BILL NUMBER: SB 42 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 84
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE JULY 19, 2001
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR JULY 19, 2001
PASSED THE SENATE JULY 5, 2001
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY JUNE 25, 2001
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 12, 2001
AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 12, 2001
INTRODUCED BY Senator Speier
DECEMBER 5, 2000
An act to amend Sections 16000, 16002, 27363, and 27365 of, and to
repeal and add Section 27360.5 of, the Vehicle Code, relating to
vehicles, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect
immediately.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 42, Speier. Child passenger restraint systems and seatbelts:
accident reports.
Under existing law, it is unlawful for any parent or legal
guardian, when present in a motor vehicle, as defined, to permit his
or her child or ward who is between 4 and 16 years of age and weighs
40 pounds or more to be transported on the highway in the vehicle
without using a safety belt. Operative on January 1, 2002, the law
prohibits a parent or legal guardian, when present in a motor
vehicle, from allowing his or her child or ward to be transported
upon a highway without providing and properly using a child passenger
restraint system or a safety belt if the child is 6 years of age,
but less than 16 years of age, or who is less than 6 years of age and
weighs 60 pounds or more. A child is exempt from these requirements
under certain circumstances, including when there is a
life-threatening emergency or the child is being transported in an
authorized emergency vehicle, and there is no child passenger
restraint system available and the child is at least one year of age.
This bill would make a technical, conforming change in the
operative date of the January 1, 2002, law.
The bill would delete the requirement that the child be at least
one year of age in order to qualify for the exemption.
Existing law prescribes reporting requirements for drivers of
motor vehicles involved in accidents.
This bill would make a technical, nonsubstantive change to these
reporting requirements by relocating provisions in the Vehicle Code
related to accidents involving a motor vehicle owned or operated by,
or operated under contract with, a publicly owned or operated transit
system.
The bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an
urgency statute.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 16000 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read:
16000. (a) The driver of every motor vehicle who is in any manner
involved in an accident originating from the operation of a motor
vehicle on any street or highway or any reportable off-highway
accident defined in Section 16000.1 that has resulted in damage to
the property of any one person in excess of five hundred dollars
($500) or in bodily injury or in the death of any person shall,
within 10 days after the accident, report the accident, either
personally or through an insurance agent, broker, or legal
representative, on a form approved by the department to the office of
the department at Sacramento, subject to the provisions of this
chapter. The driver shall identify on the form, by name and current
residence address, if available, any person involved in the accident
complaining of bodily injury.
(b) A report is not required pursuant to subdivision (a) if the
motor vehicle involved in the accident was owned or leased by, or
under the direction of, the United States, this state, another state,
or a local agency.
SEC. 2. Section 16002 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read:
16002. (a) If the driver at the time of the accident was driving
a motor vehicle owned, operated, or leased by the employer of the
driver and with the permission of the employer, then the driver shall
within five days after the accident report the accident to his
employer on a form approved by the employer. Within 10 days after
receipt of the report the employer shall transmit a report on a form
approved by the department to the office of the department at
Sacramento, except that an employer need not transmit such report
when the vehicle involved in the accident is owned or operated as
described in Section 16051 or 16052, or is owned or operated by any
person or corporation who has filed with the department a certificate
of an insurance carrier or surety company that there is in effect a
policy or bond meeting the requirements of Section 16056 and when
such policy or bond is in force with respect to the vehicle at the
time of the accident.
(b) The driver of a vehicle that is owned or operated by a
publicly owned or operated transit system, or that is operated under
contract with a publicly owned or operated transit system, and that
is used to provide regularly scheduled transportation to the general
public or for other official business of the system shall, within 10
days of the occurrence of the accident, report to the transit system
any accident of a type otherwise required to be reported pursuant to
subdivision (a) of Section 16000. The transit system shall maintain
records of any report filed pursuant to this paragraph. Within 10
days after receipt of the report, the transit system shall transmit a
report on a form approved by the department to the office of the
department in Sacramento, except that a transit system is not
required to submit a report when the vehicle involved in the accident
is owned or operated as described in subdivision (b) of Section
16000.
SEC. 3. Section 27360.5 of the Vehicle Code, as added by Section 6
of Chapter 675 of the Statutes of 2000, is repealed.
SEC. 2. Section 27360.5 is added to the Vehicle Code, to read:
27360.5. (a) No parent or legal guardian, when present in a motor
vehicle, as defined in Section 27315, may permit his or her child or
ward who is six years of age, but less than 16 years of age, or who
is less than six years of age and weighs 60 pounds or more to be
transported upon a highway in the motor vehicle without providing and
properly securing the child or ward in an appropriate child
passenger restraint system or safety belt meeting applicable federal
motor vehicle safety standards.
(b) No driver may transport on a highway any child who is six
years of age, but less than 16 years of age, or who is less than six
years of age and weighs 60 pounds or more in a motor vehicle, as
defined in Section 27315, without providing and properly securing the
child in a child passenger restraint system or safety belt meeting
applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards. This subdivision
does not apply to a driver if the parent or legal guardian of the
child is also present in the vehicle and is not the driver.
