Florida highway safety chief: no quotas allowed at FHP

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. A top Florida highway safety official is firing back at the notion of ticketing quotas within the Florida Highway Patrol.

The executive director of the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles says troopers should never be encouraged to meet ticketing benchmarks a day after news that a commander asked troopers to issue two citations an hour.

“Let me be very clear: Quotas have no place within the Florida Highway Patrol,” Terry L. Rhodes, the department’s executive director, wrote in a letter to FHP brass.

The FHP is a division within the department.

Welch wrote to troopers that “the patrol wants to see two citations each hour,” but insisted in the same memo that “This is not a quota.” Instead, the request was part of an initiative that encouraged troopers to work overtime hours to deter speeders.

“It is more important than ever before that FHP be proactive in their efforts, but members should never be encouraged to meet specific citation numbers,” Rhodes wrote. “I am directing you to ensure that no quotas are being issued from our troops and that no performance metrics are impacted by a quota.”

See the entire Rhodes memo below:

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