BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 45|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 45
Author: Hill (D)
Amended: 8/6/12 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE ENERGY, UTIL. & COMMUNIC. COMMITTEE : 7-1, 6/21/11
AYES: Padilla, Fuller, Corbett, De León, DeSaulnier,
Rubio, Simitian
NOES: Berryhill
NO VOTE RECORDED: Pavley, Strickland, Wright
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE : 4-0, 7/3/12
AYES: Evans, Blakeslee, Corbett, Leno
NO VOTE RECORDED: Harman
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 7-0, 8/6/12
AYES: Kehoe, Walters, Alquist, Dutton, Lieu, Price,
Steinberg
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 70-0, 5/12/11 (Consent) - See last page
for vote
SUBJECT : Charter-party carriers of passengers: alcoholic
beverages:
open carry
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill (1) repeals specified provisions of
the Passenger Charter-party Carriers Act (Act) related to
CONTINUED
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the requirements for a driver of a limousine for hire
operated by a charter-party carrier of passengers (carrier)
concerning the consumption of alcoholic beverages by
passengers under 21 years of age, and would instead require
the chartering party, as defined, to name a "designee" to
be present on any party bus or limousine, as specified; (2)
imposes various responsibilities and liabilities upon the
designee, driver, and carrier to prevent the consumption of
alcohol by persons under 21 years of age; and (3) provides
for specified penalties for failure to comply with these
provisions, and makes it a misdemeanor for third and
subsequent violations relating to the storage or possession
of an open container of an alcoholic beverage, as
specified.
ANALYSIS :
Existing Law:
1. Article XII of the California Constitution:
A. Establishes private corporations and persons
that own, operate, control, or manage a line,
plant, or system for the transportation of people
or property, and common carriers, as public
utilities subject to control by the Legislature.
B. Allows the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to
fix rates and establish rules for the
transportation of passengers and property by
transportation companies.
2. The Public Utilities Code:
A. Requires the PUC to ensure that every
charter-party carrier of passengers operates on a
prearranged basis within the state.
B. Requires the driver of any limousine for hire
operated by a charter-party carrier of passengers
under a valid certificate or permit to comply with
certain requirements relating to alcohol beverages,
including:
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(1) Ascertaining whether any passenger is
under the age of 21 years.
(2) Reading to the passenger a statement
that the consumption of any alcoholic beverage
in the vehicle is unlawful.
(3) Requiring the minor passenger to sign
the statement and if minor is found to be, or
to have been, consuming any alcoholic beverage
during the course of the ride, the driver
shall immediately terminate the contract of
hire and return passenger to the point of
origin.
C. Subjects the carrier to specified penalties,
based on the number of offenses for conviction of a
driver, or any officer, director, agent or employee
of the carrier that prohibits storage of an opened
container of an alcoholic beverage in a motor
vehicle.
This bill, to be known as the Brett Studebaker Law, repeals
the requirements for a limousine driver for hire operated
by a carrier concerning the consumption of alcoholic
beverages by passengers under 21 years of age, and instead
enacts specified requirements and liabilities relating to
under-age drinking on charter party carriers, as specified.
This bill imposes various penalties for violations of the
bill's provisions, and creates two new misdemeanors. This
bill:
1. Requires a chartering party, as defined, to disclose to
the carrier at the time the service is prearranged or
the contract is made, whether alcoholic beverages will
be served or transported in the passenger compartment of
the vehicle during transportation and whether a member
of the party will be under 21 years of age.
2. Requires the carrier if the aforementioned is true, the
carrier is required to notify the chartering party of
specified responsibilities, including the assignment of
a "designee" who is at least 25 years of age to be
present whenever persons under 21 years of age who are
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not accompanied by a parent or legal guardian are being
transported.
3. Requires the designee to make reasonable efforts to
ensure compliance with all laws prohibiting the
consumption of alcoholic beverages by persons under 21
years of age who are members of the party and are
unaccompanied by a parent or legal guardian.