(c) (1) A first offense under this section is punishable by a fine
of one hundred dollars ($100), except that the court may reduce or
waive the fine if the defendant establishes to the satisfaction of
the court that he or she is economically disadvantaged, and the
court, instead, refers the defendant to a child restraint education
program that includes, but is not limited to, demonstration of the
proper installation and use of child passenger restraint systems for
children of all ages, and provides economically disadvantaged
families with a child passenger restraint low-cost purchase or loaner
program. Upon completion of the program, the defendant shall
provide proof of participation in the program that includes an
inspection of a child passenger restraint system that meets
applicable federal safety standards. If an education program on the
proper installation and use of a child passenger restraint system is
not available within 50 miles of the residence of the defendant, the
requirement to participate in that program shall be waived. If the
fine is paid, waived, or reduced, the court shall report the
conviction to the department pursuant to Section 1803.
The court may, at its discretion, require any defendant described
under this section to attend an education program that includes
demonstration of proper installation and use of child passenger
restraint systems and provides certification to the court that the
defendant has presented for inspection a child passenger restraint
system that meets applicable federal safety standards.
(2) A second or subsequent offense under this section is
punishable by a fine of two hundred fifty dollars ($250), no part of
which may be waived by the court, except that the court may reduce or
waive the fine if the defendant establishes to the satisfaction of
the court that he or she is economically disadvantaged, and the
court, instead refers the defendant to a community education program
that includes, but is not limited to, education on the proper
installation and use of child passenger restraint systems for
children of all ages, and provides certification to the court of
completion of that program. Upon completion of the program, the
defendant shall provide proof of participation in the program. If an
education program on the proper installation and use of a child
passenger restraint system is not available within 50 miles of the
residence of the defendant, the requirement to participate in that
program shall be waived. If the fine is paid, waived, or reduced,
the court shall report the conviction to the department pursuant to
Section 1803.
The court may at its discretion, require any defendant described
under this section to attend an education program that includes
demonstration of proper installation and use of child passenger
restraint systems and provides certification to the court that the
defendant has presented for inspection a child passenger restraint
system that meets applicable federal safety standards.
(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the fines
collected for a violation of this section shall be allocated as
follows:
(1) Sixty percent to county or city health departments where the
violation occurred, to be used for an education program that
includes, but is not limited to, the demonstration of proper
installation and use of child passenger restraint systems for
children of all ages and provides child restraints for loan or
low-cost purchase.
(2) Twenty-five percent to the county or city for the
administration of the program.
(3) Fifteen percent to the city, to be deposited in its general
fund except that, if the violation occurred in an unincorporated
area, this amount shall be allocated to the county for purposes of
paragraph (1).
(e) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2002.
SEC. 5. Section 27363 of the Vehicle Code, as added by Section 9
of Chapter 675 of the Statutes of 2000, is amended to read:
27363. (a) The court may exempt from the requirements of this
article any class of child by age, weight, or size if it is
determined that the use of a child passenger restraint system would
be impractical by reason of physical unfitness, medical condition, or
size. The court may require satisfactory proof of the child's
physical unfitness, medical condition, or size and that an
appropriate special needs child passenger restraint system is not
available.
(b) In case of a life-threatening emergency, or when a child is
being transported in an authorized emergency vehicle, if there is no
child passenger restraint system available, a child may be
transported without the use of that system, but the child shall be
secured by a seatbelt.
(c) A child weighing more than 40 pounds may be transported in the
backseat of a vehicle while wearing only a lap safety belt when the
backseat of the vehicle is not equipped with a combination lap and
shoulder safety belt.
(d) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2002.
SEC. 6. Section 27365 of the Vehicle Code, as added by Section 13
of Chapter 675 of the Statutes of 2000, is amended to read:
27365. (a) (1) Every car rental agency in California shall inform
each of its customers of Section 27360 by posting, in a place
conspicuous to the public in each established place of business of
the agency, a notice not smaller than 15 inches by 20 inches which
states the following: "CALIFORNIA LAW REQUIRES ALL CHILDREN WHO ARE 5
YEARS OF AGE OR LESS AND WEIGH LESS THAN 60 POUNDS TO BE TRANSPORTED
IN A CHILD RESTRAINT SYSTEM. THIS AGENCY IS REQUIRED TO PROVIDE FOR
RENTAL A CHILD RESTRAINT SYSTEM IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A CHILD RESTRAINT
SYSTEM YOURSELF."
(2) The posted notice specified in paragraph (1) is not required
if the car rental agency's place of business is located in a hotel
which has a business policy prohibiting the posting of signs or
notices in any area of the hotel. In that case, a car rental agency
shall furnish a written notice to each customer which contains the
same information as required for the posted notice.
(b) Every car rental agency in California shall have available
for, and shall, upon request, provide for rental to, adults traveling
with children under six years of age, child passenger seat restraint
systems that meet applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards
on the date of the rental transaction, are in good and safe
condition, with no missing original parts, and are not older than
five years.
(c) A violation of this section is an infraction punishable by a
fine of one hundred dollars ($100).
(d) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2002.
SEC. 7. This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the
meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate
effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
In order to provide for the orderly administration and enforcement
of the child passenger restraint system and seatbelt laws at the
earliest possible time, it is necessary that this act take effect
immediately.