BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                      



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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                    AB 61|
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                                 THIRD READING


          Bill No:  AB 61
          Author:   Jeffries (R)
          Amended:  3/8/11 in Assembly
          Vote:     21

           
           SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE  :  8-1, 6/7/11
          AYES:  DeSaulnier, Gaines, Harman, Huff, Lowenthal, Pavley, 
            Rubio, Simitian
          NOES:  Kehoe

           SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE  :  Senate Rule 28.8

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  60-0, 4/14/11 (Consent)- See last page for 
            vote


           SUBJECT  :    Neighborhood electric vehicles

           SOURCE  :     Western Riverside Council of Governments


           DIGEST  :    This bill authorizes, until 2017, the County of 
          Riverside and the cities within that county to adopt 
          neighborhood electric vehicle transportation plans.

           ANALYSIS  :    Existing law defines a low-speed vehicle as a 
          motor vehicle that is four-wheeled; can attain a speed of 
          no more than 25 miles per hour (MPH) on a paved, level 
          surface; and has a gross vehicle weight rating of less than 
          3,000 pounds.  Low-speed vehicles are also known as 
          neighborhood electric vehicles (NEVs).  NEVs meet federal 
          motor vehicle safety standards, and one must possess a 
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          valid California driver's license to operate a NEV on 
          public streets.

          Existing law generally prohibits NEVs from being operated 
          on any roadway with a speed limit in excess of 35 MPH, but 
          a number of bills have provided exceptions for several 
          communities to run pilot projects, provided that the 
          following conditions are met:

          1. Each local government establishes a "neighborhood 
             electric vehicle transportation plan" for its 
             jurisdiction or some part of it.  Existing law puts 
             numerous requirements on the adoption of the plan, 
             including consultation with local law enforcement and 
             transportation planning officials.  The plan must 
             accommodate the travel of NEVs by identifying routes and 
             providing for NEV facilities (separate lanes, trails, 
             street crossings, parking, charging stations, etc.), and 
             the plan may allow NEVs on streets with speed limits 
             over 35 MPH only where dedicated lanes are provided for 
             NEVs. 

          2. Each jurisdiction works with the California Department 
             of Transportation (Caltrans) to establish uniform 
             specifications and symbols for signs, traffic control 
             devices, and rights-of-way designation in the plan areas 
             and obtain Caltrans approval in any instance where a NEV 
             route in the plan will cross or use a state highway.

          3. If a jurisdiction adopts a NEV transportation plan, it 
             reports to the Legislature on the plan, its 
             effectiveness, and its impact on traffic flows and 
             safety, and the jurisdiction makes a recommendation to 
             the Legislature on whether to extend the sunset date or 
             expand the authorization for NEV transportation plans 
             statewide.  These reports are due to the Legislature 
             about a year before the jurisdiction's NEV plan 
             authority sunsets.

          Communities statutorily authorized to adopt NEV plans are:

           Lincoln and Rocklin  .  AB 2353 (Leslie), Chapter 422, 
          Statutes of 2004, authorizes the NEV transportation plan 
          pilot projects until January 1, 2009, for the cities of 

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          Lincoln and Rocklin, and AB 2963 (Gaines), Chapter 199, 
          Statutes of 2008, extends the sunset date on these pilot 
          projects until January 1, 2012. 

           Amador County and the cities of Jackson, Sutter Creek, and 
          Amador City  .  AB 584 (Huber), Chapter 437, Statutes of 
          2010, allows until 2016, the County of Amador and the 
          cities of Jackson, Amador City, and Sutter Creek to 
          establish a NEV transportation plan or plans.

           Fresno  .  AB 1781 (Villines), Chapter 452, Statutes of 2010, 
          authorizes until 2016 the City of Fresno to establish a NEV 
          plan.

           Ranch Plan Planned Community in Orange County  .  SB 956 
          (Correa), Chapter 442, Statutes of 2007, authorizes Orange 
          County to establish a NEV transportation plan for Ranch 
          Plan Planned Community under essentially the same criteria 
          as the Lincoln and Rocklin pilot projects, except with a 
          sunset date of January 1, 2013.

          This bill authorizes the County of Riverside and the cities 
          within that county to establish jointly or individually NEV 
          transportation plans under the same terms as the pilot 
          projects previously authorized in law.  Specifically, the 
          bill:

          1. Permits the County of Riverside or any of the cities 
             within it to establish by ordinance or resolution a NEV 
             plan for streets under its jurisdictions. Prior to 
             adoption, the county or city or a combination thereof 
             shall receive comments on the plan from the Riverside 
             County Transportation Commission and any agency with 
             traffic law enforcement responsibilities in those 
             jurisdictions.  The plan must accommodate the travel of 
             NEVs by identifying routes and providing for NEV 
             facilities (e.g., separate lanes, trails, street 
             crossings, parking, charging stations, etc.).

          2. Requires the jurisdictions that adopt a NEV plan to 
             report to the Legislature by January 1, 2016, in 
             consultation with Caltrans, CHP, and local law 
             enforcement agencies.  Each report shall describe the 
             plan adopted, evaluate its effectiveness and impact on 

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             traffic flows and safety, and make a recommendation to 
             the Legislature on whether to extend the sunset date or 
             expand the authorization for NEV transportation plans 
             statewide.

          3. Sunsets on January 1, 2017.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  Yes   
          Local:  Yes

           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  6/27/11)

          Western Riverside Council of Governments (source)
          City of Banning
          City of Corona
          City of Lake Elsinore
          City of Moreno Valley
          City of Murrieta
          City of Perris
          City of San Jacinto
          South Coast Air Quality Management District

           ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT  :    The author's office notes that 
          NEVs provide zero-emission-vehicle alternatives that can 
          assist communities in improving mobility while reducing 
          carbon-based vehicle emissions.  In order to do this 
          effectively, NEV plans are needed to overcome connection 
          issues and identify safe routes for NEVs.  The author's 
          office represents a portion of the County of Riverside, 
          which includes a number of cities that have begun to 
          consider and develop NEV plans and hope to implement them 
          in the near future.  This bill will enable those 
          communities to implement the NEV plans they are developing.


           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  : 
          AYES: Achadjian, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall, Bill 
            Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford, 
            Brownley, Buchanan, Campos, Carter, Cedillo, Chesbro, 
            Cook, Davis, Dickinson, Donnelly, Eng, Fletcher, Fong, 
            Fuentes, Furutani, Gatto, Gordon, Hagman, Halderman, 
            Hall, Hayashi, Roger Hernández, Hill, Huber, Hueso, 
            Huffman, Jeffries, Lara, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Miller, 
            Mitchell, Monning, Nestande, Nielsen, Norby, Pan, Perea, 

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            V. Manuel Pérez, Portantino, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, 
            Solorio, Swanson, Torres, Valadao, Wieckowski, Yamada, 
            John A. Pérez
          NO VOTE RECORDED: Alejo, Butler, Charles Calderon, Conway, 
            Feuer, Galgiani, Garrick, Gorell, Grove, Harkey, Jones, 
            Knight, Logue, Mansoor, Mendoza, Morrell, Olsen, Wagner, 
            Williams, Vacancy


          JJA:do  6/27/11   Senate Floor Analyses 

                         SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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