BILL NUMBER: AB 468 CHAPTERED 10/10/07 CHAPTER 389 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE OCTOBER 10, 2007 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR OCTOBER 10, 2007 PASSED THE SENATE SEPTEMBER 5, 2007 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY SEPTEMBER 5, 2007 AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 29, 2007 AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 21, 2007 AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 10, 2007 AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 26, 2007 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 1, 2007 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 29, 2007 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Ruskin FEBRUARY 20, 2007 An act to amend Sections 9250.7 and 22710 of the Vehicle Code, relating to vehicles. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 468, Ruskin. Vehicles: abatement of abandoned vehicles. (1) Existing law authorizes a county satisfying specified conditions to establish a service authority for the abatement of abandoned vehicles and to impose a $1 vehicle registration fee for the abatement of abandoned vehicles. The fees imposed and the moneys received by the service authority from the Abandoned Vehicle Trust Fund, a continuously appropriated fund, can only be used for the abatement, removal, and disposal of abandoned, wrecked, dismantled, or inoperative vehicles from private or public property. The service authority is authorized to adopt an ordinance establishing procedures for the abatement, removal, and disposal, as a public nuisance, of an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled, or inoperative vehicle and for the recovery of costs. This bill would authorize the service authority to use the fees imposed, as well as the moneys received from the Abandoned Vehicle Trust Fund, for the costs associated with the enforcement of the ordinance adopted by the service authority. The service authority would be prohibited from offsetting the costs of vehicles towed under authorities other than the ordinance adopted by the service authority or when the costs are recovered by another provision of law. The service authority would be authorized to carry forward unexpended money in a fiscal year to the following fiscal year for the abandoned vehicle abatement program upon agreement with its member agencies. The service authority would be authorized to carry out an abandoned vehicle abatement from public property after providing a notice specified by a local ordinance of the jurisdiction in which the abandoned vehicle is located and that notice has expired. (2) Existing law requires a service authority to issue to the Controller a yearend fiscal report by October 31 of each year. This bill would require the service authority additionally to include in the fiscal report the number of notices to abate issued to vehicles, the total expenditures by the service authority for towing and storage of abandoned vehicles during the previous fiscal year, and the number of vehicles disposed of pursuant to the abandoned vehicle abatement program in the previous fiscal year. On or before January 1, 2010, and biennially thereafter, the service authority would be required to have a financial audit conducted by a qualified independent 3rd party. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 9250.7 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read: 9250.7. (a) (1) A service authority established under Section 22710 may impose a service fee of one dollar ($1) on all vehicles, except vehicles described in subdivision (a) of Section 5014.1, registered to an owner with an address in the county that established the service authority. The fee shall be paid to the department at the time of registration, or renewal of registration, or when renewal becomes delinquent, except on vehicles that are expressly exempted under this code from the payment of registration fees. (2) In addition to the one-dollar ($1) service fee, and upon the implementation of the permanent trailer identification plate program, and as part of the Commercial Vehicle Registration Act of 2001, all commercial motor vehicles subject to Section 9400.1 registered to an owner with an address in the county that established a service authority under this section shall pay an additional service fee of two dollars ($2). (b) The department, after deducting its administrative costs, shall transmit, at least quarterly, the net amount collected pursuant to subdivision (a) to the Treasurer for deposit in the Abandoned Vehicle Trust Fund, which is hereby created. All money in the fund is continuously appropriated to the Controller for allocation to a service authority that has an approved abandoned vehicle abatement program pursuant to Section 22710, and for payment of the administrative costs of the Controller. After deduction of its administrative costs, the Controller shall allocate the money in the Abandoned Vehicle Trust Fund to each service authority in proportion to the revenues received from the fee imposed by that authority pursuant to subdivision (a). If any funds received by a service authority pursuant to this section are not expended to abate abandoned vehicles pursuant to an approved abandoned vehicle abatement program that has been in existence for at least two full fiscal years within 90 days of the close of the fiscal year in which the funds were received and the amount of those funds exceeds the amount expended by the service authority for the abatement of abandoned vehicles in the previous fiscal year, the fee imposed pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be suspended for one year, commencing