4. Requires the carrier to provide a copy of a written form
signed by the designee to the chartering party within 24
hours of the reservation. If the form is not provided,
the carrier must provide a designee who is not the
driver and shall incur all liabilities of that designee.
5. Requires the carrier to inform the driver of the vehicle
that alcohol will be present and that there will be
persons under 21 years of age present during the
provision of transportation services, and the name of
the designee.
6. Requires the driver to obtain the designee's signature
or initials on a written form indicating the designee's
acknowledgment and agreement to specified terms.
7. Extends the following existing penalties imposed on
limousine drivers to all charter-party carriers of
passengers for a specified violation of the Vehicle Code
related to the storage of an opened container of an
alcoholic beverage.
A. For a first offense, the PUC may impose a civil
penalty of not more than $2,000 upon the carrier.
B. For a second offense, the PUC may impose a civil
penalty of not more than $2,000 upon the carrier or
suspend the carrier's certificate or permit for not
more than 30 days, or both.
C. For a third offense, the PUC is required to
revoke the carrier's certificate or permit.
8. Provides that a third or subsequent violation of Vehicle
Code Section 23225, relating to the storage of an opened
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container of an alcoholic beverage, or Section 23223,
relating to the possession of an open container of an
alcoholic beverage, or a driver of any vehicle used to
provide transportation services on a prearranged
services, operating under a valid certificate or permit,
as specified, is a misdemeanor.
Background
Charter-party carriers are rented as an entire vehicle and
transport passengers on a prearranged basis. A
charter-party carrier is also referred to as a party bus,
charter bus and limousine.
Charter-party carriers are regulated by the PUC pursuant to
the Passenger Charter-Party Carriers' Act. Carriers
operate under one or more of the various types of permits
and certificates issued by the PUC. There are three
categories of certificates (designated Class A, B, and C)
and three categories of permits (designated P, S, and Z).
The certificates and permits authorize different kinds of
transportation services or limit the size of the vehicle
that may be operated. Approximately 5,600 carriers hold
one or more certificates and permits.
Issue . Limousines were not regulated by the PUC until the
proliferation of limousines companies in the late 1980s
began to lead to serious drug and alcohol abuse on
limousine rides by minor. Similar to limousines, charter
buses are the new place for under-age teenagers to drink.
Some of these buses have the reputation for promoting
drinking parties on wheels, and there is no consistent set
of regulations promulgated to ensure that drivers are
checking the passenger's photo identification.
PUC enforcement authority . The PUC is the agency
responsible for licensing limousine operators by issuing
them a charter-party carrier permit or certificate.
Limousine operators and other charter-party carriers are
required to participate in the Department of Motor Vehicle
Employer Pull Notice System, which is a program for the
carrier-employer to monitor the driving records of its
drivers. If a driver is pulled over by a California
Highway Patrol officer (CHP) for violating the open
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container law, that information is supposed to be given to
the PUC by the courts. This information sharing allows the
PUC to issue administrative citations and with fines
against charter-party carriers for violations of the law or
PUC rules and regulations.
For instance, if a limousine driver is pulled over by a law
enforcement officer and is found to have passengers under
21 years of age drinking inside of the vehicle, the driver
can then be charged with an open container violation. The
PUC does not have the authority to impose penalties against
the driver. The carrier (i.e. company) is held responsible
for any violations committed by its drivers. For a first
offense, the PUC may impose a civil penalty no greater than
two thousand dollars ($2,000) upon the carrier. For a
second offense, the PUC may impose a civil penalty no
greater than two thousand dollars upon the carrier or
suspend the carrier's permit for not more than 30 days, or
both. For a third offense, the PUC shall revoke the
carrier's permit. These provisions and penalties also apply
to a limousine driver or a carrier officer, director, agent
or employee who is convicted of having an open container of
an alcoholic beverage in the vehicle when a minor passenger
is being transported.
According to the PUC, in recent years staff has not
received any notices from the courts of a violation of the
open container prohibition by a limousine driver or a
company official.
