BILL NUMBER: AB 628 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Block
FEBRUARY 25, 2009
An act to amend Sections 23302 and 40255 of the Vehicle Code,
relating to vehicles.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 628, as introduced, Block. Vehicles: toll evasion violations.
(1) Existing law makes it unlawful for any person to refuse to pay
tolls or other charges on any vehicular crossing or toll highway and
provides that it is prima facie evidence of a violation of this
provision for any person to enter upon any vehicular crossing without
either lawful money of the United States in the person's immediate
possession in an amount sufficient to pay the prescribed tolls or
other charges due from that person or a transponder or other
electronic toll payment device associated with a valid Automatic
Vehicle Identification account with a balance sufficient to pay those
tolls. A violation of these provisions is an infraction.
This bill would additionally provide that, for vehicular crossings
and toll highways where the issuing agency permits pay-by-plate toll
processing and payment of tolls and other charges in accordance with
policies adopted by the issuing agency, it is prima facie evidence
of a toll evasion violation for a person to enter the vehicular
crossing or toll highway without at least one of the following: (A)
lawful money of the United States in the person's immediate
possession in an amount sufficient to pay the prescribed tolls or
other charges due from that person, or (B) a transponder or other
electronic toll payment device associated with a valid Automatic
Vehicle Identification account with a balance sufficient to pay those
tolls, or (C) valid California vehicle license plates properly
affixed to both the front and rear of the vehicle in which that
person enters onto the vehicular crossing or toll highway. Where
electronic toll collection is the only other method of paying tolls
or other charges, the bill would provide that it is prima facie
evidence of a toll evasion violation for a person to enter the
vehicular crossing or toll highway without either (i) a transponder
or other electronic toll payment device associated with a valid
Automatic Vehicle Identification account with a balance sufficient to
pay those tolls, or (ii) valid California vehicle license plates
properly affixed to both the front and rear of the vehicle in which
that person enters onto the vehicular crossing or toll highway.
(2) Existing law provides that the officer or person authorized to
issue a notice of toll evasion violation is not required to
participate in an administrative review of the toll evasion violation
and that the issuing agency is not required to produce any evidence
other than the notice of toll evasion violation or a copy thereof,
information received from the department identifying the registered
owner of the vehicle, and a statement under penalty of perjury from
the person reporting the violations. Under existing law perjury is a
crime.
This bill would require, for a toll evasion violation that occurs
on a vehicular crossing or toll highway where the issuing agency
allows pay-by-plate toll processing and payment, the required
statement under penalty of perjury from the officer or person
reporting the violation to include a statement that the tolls or
other charges and any applicable fee were not paid in accordance with
the issuing agency's policies for pay-by-plate toll processing and
payment.
(3) The bill would make other technical, nonsubstantive and
conforming changes to these provisions.
Because the bill would create new crimes, the bill would impose a
state-mandated local program.
(4) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse
local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 23302 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read:
23302. (a) It is unlawful for any a
person to refuse fail to pay tolls or
other charges on any vehicular crossing or toll highway. It
Subject to subdivision (b), (c), or (d), it is
prima facie evidence of a violation of this section for any
a person to enter upon any vehicular crossing
without either lawful money of the United States in the person's
immediate possession in an amount sufficient to pay the prescribed
tolls or other charges due from that person or a
transponder or other electronic toll payment device associated with a
valid Automatic Vehicle Identification account with a balance
sufficient to pay those tolls. If a transponder or other
electronic toll payment device is used to pay tolls or
other charges due, the device shall be located in, or on the vehicle
in a location so as to be visible for the purpose of enforcement at
all times when the vehicle is located on the vehicular crossing or
toll highway. Where required by the operator of a vehicular crossing
or toll highway, this requirement applies even if the
operator offers free travel or nontoll accounts to certain classes of
users.
(b) For vehicular crossings and toll highways that uses
use electronic toll collection as the only
method of paying tolls or other charges, it is prima facie evidence
of a violation of this section for any a
person to enter the vehicular crossing or toll highway without
a transponder or other electronic toll payment device associated with
a valid Automatic Vehicle Identification account with a balance
sufficient to pay those tolls. If a transponder or other
electronic toll payment device is used to pay tolls or other charges
due, the device shall be located in, or on the vehicle in a location
so as to be visible for the purpose of enforcement at all times when
the vehicle is located on the vehicular crossing or toll highway.
Where required by the operator of a vehicular crossing or toll
highway, this requirement applies even if the operator offers free
travel or nontoll accounts to certain classes of users.
(c) Subject to subdivision (d), for vehicular crossings and toll
highways where the issuing agency, as defined in Section 40250,
permits pay-by-plate toll processing and payment of tolls and other
charges in accordance with policies adopted by the issuing agency, it
is prima facie evidence of a violation of this section for a person
to enter the vehicular crossing or toll highway without at least one
of the following:
(1) Lawful money of the United States in the person's immediate
possession in an amount sufficient to pay the prescribed tolls or
other charges due from that person.
