TAMPA, Fla. — More than 30,000 citations were sent to drivers in Hillsborough County for speeding through school zones last month — all captured by speed cameras as part of “Operation Safe Passage.”
What You Need To Know
From Sept. 22 through Oct. 30, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office issued 30,475 citations to drivers captured by camera speeding through school zones after extending hours of enforcement throughout the entire school day,
A county commissioner held a town hall Wednesday night after receiving a number of calls and complaints
BELOW: Where does the $100 fine go?
Many of the drivers who received a citation had questions about the program.
“I actually received one of these violations about three or four weeks ago up in Citrus Park, and I was surprised that happened to me,” Hillsborough County resident Glen Kemp said. “And it came, and it was (a) $100 civil fine.”
Kemp attended a town hall on Wednesday night hosted by Hillsborough County Commissioner Christine Miller. She said she’d recently received so many calls from concerned constituents about Operation Safe Passage, she decided to host the meeting to get some answers.
“In this particular case, it was around the ticketing agencies within the school zones and lots of confusion around when it would apply,” Miller said.
In September, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office put up new signs at the school zones with cameras stating that the speed limit would be photo enforced for the entire school day — not just when the yellow lights are flashing — Monday through Friday.
“The cameras run all day long, and that’s where some of the confusion has come from. They run from 30 minutes before school starts to 30 after school starts,” Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Kara Baxter explained at the town hall.
That’s what Kemp says caught him off guard when he received his citation in the mail, and just looking at the numbers, it appears to be catching a lot of drivers off guard.
Hillsborough County’s annual report for the program shows that 5,775 notices of violation were issued during Operation Safe Passage’s first year, from August 2024 to July 2025.
These citations are considered civil infractions, so no points are assessed to your driver’s license, and your insurance company isn’t notified. All footage is reviewed by HCSO before issuing citations, and if you feel you wrongfully received a ticket, you can contest it in court. (Spectrum News/Fallon Silcox)
Spectrum News asked HCSO how many notices of violation were issued from Sept. 22, when the hours were extended, through Oct. 30. The department reported that 30,475 citations were issued during that time.
“Well, that seems like kind of entrapping people to go five-fold, a 500% increase in that short period of time,” said Kemp.
Even Miller was surprised to hear about the increase.
“Now I can understand why I’m getting all these calls into my office and we’re hoping to get a lot of those questions answered today,” she said.
If all 30,000 violations are paid at $100 each, that would be over $3 million collected in less than six weeks from these cameras. So where does the money go?
According to Florida Statute 316.1896, this is the breakdown for each $100 citation:
$20 goes to the Department of Revenue for the general fund
$60 is kept by Hillsborough County to be used for the speed camera system and “other public safety initiatives”
$3 goes to the Department of Revenue for the Department of Law Enforcement Criminal Justice Standards and Training Trust Fund
$12 to the Hillsborough County School District for school security and transportation
$5 goes to HCSO for the school crossing guard program
Kemp said he still has questions about the program’s impact on student safety, and for the other 30,000+ people like him who received violations.
“I hope everybody was given proper notice,” he said. “This affects a lot of people, and right now money is so tight.”
In the meantime, Kemp said he will be watching closely for the school zone signs wherever he goes.
When Spectrum News asked HCSO why the decision was made to extend the hours, the department issued a statement saying: “In compliance with Florida Statute 316.1896, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office updated school zone speed camera enforcement times to ensure consistency across all school zones. This change makes it less confusing for drivers and helps keep students, parents, and staff safe throughout the school day.”
Citations issued in school zones are considered civil infractions, so no points are assessed to a person’s driver’s license, and their insurance company isn’t notified. All footage is reviewed by HCSO before issuing citations, and anyone who believes they wrongfully received a ticket can contest it in court.