Close the loophole . This bill extends to all charter-party
carrier vehicles the protections against under-age drinking
of alcoholic beverages that currently apply only to
limousines. For a first offense, the PUC may impose a
civil penalty no greater than two thousand dollars ($2,000)
upon the carrier. For a second offense, the PUC may impose
a civil penalty no greater than two thousand dollars
($2,000) upon the carrier, or suspend the carrier's permit
for no more than 30 days, or both. On a third offense, the
PUC shall revoke the carrier's permit. A third or
subsequent offense would subject the driver to misdemeanor
criminal charges which would be enforceable by the
appropriate law enforcement agency.
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Statistical data . While there is no statistical data
available at this time, there is antidotal evidence that
may substantiate the need for greater regulatory oversight.
According to a news article published in the Los Angeles
Times in March 2011, the Los Angeles Police Department
formed a task force over the last year to address the
growing problems with party buses. The task force has
received cooperation from many of the club operators who
turn away partiers who have engaged in excessive drinking
or appear under-age.
Additionally, PUC staff has been participating in vehicle
inspections, including vehicles operated as party buses,
with other law enforcement agencies where under-age
drinking or other alcohol related incidents occur. These
include inspections conducted periodically by the Hollywood
Strike Force and surrounding areas and by the San Diego
Area Law Enforcement Task Force in the Pacific Beach and
Mission Beach areas of San Diego, where large numbers of
university students are attracted to the lively nightlife.
Any violations by a charter-party carrier that are observed
by the staff are dealt with subsequently by the issuance of
a citation or warning notice.
Comments
According to the author's office, it took the loss of Brett
Studebaker, a 19-year old San Mateo resident to expose
loopholes in state law regarding under-age drinking in the
party bus industry.
On the evening of February 5, 2010, Brett Studebaker,
boarded a charter bus to celebrate a friend's birthday.
According to the lawsuit filed by his family, the charter
bus dropped the passengers off at their cars at
approximately 2:00 a.m. after several hours of heavy
alcohol consumption. Unfortunately, Brett lost his life
less than an hour later when he crashed his vehicle into a
sound wall and another vehicle on Highway 101 near San
Mateo. It was later determined by officials that Brett's
blood alcohol level was more than three times the legal
limit for an adult of drinking age.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
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Local: Yes
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Minor, absorbable costs to the PUC associated with the
revised provisions of the Act.
Potential ongoing minor court costs for misdemeanor
filings, likely less than $25,000 (General Fund) for 50
new misdemeanor filings per year.
While the impact of this bill independently is likely
to be minor, the cumulative effect of all new
misdemeanors could create General Fund cost pressure on
capital outlay, staffing, programming, the courts, and
other resources in the context of recently enacted 2011
Public Safety Realignment.
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/7/12)
California Bus Association
California Narcotic Officers' Association
California Police Chiefs Association
California Public Utilities Commission
Crime Victims United of California
EF International Language Schools
Greater California Livery Association
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department
Mothers Against Drunk Driving
National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence - Orange
County
San Mateo Police Department
State Public Affairs Committee of the Junior League of
California
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Achadjian, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford,
Brownley, Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos,
Carter, Chesbro, Cook, Davis, Dickinson, Donnelly, Eng,
Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes, Furutani, Beth Gaines,
Galgiani, Gatto, Gordon, Grove, Hagman, Halderman, Hall,
Harkey, Hayashi, Hill, Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Jeffries,
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Jones, Knight, Lara, Logue, Ma, Mansoor, Mendoza, Miller,
Monning, Morrell, Nestande, Nielsen, Norby, Olsen, Pan,
Perea, V. Manuel Pérez, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio,
Swanson, Valadao, Wagner, Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada,
John A. Pérez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Alejo, Cedillo, Conway, Garrick, Gorell,
Roger Hernández, Bonnie Lowenthal, Mitchell, Portantino,
Torres
RM:do 8/8/12 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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