on July 1 following the Controller's determination pursuant to subdivision (e). (c) Every service authority that imposes a fee authorized by subdivision (a) shall issue a fiscal yearend report to the Controller on or before October 31 of each year summarizing all of the following: (1) The total revenues received by the service authority during the previous fiscal year. (2) The total expenditures by the service authority during the previous fiscal year. (3) The total number of vehicles abated during the previous fiscal year. (4) The average cost per abatement during the previous fiscal year. (5) Any additional, unexpended fee revenues for the service authority during the previous fiscal year. (6) The number of notices to abate issued to vehicles during the previous fiscal year. (7) The number of vehicles disposed of pursuant to an ordinance adopted pursuant to Section 22710 during the previous fiscal year. (8) The total expenditures by the service authority for towing and storage of abandoned vehicles during the previous fiscal year. (d) Each service authority that fails to submit the report required pursuant to subdivision (c) by October 31 of each year shall have its fee pursuant to subdivision (a) suspended for one year commencing on July 1 following the Controller's determination pursuant to subdivision (e). (e) On or before January 1 annually, the Controller shall review the fiscal yearend reports, submitted by each service authority pursuant to subdivision (c) and due no later than October 31, to determine if fee revenues are being utilized in a manner consistent with the service authority's approved program. If the Controller determines that the use of the fee revenues is not consistent with the service authority's program as approved by the Department of the California Highway Patrol, or that an excess of fee revenues exists, as specified in subdivision (b), the authority to collect the fee shall be suspended for one year pursuant to subdivision (b). If the Controller determines that a service authority has not submitted a fiscal yearend report as required in subdivision (c), the authorization to collect the service fee shall be suspended for one year pursuant to subdivisions (b) and (d). The Controller shall inform the Department of Motor Vehicles on or before January 1 annually, that the authority to collect the fee is suspended. A suspension shall only occur if the service authority has been in existence for at least two full fiscal years and the revenue fee surpluses are in excess of those allowed under this section, the use of the fee revenue is not consistent with the service authority's approved program, or the required fiscal yearend report has not been submitted by October 31. (f) On or before January 1 annually, the Controller shall prepare and submit to the Legislature a revenue and expenditure summary for each service authority established under Section 22710 that includes, but is not limited to, all of the following: (1) The total revenues received by each service authority. (2) The total expenditures by each service authority. (3) The unexpended revenues for each service authority. (4) The total number of vehicle abatements for each service authority. (5) The average cost per abatement as provided by each service authority to the Controller pursuant to subdivision (c). (g) On or before January 1, 2010, and biennially thereafter, the service authority shall have a financial audit of the service authority conducted by a qualified independent third party. (h) The fee imposed by a service authority shall remain in effect only for a period of 10 years from the date that the actual collection of the fee commenced unless the fee is extended pursuant to this subdivision. The fee may be extended in increments of up to 10 years each if the board of supervisors of the county, by a two-thirds vote, and a majority of the cities having a majority of the incorporated population within the county adopt resolutions providing for the extension of the fee. SEC. 2. Section 22710 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read: 22710. (a) A service authority for the abatement of abandoned vehicles may be established, and a one dollar ($1) vehicle registration fee imposed, in a county if the board of supervisors of the county, by a two-thirds vote, and a majority of the cities having a majority of the incorporated population within the county have adopted resolutions providing for the establishment of the authority and imposition of the fee. The membership of the authority shall be determined by concurrence of the board of supervisors and a majority vote of the majority of the cities within the county having a majority of the incorporated population. (b) The authority may contract and may undertake any act convenient or necessary to carry out a law relating to the authority. The authority shall be staffed by existing personnel of the city, county, or county transportation commission. (c) (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a service authority may adopt an ordinance establishing procedures for the abatement, removal, and disposal, as a public nuisance, of an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled, or inoperative vehicle or part of the vehicle from private or public property; and for the recovery, pursuant to Section 25845 or 38773.5 of the Government Code, or assumption by the service authority, of costs associated with the enforcement of the ordinance. Cost recovery shall only be undertaken by an entity that may be a county or city or the department, pursuant to contract with the service authority as provided in this section. (2) (A) The money received by an authority pursuant to