BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: AB 2768
SENATOR ALAN LOWENTHAL, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: U&C
VERSION: 6/2/10
Analysis by: Carrie Cornwell FISCAL: yes
Hearing date: June 15, 2010
SUBJECT:
Utilities and Commerce omnibus bill
DESCRIPTION:
This bill ensures that specified acts that result in a license
suspension for a bus driver are reported to the Department of
Motor Vehicles (DMV) and makes other minor, technical changes to
provisions of law governing various state boards, commissions,
and agencies.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1.Under AB 636 (Jones), Chapter 248, Statutes of 2009, suspends
a person from driving any kind of bus for five years if the
person drove a charter bus without having been issued the
proper driver's license, endorsement, or certificate to do so.
The bill also permanently bans a business from operating as a
charter bus company if the business knowingly employed such a
driver or the business operated without a current permit from
the Public Utilities Commission.
2.Requires the Secretary of the California Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) to address various issues concerning
the cost-shifting between classes of utility ratepayers and to
provide reports to the Legislature no later than 1997 and
2001.
3.Creates and specifies the membership and duties of the State
Parks and Recreation Commission, the State Mining and Geology
Board, State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, the
AB 2768 (U&C) Page 2
California Recreational Trails Committee, the Parklands
Program Finance Committee, the State Lands Commission, the
State Resource Conservation Commission, Resource Improvement
Districts, the Ventura-Los Angeles Mountain and Coastal Study
Commission, the California Energy Resources Conservation and
Development Commission (CEC), the State Coastal Conservancy,
and the California Urban Waterfront Area Restoration Financing
Authority.
This bill :
1.Ensures that suspensions of a bus driver's license resulting
from violations under AB 636 are reported to the DMV.
2.Deletes the obsolete existing law requiring the Secretary of
EPA to address cost-shifting between classes of utility
ratepayers and to report to the Legislature.
3.Makes minor, technical changes to provisions of law governing
commissions, boards, committees, districts, and authority
listed above in #3 .
COMMENTS:
Purpose . This bill makes a minor change to the Vehicle Code to
address a chaptering problem that arose last year between AB 134
(Blakeslee) Chapter 414, Statutes of 2009, and AB 636. The
author amended AB 636 to avoid chaptering out provisions of AB
134. In addition, the authors requested that the Governor sign
AB 134 before AB 636 so that AB 134 would not chapter out a
provision of AB 636. The Governor signed the bills in the
reverse order (i.e., AB 134 first and AB 636 second). Thus, AB
134 chaptered out a change to law made by AB 636 relating to the
court reporting offenses to the Department of Motor Vehicles.
This bill corrects that chaptering out problem by restoring the
change AB 636 made.
This bill also makes minor technical changes and deletes
obsolete language in state law, including changing the term
"chairman" to "chair" for various entities created in state
statute to reflect better those who are actually filling these
positions. For example, the last two chairmen of the California
AB 2768 (U&C) Page 3
Energy Commission have not been men.
Assembly Votes:
Floor: 76 - 0
Appr: 17 - 0
U&C: 14 - 0
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the Committee before noon on
Wednesday,
June 9, 2010)
SUPPORT: None received.
OPPOSED: None received.