BILL ANALYSIS Ó ------------------------------------------------------------ |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1047| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |1020 N Street, Suite 524 | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ------------------------------------------------------------ THIRD READING Bill No: AB 1047 Author: Jeffries (R) Amended: 5/30/12 in Senate Vote: 21 SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMM. : 8-0, 6/12/12 AYES: DeSaulnier, Gaines, Harman, Kehoe, Lowenthal, Rubio, Simitian, Wyland NO VOTE RECORDED: Pavley ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 55-5, 1/17/12 - See last page for vote SUBJECT : Vehicles: motorcycle safety SOURCE : ABATE of California DIGEST : This bill prohibits state and local law enforcement agencies from conducting motorcycle-only checkpoints. ANALYSIS : Existing law authorizes a local jurisdiction, by ordinance and only on highways under its jurisdiction, to establish vehicle inspection checkpoints to look for air emissions violations or sobriety checkpoints to identify drivers who are under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Drivers of motor vehicles must stop and submit to an inspection at a checkpoint when signs are displayed requiring a stop. In its effort to reduce negative outcomes associated with CONTINUED AB 1047 Page 2 motor vehicle crashes, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) administers traffic safety grants to state and local governments to conduct local highway safety programs. Among the grant funding NHTSA provides are funds to states through the Motorcyclist Safety Grant program. Federal law provides that these motorcycle safety funds are available only for two purposes: motorcyclist safety training motorcyclist awareness programs. Comments Purpose . This bill prohibits law enforcement from conducting motorcycle-only checkpoints. The author introduced this bill in response to other states setting up roadside checkpoints and stopping and citing only motorcyclists. The author contends that it is important to prohibit these motorcycle-only checkpoints because they have resulted in motorcyclists feeling singled out and profiled for stops by police. California law enforcement does not conduct motorcycle safety checkpoints. The author claims this bill is important to protect Californian motorcyclists' rights. According to the California Highway Patrol (CHP), however, neither it nor any local law enforcement agencies conduct motorcycle-only checkpoints. Some have described an example of a motorcycle-only checkpoint that occurred in Citrus Heights, California; however, in this instance the local law enforcement agency was conducting a targeted enforcement effort rather than a motorcycle-only checkpoint. Targeted enforcement efforts and checkpoints are often confused . The distinguishing feature of a checkpoint is that drivers are required to pull over and stop in a designated area when requested to do so by law enforcement personnel. Once a driver has pulled into the designated area, he/she is required to submit to an inspection conducted by a law enforcement officer. Drivers are notified that the checkpoint is in place by posted signs that require drivers to pull over and stop. Drivers who fail to stop may be cited. CONTINUED AB 1047 Page 3 Targeted enforcement programs, on the other hand, call for the deployment of additional law enforcement officers in a given area to look for and cite drivers for specific violations. One common example of a targeted enforcement effort is the recent Click It or Ticket campaign to increase compliance with seatbelt laws. An example of a targeted enforcement effort involving motorcyclists was CHP's enforcement campaign to increase patrols on a 33-mile stretch of State Route 74 near Temecula focused on traffic violations made by motorcyclists. In addition to increased enforcement, targeted enforcement programs can also include public awareness media efforts designed to reduce the overall incidence of specific violations. Are motorcycle-only checkpoints fair? Proponents for this bill argue that it is unfair to single out motorcycles for safety inspections. If CHP were to conduct other safety checkpoints to look for proper seat belt and child restraint use, these would effectively single out automobiles. In such checkpoints, CHP would wave motorcyclists through because motorcycles have no seat belt requirements. If the CHP conducts a helmet checkpoint, it stands to reason the officers would wave through automobile drivers because they are not required to wear helmets. It is unclear why one checkpoint or the other would be considered more or less fair to the drivers being stopped. In fact, several motorcycle riders that were stopped at the motorcycle-only checkpoints in New York sued the state in 2009, claiming that the main purpose of the checkpoints was to look for criminals and that the practice was intrusive and unfair to riders (Wagner, et al. v. The County of Schenectady, NY, et al.). A federal judge dismissed the case in November 2011, rejecting the motorcyclists' claims that the New York State Police violated their constitutional rights and concluding that the checkpoints were enacted to promote motorcycle safety and were effective in addressing this interest. Other states and legislation . To date, only New York, Georgia, and Virginia have conducted motorcycle-only checkpoints. In response to their growing use, motorcycle advocacy groups are urging lawmakers across the country to ban these checkpoints. New Hampshire and North Carolina have passed laws banning the use of federal grant funds for CONTINUED AB 1047 Page 4 motorcycle-only checkpoints. In addition, Virginia has passed a law which prohibits motorcycle-only checkpoints regardless of funding source. At the federal level, Wisconsin Congressmen Jim Sensenbrenner, Tom Petri, Paul Ryan, and Sean Duffy have introduced H.R. 904 that, if enacted, would prohibit the United States Secretary of Transportation from providing funds to state and local governments for the creation of motorcycle-only checkpoints. FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No Local: No SUPPORT : (Verified 6/14/12) ABATE of California (source) American Motorcyclist Association Sacramento Outrider Motorcycle Association Thunder Roads Magazine - Northern California ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 55-5, 1/17/12 AYES: Achadjian, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Bill Berryhill, Bonilla, Brownley, Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Carter, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Dickinson, Donnelly, Eng, Feuer, Fong, Fuentes, Beth Gaines, Garrick, Gatto, Gordon, Grove, Hagman, Halderman, Hall, Hayashi, Hill, Huber, Jeffries, Jones, Knight, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mansoor, Mendoza, Miller, Mitchell, Monning, Morrell, Nestande, Nielsen, Norby, Olsen, Perea, Portantino, Silva, Solorio, Valadao, Wagner, Wieckowski, Yamada NOES: Alejo, Lara, Pan, Swanson, Torres NO VOTE RECORDED: Beall, Block, Blumenfield, Bradford, Campos, Cedillo, Davis, Fletcher, Furutani, Galgiani, Gorell, Harkey, Roger Hernández, Hueso, Huffman, V. Manuel Pérez, Skinner, Smyth, Williams, John A. Pérez JJA:k 6/14/12 Senate Floor Analyses SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE **** END **** CONTINUED AB 1047 Page 5 CONTINUED