BILL NUMBER: SB 1225	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  APRIL 9, 2012

INTRODUCED BY   Senator Padilla

                        FEBRUARY 23, 2012

    An act to amend Sections 14070 and 14070.2 of the
Government Code, relating to transportation.   An act to
amend Sections 14031.8, 14070.2, 14070.4, and 14070.6 of, and to
repeal and add Article 5.2 (commencing with Section 14072) of Chapter
1 of Part 5 of Division 3 of Title 2 of, the Government Code, r
  elating to transportation. 



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 1225, as amended, Padilla. Intercity rail agreements. 
   Existing law authorizes the Department of Transportation to
contract with Amtrak for intercity rail passenger services and
provides funding for these services from the Public Transportation
Account. Existing law, until December 31, 1996, authorized the
department, subject to approval of the Secretary of the Business,
Transportation and Housing Agency, to enter into an interagency
transfer agreement under which a joint powers board assumes
responsibility for administering the state-funded intercity rail
service in a particular corridor. Existing law, with respect to a
transferred corridor, requires the board to demonstrate the ability
to meet performance standards established by the secretary. 

   This bill would authorize the department, with the approval of the
secretary, to enter into an additional interagency transfer
agreement with respect to the LOSSAN Corridor, defined to mean the
intercity passenger rail corridor between San Diego, Los Angeles, and
San Luis Obispo, if the LOSSAN Agency, an existing joint powers
agency, is reconstituted through an amended joint powers agreement
approved by the governing boards of its members to enable that agency
to enter into an interagency transfer agreement with the secretary
relative to the LOSSAN Corridor.  
   This bill would require an interagency transfer agreement for the
LOSSAN Corridor to cover the initial 5-year period after the
transfer. The bill would require the secretary, if an agreement is
not entered into by December 31, 2013, to report to the Governor and
the Legislature by January 31, 2014, as specified.  
   Existing law provides for the allocation of state funds by the
secretary to a joint powers board under an interagency transfer
agreement based on the annual business plan for the intercity rail
corridor and subsequent appropriation of state funds. Existing law
states that the interagency transfer agreement may provide that any
additional funds required to operate the passenger rail service
during a fiscal year shall be provided by the joint powers board from
jurisdictions that receive service.  
   This bill would delete the provision requiring additional funds to
be provided by the board, and would instead provide that those funds
may be provided by the board. The bill, with respect to the LOSSAN
Corridor, would provide that local resources shall not be available
to offset any redirection, elimination, reduction, or
reclassification of state resources for operating intercity rail
services.  
   This bill would authorize the secretary to adopt new performance
standards by December 31, 2014, for intercity rail services. 

   This bill would repeal now-obsolete provisions authorizing the
Southern California Regional Rail Authority to be a party to an
interagency transfer agreement for intercity rail services in
specified counties.  
   Existing law authorizes the Department of Transportation to
contract with Amtrak for intercity rail passenger services and
provides funding for these services from the Public Transportation
Account. Existing law, until December 31, 1996, authorized the
department, subject to approval of the Secretary of Business,
Transportation and Housing, to enter into an interagency transfer
agreement under which a joint powers board assumes responsibility for
administering the state-funded intercity rail service in a
particular corridor. Existing law, with respect to a transferred
corridor, requires the board to demonstrate the ability to meet
performance standards established by the secretary. 

   This bill, until December 31, 2013, would authorize the department
and a joint powers board established for the purpose of assuming
responsibility for the Pacific Surfliner intercity rail corridor to
enter into an agreement under similar terms and conditions. 

