Suffolk red light camera review misses deadline

A Republican-backed resolution forcing Suffolk County do a top-to-bottom review of its controversial red light camera program will not be finished next month as required by the legislative resolution passed in November.

Public Works Commissioner Gil Anderson told a legislative committee last week that the outside consultant Louis McLean Associates had just been selected and the county still was in the process of awarding the contract.

Critics say the camera program is aimed at generating millions of dollars in revenue to help plug Suffolk’s budget hole. The county says the cameras promote safety.

Anderson said he warned lawmakers at the time of the resolution’s passage that the original six-month time limit was too tight. He said he has told lawmakers they can expect to see at least “a preliminary report no later than November.”

— Rick Brand