BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: AB 425
SENATOR ALAN LOWENTHAL, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: cook
VERSION: 4/21/09
Analysis by: Carrie Cornwell FISCAL: yes
Hearing date: June 16, 2009
SUBJECT:
Vehicle registration reinstatement fee: military exemption
DESCRIPTION:
This bill exempts, beginning on January 1, 2011, members of the
California National Guard and the U.S. Armed Services from the
fee for reinstating the registration of a vehicle, if the
cancellation of the vehicle registration occurred while the
service member was on active duty outside of California during a
time of war.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law requires that in order to register a vehicle in
California and make it legal to drive on public streets, the
registered owner must pay a registration fee of $34, plus
various additional fees, to the Department of Motor Vehicles
(DMV). In addition, the registered owner must provide DMV with
evidence of financial responsibility, typically a current
automobile liability insurance policy. DMV then issues a vehicle
registration and the appropriate sticker for the vehicle's rear
license plate.
Existing law requires that an insurance company notify DMV
electronically of changes in automobile insurance coverage,
including when coverage lapses. DMV must cancel the registration
of a vehicle when insurance coverage lapses during the period of
registration.
A registered owner may reinstate a vehicle registration that has
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lapsed by paying a fee sufficient to pay the costs of the
re-issuance as determined by DMV (currently $14) and providing
evidence that the reason for the cancellation has been fixed
(e.g., evidence that a lapsed insurance policy has been
restored).
This bill :
1.Exempts, beginning January 1, 2011, a member of the California
National Guard or the United States Armed Forces who was on
active duty, serving outside of this state in a military
conflict during a time of war, from paying DMV the $14 fee to
reinstate the registration on his or her vehicle that DMV
canceled due to a lack of proof of financial responsibility.
2.Requires that the vehicle owner submit his or her official
military orders to DMV when requesting the registration
reinstatement to qualify for the fee exemption.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose . The author points out that when military personnel
receive deployment orders, they often have little time to
prepare to leave home. In some cases, this results in military
personnel losing or giving up their auto insurance while they
are deployed, causing DMV to cancel their vehicle
registrations. Upon return from deployment, a service member
must pay a reinstatement fee, currently $14, to restore the
canceled vehicle registration.
This bill provides an exemption from that fee for members of
the California National Guard and the U.S. Armed Services if
their registration is canceled while they are deployed. The
intent of this legislation is to eliminate one of the many
frustrations associated with returning from long deployments
while trying to resume a normal life. The author notes that
while this is a small gesture, he believes it is the least the
state can do for service members who already sacrifice so much
for this country.
2.Delayed implementation date . In 2005, DMV initiated its
program to verify electronically a vehicle registrant's
insurance status as the result of SB 1500 (Speier), Chapter
920, Statutes of 2004. DMV initially contracted with a private
company to verify insurance coverage electronically because
DMV did not have the capability to do so itself. The program
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is now being transitioned to DMV staff through a lengthy and
difficult process that requires electronically moving a large
number of records, which in turn requires a significant
computer programming effort for DMV. After the transition, DMV
will be able to accept electronic updates from insurers and to
generate notices to vehicle owners that their lapse in
associated insurance coverage will result in canceling their
registration. Because of the difficulty of the transition from
the vendor to DMV, the author amended this bill to delay its
operative date until 2011, assuring that DMV could
successfully implement this fee exemption.
3.Previous legislation . AB 418 (Salda?a) of 2007 would have
exempted from registration and license fees vehicles owned by
members of the California National Guard who are deployed for
the War in Iraq or in the U.S. military response to the
September 11, 2001 attacks. That bill passed this committee,
but was held under submission in the Senate Appropriations
Committee.
Assembly Votes:
Floor: 73 - 0
Appr: 16 - 0
Trans: 13 - 0
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the Committee before noon on
Wednesday,
June 10, 2009)
SUPPORT: American Legion
AMVETS, Department of California
California Professional Firefighters
California State Commanders Veterans Council
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of
California
Vietnam Veterans of American, California State
Council
OPPOSED: None received.