   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


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

   SECTION 1.    This act shall be known and may be
cited as the Intercity Passenger Rail Act of 2012. 
   SEC. 2.    (a) The Legislature finds and declares all
of the following:  
   (1) An intercity rail passenger system, linking major urban
centers and complemented by feeder bus services that provide access
to outlying areas and destinations, is an important element of the
state's transportation system, and shall remain a state-funded
program.  
   (2) The state has a continuing interest in the provision of
cost-effective intercity rail passenger services and has a
responsibility to coordinate intercity rail passenger services
statewide.  
   (3) Since 1976, the state has invested over one billion eight
hundred million dollars ($1,800,000,000) in capital improvements and
operating support for intercity rail passenger service and must
ensure the protection of that investment.  
   (b) The Legislature, through the enactment of this act, intends
all of the following:  
   (1) The Secretary of Business, Transportation and Housing shall be
responsible for the overall planning, coordination, and budgeting of
the intercity passenger rail service.  
   (2) If the secretary determines that transferring responsibility
for intercity rail service in a particular corridor or corridors to a
statutorily created joint powers agency would result in
administrative or operating cost reductions, the secretary may
authorize the Department of Transportation to enter into an
interagency transfer agreement to effect a transfer of those
administrative functions.  
   (3) Any intercity rail corridor for which administrative
responsibility has been transferred to a joint powers board through
an interagency transfer agreement shall remain as a component of the
statewide system of intercity rail corridors.  
   (4) The public interest requires expansion of the state intercity
rail program in order to keep pace with the needs of an expanding
population.  
   (5) For not less than a five-year period, the level of state
funding for intercity rail service in each corridor should be
maintained at a level equal to at least the current level of service
in the corridor, thus providing fiscal stability that will allow
appropriate planning and operation of these services. 
   SEC   . 3.    Section 14031.8 of the 
 Government Code   is amended to read: 
   14031.8.  (a) The Secretary of Business, Transportation and
Housing shall establish, through an annual budget process, the level
of state funding available for the operation of intercity passenger
rail service in each corridor.
   (b) Where applicable, operating funds shall be allocated by the
secretary to the joint powers board in accordance with an interagency
 transfer  agreement  which   that
 includes mutually agreed-upon rail services. Funds for the
administration and marketing of services, as appropriate, shall also
be transferred by the secretary to the joint powers board, subject to
the terms of the interagency  transfer  agreement.
   (c) The joint powers board or local or regional entities may 
, but shall not be required to,  augment state-provided
resources to expand intercity passenger rail services  using
local resources  , or to address funding shortfalls in achieving
agreed-upon performance standards.
   (d) The department may provide any support services as may be
mutually agreed upon by the board and the department.
   (e) Operating costs shall be controlled by dealing with, at a
minimum, the current Amtrak cost allocation formula  , which,
beginning in federal fiscal year 2013-14, will be subject to Section
209 of the federal Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act,
 and the ability to contract out to Amtrak or other rail
operators as a part of federal legislation dealing with Amtrak
reauthorization.
   (f) Not later than December 31, 1997, the secretary shall
establish a set of uniform performance standards for all corridors
and operators to control cost and improve efficiency.  To the
extent necessary, as determined by the secretary, performance
standards may be modified not later than December 31, 2014, relative
to including the LOSSAN Corridor among the corridors subject to an
interagency transfer agreement.  
   (g) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, with
regard to the LOSSAN Corridor, local resources described in
subdivision (c) shall not be available for expenditure to offset any
redirection, elimination, reduction, or reclassification of state
resources for operating intercity rail services. 
   SEC. 4.    Section 14070.2 of the  
Government Code   is amended to read: 
   14070.2.  (a) If authorized by the secretary, the department may,
through an interagency  transfer  agreement, transfer to a
joint powers board, and the board may assume, all responsibility for
administering  state-funded intercity  passenger rail
service in the corridor. Upon the date specified in the agreement,
the board shall succeed to the department's powers and duties
relative to that service, except that the department shall retain
responsibility for developing budget requests for the service through
the state budget process, which shall be developed in consultation
with the board, and for coordinating service in the corridor with
other  intercity  passenger rail services in the state.
   (b)  The   (1)     Except
as otherwise provided in paragraph (2), the  interagency 
transfer  agreement shall be executed on or before December 31,
1996. 
   (2) With respect to the LOSSAN Corridor, if an interagency
transfer agreement for that corridor is not entered into on or before
December 31, 2013, the secretary shall provide a report to the
Governor and the Legislature on or before January 31, 2014,
explaining why an acceptable agreement has not been developed, with
specific recommendations for developing an acceptable agreement.

