BILL NUMBER: AB 348	CHAPTERED
	BILL TEXT

	CHAPTER  290
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE  SEPTEMBER 21, 2011
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR  SEPTEMBER 20, 2011
	PASSED THE SENATE  AUGUST 29, 2011
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 31, 2011
	AMENDED IN SENATE  JULY 7, 2011
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 27, 2011
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 13, 2011
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 25, 2011

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Buchanan
   (Coauthor: Assembly Member Bonilla)
   (Coauthors: Senators DeSaulnier and Hancock)

                        FEBRUARY 10, 2011

   An act to add and repeal Section 97.4 of the Streets and Highways
Code, relating to highways.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 348, Buchanan. Highways: Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone.
   Existing law requires the Department of Transportation to
designate a state highway segment as a Safety Enhancement-Double Fine
Zone if specified conditions are met, including that the governing
board of the city or county in which the segment is located has by
resolution indicated that it supports the designation.
   This bill would, notwithstanding these requirements and until
January 1, 2017, provide for the designation of the segment of county
highway known as Vasco Road, between the State Highway Route 580
junction in Alameda County and the Walnut Boulevard intersection in
Contra Costa County, as a Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone upon
the approval of the boards of supervisors of Alameda County and
Contra Costa County. The bill would also impose specified duties on
the local governing bodies regarding that double fine zone, including
to prepare, in consultation with the department, a report to be
submitted to the Legislature on the effectiveness of the zone.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 97.4 is added to the Streets and Highways Code,
to read:
   97.4.  (a) Notwithstanding subdivision (a) of Section 97, the
segment of county highway known as Vasco Road, between the State
Highway Route 580 junction in Alameda County and the Walnut Boulevard
intersection in Contra Costa County, may be designated as the Vasco
Road Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone upon the approval of
resolutions of the Alameda County and Contra Costa County boards of
supervisors supporting that designation.
   (b) Each local governing body that chooses to designate a double
fine zone in its jurisdiction pursuant to this section shall, prior
to the establishment of a double fine zone, do all of the following:
   (1) Undertake a public awareness campaign to inform the public of
the double fine zone designation, where it is located, its purpose,
and its consequences.
   (2) Where appropriate, implement increased traffic safety
enhancements, enforcement, and other roadway safety measures in
coordination with the establishment of the double fine zone.
   (c) The Vasco Road Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone is subject
to the rules and regulations adopted by the department prescribing
uniform standards for warning signs to notify motorists that,
pursuant to Section 42010 of the Vehicle Code, increased penalties
apply for traffic violations that are committed within a Safety
Enhancement-Double Fine Zone as authorized under Section 97.
   (d) The local authority having jurisdiction over the Vasco Road
Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone shall place and maintain the
warning signs identifying these segments by stating that a "Special
Safety Zone Region Begins Here" and a "Special Safety Zone Ends Here."

   (e) If a double fine zone is designated pursuant to this section,
the Counties of Alameda and Contra Costa, in consultation with the
department, shall jointly conduct an evaluation of its effectiveness
and submit their findings in one report to the Assembly Committee on
Transportation and the Senate Committee on Transportation and Housing
one year prior to the termination of the double fine zone. The
report shall include a recommendation on whether the zone should be
reauthorized by the Legislature, as well as a comparative evaluation
of the volume and speed of traffic, the number and severity of
collisions, and the contributing factors that led to collisions prior
to and following the establishment of the double fine zone.
   (f) The Vasco Road Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone does not
increase the civil liability of the state or local authority having
jurisdiction over the highway segment under Division 3.6 (commencing
with Section 810) of Title 1 of the Government Code or any other law
relating to civil liability.
   (g) (1) Only the base fine shall be enhanced pursuant to this
section.
   (2) Notwithstanding any other law, any additional penalty,
forfeiture, or assessment imposed by any other statute shall be based
on the amount of the base fine before enhancement or doubling and
shall not be based on the amount of the enhanced fine imposed
pursuant to this section.
   (h) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2017, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends
that date.