processing fee to cover the cost of processing a photo enforcement complaint. The processing fee is not subject to any surcharge.

D. This section does not limit either of the following:

1. The penalties or fines resulting from criminal violations detected by the state photo enforcement system.

2. The penalties or fines for crimes in which images or data obtained from the state photo enforcement system equipment is admitted into evidence.

E. For the purposes of this section, "state photo enforcement system" means the state photo enforcement system established pursuant to section 41‑1722.END_STATUTE

Sec. 10. Section 28-2354, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE28-2354. License plates; attachment; civil penalty

A. A person shall display the license plate or plates as follows:

1. For a motor vehicle, motorcycle, trailer or semitrailer, on the rear.

2. For a vehicle for which two license plates are issued, the vehicle owner shall display either of the following:

(a) One plate on the rear.

(b) One plate on the front and one plate on the rear.

B. A person shall display all license plates as required by subsection A until their lawful use expires or is canceled or revoked. A person shall maintain each license plate so it is clearly legible. A person shall securely fasten each license plate to the vehicle as follows:

1. To prevent the plate from swinging.

2. At a height of at least twelve inches from the ground to the bottom of the plate.

3. In a position to be clearly visible.

C. A person shall maintain each license plate so that the name of this state at the top of the license plate is not obscured.

D. A peace officer shall not stop or issue a citation to a person operating a motor vehicle on a highway in this state for a violation of subsection C of this section unless the peace officer has reasonable cause to believe there is another alleged violation of a motor vehicle law of this state.

E. If a person violates subsection C of this section, the person is subject to a civil penalty of thirty dollars, except that if a person violates subsection C of this section within twelve months after the date of a prior violation of subsection C of this section, the person is subject to a civil penalty of one hundred dollars.

F. unless authorized by the department, a person shall not apply a covering or any substance to the license plate or use an electronic device or electrochromatic film that obscures from any angle the numbers, characters, year validating tabs or name of the jurisdiction issuing the plate that may prevent a peace officer or duly authorized agent from identifying a vehicle detected by the state photo enforcement system. END_STATUTE

Sec. 11. Title 28, chapter 8, article 6, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 28-3323, to read:

START_STATUTE28-3323. Suspension or revocation of license; state photo enforcement system

A. Notwithstanding any other law, if a person is found responsible for a civil traffic violation detected by the state photo enforcement system established pursuant to section 41‑1722, the department shall not consider the violation for the purpose of determining whether the person's driver license should be suspended or revoked. A court shall only transmit abstracts of records of these violations to the department for commercial driver license holders.

B. This section shall not be construed to restrict the application of section 28-1632 to the renewal of vehicle registration. END_STATUTE

Sec. 12. Section 41-1722, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE41-1722. State photo enforcement system; fund; distribution of fund monies

A. Notwithstanding any other law, the department shall enter into a contract or contracts with a private vendor or vendors pursuant to chapter 23 of this title to establish a state photo enforcement system consisting of cameras placed throughout this state as determined by the director to enforce the provisions of title 28, chapter 3, articles 3 and 6 relating to vehicle traffic and speed.

B. Notwithstanding any other law, the civil penalty or fine for a citation or a notice of violation issued pursuant to this section is one hundred sixty-five dollars and is not subject to any surcharge except the surcharge imposed by section 16‑954.

C. B. The photo enforcement fund is established consisting of monies received from citations uniform traffic tickets and complaints filed or notices of violation issued pursuant to this section. The director shall administer the fund. Monies in the fund are subject to legislative appropriation and, except as provided in subsection C of this section, are appropriated to the department for administrative and personnel costs of the state photo enforcement system. Monies remaining in the fund in excess of two hundred fifty thousand dollars at the end of each calendar quarter shall be deposited, pursuant to sections 35-146 and 35-147, in the state general fund.

D. Notwithstanding any other law, if a person is found responsible for a civil traffic violation or a notice of violation pursuant to a citation issued pursuant to this section, the department of transportation shall not consider the violation for the purpose of determining whether the person's driver license should be suspended or revoked. A court shall only transmit abstracts of records of these violations to the department of transportation for commercial driver license holders.

C. Beginning in fiscal year 2011‑2012 and in every subsequent fiscal year, thirty‑five per cent of the monies in the fund after paying all expenses and court costs that cover the processing of photo enforcement violations and citations shall be deposited, pursuant to sections 35‑146 and 35‑147, in the public safety equipment fund established by section 41‑1723. Monies deposited pursuant to this subsection may not be supplanted. END_STATUTE