   (c) The secretary shall require the board to demonstrate the
ability to meet the performance standards established by the
secretary pursuant to subdivision (f) of Section 14031.8.
   SEC. 5.    Section 14070.4 of the  
Government Code   is amended to read: 
   14070.4.  (a) An interagency transfer agreement between the
department and a joint powers board, when approved by the secretary,
shall do all of the following:
   (1) Specify the date and conditions for the transfer of
responsibilities and identify the annual level of funding and ensure
that the level of funding is consistent with and sufficient for the
planned service improvements within the corridor.  For purposes
of the LOSSAN Corridor, the interagency transfer agreement shall
cover the initial five-year period after the transfer, but may be
extended thereafter by mutual agreement. 
   (2) Identify, for the initial year and subsequent years, the funds
to be transferred to the board including state operating subsidies
made available for intercity rail services in the corridor, and funds
currently used by the department for administration and marketing of
the corridor, with the amounts adjusted annually for inflation and
in accordance with the business plan.
   (3) Specify the level of service to be provided, the respective
responsibilities of the board and the department, the methods that
the department will use to assure the coordination of services with
other rail passenger services in the state, and the methods that the
department will use for the annual review of the business plan and
annual proposals on funding and appropriations.
   (4) Describe the terms for transferring to the joint exercise of
powers agency car and locomotive train sets, and other equipment and
property owned by the department and required for the intercity
service in the corridor including, but not limited to, the number of
units to be provided, liability coverage, maintenance and warranty
responsibilities, and indemnification issues.
   (5) Describe auditing responsibilities and process requirements,
reimbursement and billing procedures, the responsibility for funding
shortfalls, if any, during the course of each fiscal year, an
operating contract oversight review process, performance standards
and reporting procedures, the level of rail infrastructure
maintenance, and other relevant monitoring procedures. The
description shall contain an evaluation of the impact of any transfer
of equipment on other intercity corridors. The agreement shall
endeavor to minimize the impact and maximize the efficient use of the
equipment, including continued joint use of equipment that is
currently shared by one or more corridors.
   (b) Use of the annual state funding allocation, as set forth in
the interagency transfer agreement, shall be described in an annual
business plan submitted by the board to the secretary for review and
recommendation by April 1 of each year. The business plan, when
approved by the secretary, shall be deemed accepted by the state. The
budget proposal developed by the department for the subsequent year
shall be based upon the business plan approved by the secretary. The
business plan shall be consistent with the interagency  transfer
 agreement and shall include a report on the recent as well as
historical performance of the corridor service, an overall operating
plan including proposed service enhancement to increase ridership and
provide for increased traveler demands in the corridor for the
upcoming year, short-term and long-term  capitol 
 capital  improvement programs, funding requirements for the
upcoming fiscal year, and an action plan with specific performance
goals and objectives. The business plan shall document service
improvements to provide the planned level of service, inclusion of
operating plans to serve peak period work trips, and consideration of
other service expansions and enhancements.  With respect to the
LOSSAN C   orridor, the initial business plan shall be
consistent with the immediately previous State Rail Plan developed by
the department pursuant to Section 14036.  The  business
 plan shall clearly delineate how funding and accounting for
state-sponsored rail passenger services shall be separate from
locally sponsored services in the corridor. Proposals to expand or
modify passenger services shall be accompanied by the identification
of all associated costs and ridership projections. The business plan
shall establish, among other things: fares, operating strategies,
capital improvements needed, and marketing and operational strategies
designed to meet performance standards established in the
interagency  transfer  agreement.
   (c) Based on the annual business plan and the subsequent
appropriation by the Legislature, the secretary shall allocate state
funds on an annual basis to the board. As provided in the interagency
 transfer  agreement, any additional funds that are
 required   needed  to operate the
passenger rail service during  the   a 
fiscal year  shall   may  be provided by
the board from jurisdictions that receive service. In addition, the
board may use any cost savings or farebox revenues to provide service
improvements related to intercity service. In any event, the board
shall report the fiscal results of the previous year's operations as
part of the annual business plan.
   (d) The level of service funded by the state shall in no case be
less than the current number of intercity round trips operated in a
corridor and serving the end points currently served by the intercity
rail corridor.  For purposes of the LOSSAN Corridor, the level
of service funded by the state shall be no less than the level of
service   funded as of January 1, 2013.  Subject to
Section 14035.2, the level of service funded by the state shall also
include feeder bus service with substantially the same number of
route miles as the current feeder system, to be operated in
conjunction with the trains. However, the interagency  transfer
 agreement shall not prohibit the joint powers board from
reducing the number of feeder bus route miles if the joint powers
board determines that a feeder bus route is not cost effective as
provided in Section 14035.2.
   (e) Nothing in this article shall be construed to preclude
expansion of state-approved intercity rail service. 
   (f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, with
regard to the LOSSAN Corridor, local resources described in
subdivision (c) shall not be available for expenditure to offset any
redirection, elimination, reduction, or reclassification of state
resources for operating intercity rail services. 
   SEC. 6.    Section 14070.6 of the  
Government Code   is amended to read: 
   14070.6.  The department and any entity that assumes
administrative responsibility for  intercity  passenger rail
services through an interagency transfer agreement, may, through a
competitive solicitation process, contract with the National Railroad
Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) or with organizations not precluded
by state or federal law to provide  intercity  passenger
rail services, and may contract with rail corporations and other rail
operators for the use of tracks and other facilities and for the
provision of  intercity  passenger services on terms and
conditions as the parties may agree. The department is deemed to be a
third-party beneficiary of the contract, and the contract shall not
contain any provision or condition that would negatively impact on or
conflict with any other contracts the department has regarding
intercity  passenger  rail services. Any entity that
succeeds the department as sponsor of state-supported  intercity
 passenger rail services through an interagency transfer
agreement, is deemed an agency of the state for all purposes related
to  intercity  passenger rail services, including Section
 1614   5311  of Title 49 of the United
States Code.
   SEC. 7.    Article 5.2 (commencing with Section
14072) of Chapter 1 of Part 5 of Division 3   of Title 2 of
the   Government Code   is repealed. 
   SEC. 8.    Article 5.2 (commencing with Section
14072)   is added to Chapter 1 of Part 5 of  
Division 3 of Title 2 of the   Government Code   ,
to read:  