Section 9250.7 and this section shall be used only for the abatement, removal, or the disposal as a public nuisance of any abandoned, wrecked, dismantled, or inoperative vehicle or part of the vehicle from private or public property. The money received shall not be used to offset the costs of vehicles towed under authorities other than an ordinance adopted pursuant to paragraph (1) or when costs are recovered under Section 22850.5. (B) The money received by a service authority pursuant to Section 9250.7 and this section that are unexpended in a fiscal year may be carried forward by the service authority for the abandoned vehicle abatement program in the following fiscal year as agreed upon by the service authority and its member agencies. (d) (1) An abandoned vehicle abatement program and plan of a service authority shall be implemented only with the approval of the county and a majority of the cities having a majority of the incorporated population. (2) (A) The department shall provide guidelines for an abandoned vehicle abatement program. An authority's abandoned vehicle abatement plan and program shall be consistent with those guidelines, and shall provide for, but not be limited to, an estimate of the number of abandoned vehicles, a disposal and enforcement strategy including contractual agreements, and appropriate fiscal controls. (B) The department's guidelines provided pursuant to this paragraph shall include, but not be limited to, requiring each service authority receiving funds from the Abandoned Vehicle Trust Fund to report to the Controller on an annual basis pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 9250.7, in a manner prescribed by the department, and pursuant to an approved abandoned vehicle abatement program. (C) A service authority may carry out an abandoned vehicle abatement from a public property after providing a notice as specified by the local ordinance adopted pursuant to Section 22660 of the jurisdiction in which the abandoned vehicle is located and that notice has expired. (3) After a plan has been approved pursuant to paragraph (1), the service authority shall, not later than August 1 of the year in which the plan was approved, submit it to the department for review, and the department shall, not later than October 1 of that same year, either approve the plan as submitted or make recommendations for revision. After the plan has received the department's approval as being consistent with the department's guidelines, the service authority shall submit it to the Controller. (4) Except as provided in subdivision (e), the Controller shall not make an allocation for a fiscal year, commencing on July 1 following the Controller's determination to suspend a service authority when a service authority has failed to comply with the provisions set forth in Section 9250.7. (5) A governmental agency shall not receive funds from a service authority for the abatement of abandoned vehicles pursuant to an approved abandoned vehicle abatement program unless the governmental agency has submitted an annual report to the service authority stating the manner in which the funds were expended, and the number of vehicles abated. The governmental agency shall receive that percentage of the total funds collected by the service authority that is equal to its share of the formula calculated pursuant to paragraph (6). (6) Each service authority shall calculate a formula for apportioning funds to each governmental agency that receives funds from the service authority and submit that formula to the Controller with the annual report required pursuant to paragraph (2). The formula shall apportion 50 percent of the funds received by the service authority to a governmental agency based on the percentage of vehicles abated by that governmental agency of the total number of abandoned vehicles abated by all member agencies, and 50 percent based on population and geographic area, as determined by the service authority. When the formula is first submitted to the Controller, and each time the formula is revised thereafter, the service authority shall include a detailed explanation of how the service authority determined the apportionment between per capita abatements and service area. (7) Notwithstanding any other provision of this subdivision, the Controller may allocate to the service authority in the County of Humboldt the net amount of the abandoned vehicle abatement funds received from the fee imposed by that authority, as described in subdivision (b) of Section 9250.7, for calendar years 2000 and 2001. (e) A plan that has been submitted to the Controller pursuant to subdivision (d) may be revised pursuant to the procedure prescribed in that subdivision, including compliance with any dates described therein for submission to the department and the Controller, respectively, in the year in which the revisions are proposed by the service authority. Compliance with that procedure shall only be required if the revisions are substantial. (f) For purposes of this section, "abandoned vehicle abatement" means the removal of a vehicle from public or private property by towing or any other means after the vehicle has been marked as abandoned by an official of a governmental agency that is a member of the service authority. (g) A service authority shall cease to exist on the date that all revenues received by the authority pursuant to this section and Section 9250.7 have been expended. (h) In the event of a conflict with other provisions of law, this section shall govern the disbursement of money collected pursuant to this section and from the Abandoned Vehicle Trust Fund for the implementation of the abandoned vehicle abatement program.