BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1648
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Date of Hearing: April 19, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION
Bonnie Lowenthal, Chair
AB 1648 (Jeffries) - As Amended: April 14, 2010
SUBJECT : Driver's license: firefighters
SUMMARY : Sets forth new driver's license requirements for
firefighters operating firefighter equipment. Specifically,
this bill :
1)Provides that a regularly organized, official fire department
is not required to participate in the Department of Motor
Vehicles (DMV) Employer Pull Notice (EPN) Program. If the
fire department does participate in the EPN Program, program
fees will be waived.
2)Exempts firefighting equipment with a gross vehicle weight
rating over 26,000 pounds and operated by a person who is
required to have a firefighter endorsement from the list of
vehicles for which a person must obtain a commercial driver's
license to operate.
3)Requires a driver to obtain a firefighter endorsement and
obtain and maintain a class A, Class B, or class C license to
operate large firefighting equipment, unless it is for
training purposes during a non-emergency and under the direct
supervision of a properly licensed and authorized fire
department employee.
4)Sets forth requirements that a driver must meet to obtain a
firefighter endorsement, including:
a) Provide proof to DMV of current employment or
registration as a volunteer with a fire department by
providing a letter or other indication from the chief of
the fire department; and,
b) Pass a written commercial driver's license examination.
5)Provides that these requirements apply only if both the
following conditions exist:
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a) The equipment is operated by either a professional or
volunteer firefighter of a legitimate fire department, as
specified; and,
b) The firefighting equipment (over 26,000 gross vehicle
weight rating) is used to travel to and from an emergency
or to transport equipment used in an emergency, as
specified.
6)Prohibits DMV from imposing fees for firefighter endorsements,
unless the endorsement is added to an existing license, for
which the driver is required to pay a duplicate license fee.
7)Provides that these provisions apply to licenses obtained
after January 1, 2011.
8)Repeals existing provisions governing issuance of a restricted
firefighter driver's license.
EXISTING LAW:
9)Establishes an Employer Pull Notice (EPN) Program in DMV to
provide employers and regulatory agencies with a means of
promoting driver safety through an ongoing review of driver
records.
10)Requires employers of commercial drivers to participate in
the EPN Program, which provides employers with information
regarding a driver's current public record as recorded by DMV
and any subsequent convictions, failures to appear, accidents,
driver's license suspensions, driver's license revocations, or
other actions taken against the person's driving privilege.
11)Sets forth other procedures and requirements for the EPN
Program.
12)Sets forth testing requirements for DMV's commercial driving
skills test, including an actual demonstration of the
applicant's ability to exercise ordinary and reasonable
control in operating a motor vehicle in the type and/or
combination for which he or she is seeking a license.
13)Prohibits any person from operating firefighting equipment
AB 1648
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unless that person has a valid driver's license for the
appropriate class of equipment.
14)Authorizes DMV to issue a restricted driver's license for an
appropriate class of firefighting equipment.
15)Provides for an Employer Testing Program (ETP). The ETP is a
third-party testing program in which DMV allows employers of
commercial drivers to conduct the drive test portion for the
DMV's commercial driver's licensing requirements for class A,
class B, and non-commercial firefighter restricted license.
ETP requires an employer-employee relationship in order to
conduct third party testing. With the DMV's authorization, any
public or private company may participate in ETP.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : According to DMV, their commercial driver's license
ETP is about to undergo significant changes to conform to new
federal regulations. Left unaddressed, the burdens this will
place on fire departments will cripple their ability to operate
this program. These changes will force departments to send new
drivers to commercial drive test facilities run by the DMV.
Unfortunately, at the same time that these new, more rigorous
testing requirements come about, DMV reports it is reducing the
number of drive test facilities. Specifically, it indicates
that statewide, the number of facilities is expected to shrink
from 30 to 8.
Fire departments around the state, particularly those in rural
areas, are concerned that it is becoming both extremely
expensive and strategically difficult to service the needs of
California communities because they will be hampered in
obtaining the required commercial driver's licenses for both
professional and volunteer firefighting staffs. They cite as an
example of the difficulties the fact that to complete the skills
test, a licensed firefighter with a commercial license must
drive the firefighting equipment to a DMV testing site,
sometimes hours away, with the new driver who is to be tested.
As a result, two employees and a large piece of firefighting
equipment are essentially out of service for the day. As if
this was not costly enough, rural volunteer fire departments
face extraordinary difficulties because their driver's usually
have to take time off of work for the test.
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According to the author, this bill is a proactive approach
toward resolving the dilemma posed by these rapidly approaching
problems. The bill removes the firefighter restricted license
program from DMV's commercial driver's license program (as
authorized under federal law) and creates new testing
requirements. New firefighter drivers will be trained by their
departments and will be required to pass a written DMV test. It
is important to note that the required training standards are
not impacted by AB 1648. The author believe that this bill
makes it easier for fire departments to train and test their
firefighters without the onerous logistical requirements of the
commercial employer training program and without jeopardizing
the integrity of the testing.
The author reports that this bill is designed to provide a
cost-effective means for meeting the licensure needs of our
state's firefighters and represents the product of over nine
months of stakeholder meetings, negotiations and statewide
gatherings with fire officials. In addition, the author has met
with DMV representatives repeatedly and DMV has, in turn, been
responsive and supportive of the efforts to reform the
firefighter licensing system.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
None on file
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Janet Dawson / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093