      Article 5.2.  LOSSAN Corridor


   14072.  (a) The Los Angeles-San Diego-San Luis Obispo Rail
Corridor Agency, also known as the LOSSAN Agency, is an existing
joint powers authority established to provide an organization capable
of implementing the recommendations contained in the State Rail
Corridor Study Group's June 1987 report entitled "Los Angeles-San
Diego State Rail Corridor Study" and undertaking related efforts to
improve intercity services and facilities in the corridor and to
coordinate subcorridor commuter rail services with intercity
services. The LOSSAN Agency is comprised of voting members, as
specified in the joint powers agreement.
   (b) "LOSSAN Corridor" means the San Diego-Los Angeles-San Luis
Obispo intercity passenger rail corridor.
   14072.2.  This article shall be applicable only if the members of
the LOSSAN Agency enter into an amended joint powers agreement to
expand the authority of the agency to permit the administration of
state-funded intercity passenger rail services on the LOSSAN
corridor, and the LOSSAN Agency thereafter elects to become a party
to an interagency transfer agreement pursuant to Article 5
(commencing with Section 14070). The amended joint powers agreement
shall establish the terms and conditions for the joint powers agency
and is subject to the approval of the governing board of each member
agency of the LOSSAN Agency. Only the LOSSAN Agency operating under
the amended joint powers agreement, and not the LOSSAN Agency
existing on January 1, 2013, may exercise jurisdiction over intercity
rail services on the LOSSAN Corridor under an interagency transfer
agreement.  
  SECTION 1.    Section 14070 of the Government Code
is amended to read:
   14070.  As used in this article, the following terms have the
following meanings:
   (a) (1) "Board" or "joint powers board" means the governing board
of a joint exercise of powers agency established pursuant to Article
5.2 (commencing with Section 14072), Article 5.4 (commencing with
Section 14074), or Article 5.6 (commencing with Section 14076) for
the purpose of assuming administrative responsibility for intercity
passenger rail service within the respective corridor.
   (2) "Board" or "joint powers board" also means the governing board
of a joint exercise of powers agency established for the purpose of
assuming administrative responsibility for intercity passenger rail
service within the Pacific Surfliner corridor.
   (b) "Secretary" means the Secretary of the Business,
Transportation and Housing Agency or successor agency. 

  SEC. 2.    Section 14070.2 of the Government Code
is amended to read:
   14070.2.  (a) If authorized by the secretary, the department may,
through an interagency agreement, transfer to a joint powers board,
and the board may assume, all responsibility for administering
passenger rail service in a corridor. Upon the date specified in the
agreement, the board shall succeed to the department's powers and
duties relative to that service, except that the department shall
retain responsibility for developing budget requests for the service
through the state budget process, which shall be developed in
consultation with the board, and for coordinating service in the
corridor with other passenger rail services in the state.
   (b) (1) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (2), the
interagency agreement shall be executed on or before December 31,
1996.
   (2) With respect to the Pacific Surfliner corridor, the
interagency agreement shall be executed on or before December 31,
2013.
   (c) The secretary shall require the board to demonstrate the
ability to meet the performance standards established by the
secretary pursuant to subdivision (f) of Section 14031.8.