1 City Council Meeting: September 8, 2026 Santa Monica, California ORDINANCE NUMBER_______ (CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA ADDING SANTA MONICA MUNICIPAL CODE SECTION 3.12.540 TO ESTABLISH AN
AUTOMATED TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT SYSTEM PROGRAM TO DETECT A
VIOLATION OF A TRAFFIC CONTROL SIGNAL
WHEREAS, in February 2026, the City Council directed City staff to further the City’s Vision Zero efforts and prioritize human life over vehicle throughput in design and engineering decisions regarding the city right-of-way and City staff subsequently studied a variety of Vision Zero initiatives including the use of an automated traffic enforcement system (“ATES”) at two intersections; and
WHEREAS, City staff’s research determined that violating traffic control signals is a significant contributing factor in severe right-angle and turning collisions at signalized intersections, and the State of California specifically recognizes that ‘red light running enforcement’ is critical to efforts in California to reduce factors that contribute to traffic collisions that result in fatalities or injuries; and
WHEREAS, the State of California also recognizes that traditional enforcement methods have had a well-documented disparate impact on communities of color, and implicit or explicit racial bias in police traffic stops puts drivers of color at risk; and WHEREAS, in 2025, to provide cities and counties with additional tools to combat red light running and related crashes, the State of California chaptered Senate Bill 720 (SB 720); and
2 WHEREAS, SB 720 allows cities and counties to implement ATES, a modernized, civil automated red-light camera program where, unlike traditional criminal red-light enforcement, civil citations are issued to the vehicle’s registered owner rather than the driver; and
WHEREAS, under SB 720, civil penalties are limited by state law, additional administrative fees are restricted, and jurisdictions must comply with requirements related to public notice, impact reporting, privacy protection, site selection, and ongoing program evaluation; and
WHEREAS, in adopting SB 720, the Legislature found that the use of ATES through SB 720 can advance equity by improving reliability and fairness in traffic enforcement while making enforcement of violations of traffic control signals more predictable, effective, and broadly implemented, all of which help change driver behavior; and
WHEREAS, this Ordinance authorizes the use of ATES and enables City staff to develop a SB 720-compliant ATES program utilizing fixed cameras to capture images and video of vehicles for the purpose of enforcing red-light violations at signalized intersections.
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
3 SECTION 1. Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 3.12.540 is hereby added as follows:
3.12.540 Automated Traffic Enforcement System.
(a) Pursuant to California Vehicle Code section 21455.9, the City may operate an automated traffic enforcement system to detect a violation of a traffic control signal. (b) Subject to all requirements set forth in California Vehicle Code section 21455.9, the City Manager, or designee, is authorized to create, operate, and enforce an automated traffic enforcement system program to detect a violation of a traffic control signal.
(c) A violation of a traffic control signal that is recorded by the automated traffic enforcement system operated pursuant to this Section shall be subject only to the civil penalties and enforcement procedures specified in Vehicle Code section 21455.9.
SECTION 2. Any provision of the Santa Monica Municipal Code or appendices thereto inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance, to the extent of such inconsistencies and no further, is hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary to effect the provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 3. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed this Ordinance and each and every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion of the ordinance would be subsequently declared invalid or unconstitutional. 4 SECTION 4. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall attest to the passage of this Ordinance. The City Clerk shall cause the same to be published once in the official newspaper within 15 days after its adoption. This Ordinance shall become effective thirty days after adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
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HEIDI VON TONGELN
City Attorney