(2) A transponder or other electronic toll payment device
associated with a valid Automatic Vehicle Identification account with
a balance sufficient to pay those tolls.
(3) Valid California vehicle license plates properly affixed to
both the front and rear of the vehicle in which that person enters
onto the vehicular crossing or toll highway.
(d) For vehicular crossings and toll highways where the issuing
agency, as defined in Section 40250, permits pay-by-plate toll
processing and payment of tolls and other charges in accordance with
policies adopted by the issuing agency, and where electronic toll
collection is the only other method of paying tolls or other charges,
it is prima facie evidence of a violation of this section for a
person to enter the vehicular crossing or toll highway without either
a transponder or other electronic toll payment device associated
with a valid Automatic Vehicle Identification account with a balance
sufficient to pay those tolls or valid California vehicle license
plates properly affixed to both the front and rear of the vehicle in
which that person enters onto the vehicular crossing or toll highway.
(e) )As used in this section, "Pay-by-plate toll processing and
payment" means an issuing agency's use of on-road vehicle license
plate identification recognition technology to accept payment of
tolls within a specified period of time following the use of the
vehicular crossing or toll highway by persons entering upon the
vehicular crossing or toll highway without the payment of tolls or
other charges by either cash payment in lawful money of the United
States or use of an electronic toll payment device associated with a
valid Automatic Vehicle Identification account with a balance
sufficient to pay the tolls or other charges, in accordance with
policies adopted by the issuing agency.
SEC. 2. Section 40255 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read:
40255. (a) Within 21 days from the issuance of the notice of toll
evasion violation, or within 15 days from the mailing of the notice
of delinquent toll evasion, whichever occurs later, a person may
contest a notice of toll evasion violation or a notice of delinquent
toll evasion. In that case, the processing agency shall do the
following:
(1) The processing agency shall either investigate with its own
records and staff or request that the issuing agency investigate the
circumstances of the notice with respect to the contestant's written
explanation of reasons for contesting the toll evasion violation. If,
based upon the results of that investigation, the processing agency
is satisfied that the violation did not occur or that the registered
owner was not responsible for the violation, the processing agency
shall cancel the notice of toll evasion violation and make an
adequate record of the reasons for canceling the notice. The
processing agency shall mail the results of the investigation to the
person who contested the notice of toll evasion violation or the
notice of delinquent toll evasion violation.
(2) If the person contesting a notice of toll evasion violation or
notice of delinquent toll evasion violation is not satisfied with
the results of the investigation provided for in paragraph (1), the
person may, within 15 days of the mailing of the results of the
investigation, deposit the amount of the toll evasion penalty and
request an administrative review. After January 1, 1996, an
administrative hearing shall be held within 90 calendar days
following the receipt of a request for an administrative hearing,
excluding any time tolled pursuant to this article. The person
requesting the hearing may request one continuance, not to exceed 21
calendar days.
(b) The administrative review procedure shall consist of the
following:
(1) The person requesting an administrative review shall indicate
to the processing agency his or her election for a review by mail or
personal conference.
(2) If the person requesting an administrative review is a minor,
that person shall be permitted to appear at an administrative review
or admit responsibility for a toll evasion violation without the
necessity of the appointment of a guardian. The processing agency may
proceed against that person in the same manner as if that person
were an adult.
(3) (A) The administrative review shall be
conducted before a reviewer designated to conduct the review by the
issuing agency's governing body or chief executive officer. In the
case of violations on facilities developed pursuant to Section 143 of
the Streets and Highways Code, the processing agency shall contract
with a public agency or a private entity that has no financial
interest in the facility for the provision of administrative review
services pursuant to this subdivision. The costs of those
administrative review services shall be included in the
administrative fees authorized by this article.
In
(B) In addition to any other
requirements of employment, a reviewer shall demonstrate those
qualifications, training, and objectivity prescribed by the issuing
agency's governing body or chief executive as are necessary and which
are consistent with the duties and responsibilities set forth in
this article.
The
(C) The examiner's continued
employment, performance evaluation, compensation, and benefits shall
not be directly or indirectly linked to the amount of fines collected
by the examiner.
(4) The officer or person authorized to issue a notice of toll
evasion violation shall not be required to participate in an
administrative review. The issuing agency shall not be required to
produce any evidence other than the notice of toll evasion violation
or copy thereof, information received from the department identifying
the registered owner of the vehicle, and a statement under penalty
of perjury from the person reporting the violations
violation . For a toll evasion violation
that occurs on a vehicular crossing or toll highway where the issuing
agency allows pay-by-plate toll processing and payment, as defined
in Section 23302, the required statement under penalty of perjury
from the person reporting the violation shall include a statement
that the tolls or other charges and any applicable fee was not paid
in accordance with the issuing agency's policies for pay-by-plate
toll processing and payment. The documentation in
proper form shall be considered prima facie evidence of the
violation.
(5) The review shall be conducted in accordance with the written
procedure established by the processing agency which shall ensure
fair and impartial review of contested toll evasion violations. The
agency's final decision may be delivered personally or by first-class
mail.
SEC. 3. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.