BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1408|
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 1408
Author: Blakeslee (R)
Amended: 8/21/12
Vote: 21
SENATE GOVERNMENTAL ORG. COMMITTEE : 8-1, 4/24/12
AYES: Wright, Anderson, Berryhill, Cannella, Corbett,
Padilla, Walters, Wyland
NOES: Yee
NO VOTE RECORDED: Calderon, De León, Evans, Hernandez
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 7-0, 5/14/12
AYES: Kehoe, Walters, Alquist, Dutton, Lieu, Price,
Steinberg
SENATE FLOOR : 33-0, 5/21/12
AYES: Alquist, Anderson, Berryhill, Blakeslee, Calderon,
Cannella, Corbett, DeSaulnier, Dutton, Emmerson, Fuller,
Gaines, Hancock, Hernandez, Huff, Kehoe, La Malfa, Leno,
Lieu, Liu, Lowenthal, Padilla, Pavley, Price, Rubio,
Simitian, Steinberg, Strickland, Vargas, Walters, Wolk,
Wright, Wyland
NO VOTE RECORDED: Correa, De León, Evans, Harman, Negrete
McLeod, Runner, Yee
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : Not available
SUBJECT : Bar pilots
SOURCE : Pacific Merchant Shipping Association
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DIGEST : This bill revises working and training
requirements for bar pilots for Monterey Bay and the Bays
of San Francisco, San Pablo and Suisun.
Assembly Amendments require the Board of Pilot
Commissioners (Board), on an individual basis, to request
the driving record of every applicant for admission to the
pilot training program, and of every applicant for an
original pilot license before issuing the applicant a pilot
license, and make other clarifying changes.
ANALYSIS : Existing law establishes in state government
the Board, with jurisdiction over Monterey Bay and the Bays
of San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun. Existing law
directs the Board to regulate pilotage and provides for the
licensing, regulation, and management of pilots in these
Bays. The Board consists of seven members appointed by the
Governor, with the consent of the Senate, as follows: (1)
two members must be licensed pilots; (2) two members must
represent the industry and be substantial users of Monterey
Bay and any of the waters of the Bays of San Francisco, San
Pablo, or Suisun; and, (3) three must be "public" members.
Additionally, the Secretary of Business, Transportation and
Housing Agency serves ex officio. The Board currently has
no vacancies.
The primary functions of the Board include the issuance and
renewal of pilot licenses; investigation of ship incidents,
incidents, and misconducts by pilots; taking actions
against pilot licensees; operating a pilot continuing
education program and a pilot training program; overseeing
the administration of the Pilot Pension Plan; and,
conducting pilotage rate hearings.
This bill adds the following substantive provisions to the
Harbors and Navigation Code relating to bar pilots for
Monterey Bay and the Bays of San Francisco, San Pablo and
Suisun:
1. Finds and declares that enhancement of navigational
safety is of the utmost concern in state pilotage and to
ensure and promote the highest level of safety the Board
is empowered to effectively monitor and oversee pilots
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in order to prevent fatigue resulting from extended
hours of service, insufficient rest and disruption of
physical, mental and behavioral rhythms within a 24-hour
period.
2. Requires the Board to contract for a study of hours of
service rules and proper rest periods for bar pilots.
Based on the recommendations of the study, the Board
would be required to promulgate regulations establishing
limits for the maximum hours of service. Currently,
there are no standards for maximum hours worked in
statute or regulation.
3. Requires a bar pilot to refuse a pilotage assignment if
the pilot is physically or mentally fatigued and the bar
pilot has a reasonable belief that the assignment cannot
be carried out in a safe manner.
4. Requires the executive director of the Board, when
alerted to a potential violation of safety standards, to
request that the United States Coast Guard report
specified vessel pilot safety violations to the port
state control officer or a bar pilot organization in a
vessel's expected future port of call.
5. Requires a pilot trainee applicant, a license applicant,
or a licensee applying for renewal of a license to
disclose certain medical information, including
information concerning prior substance abuse and medical
conditions characterized by lapses of consciousness.
6. Authorizes the Board to refuse training or licensing
when it is determined the applicant or licensee
habitually uses, or is addicted to, alcoholic beverages,
narcotics, or dangerous drugs.
7. Requires that any continuing bar pilot education
training program regularly inform bar pilots of the
hazards of fatigue and of effective strategies to
prevent fatigue.
8. Requires the Board to participate in the Department of
Motor Vehicles pull notice program for all pilot
licensees and trainees. The pull notice program will
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notify the Board in the case of a bar pilot driving
under the influence or driver license suspension or
revocation.
Purpose of this bill . According to the author's office,
this bill is intended to strengthen the state's continued
promotion and provision of safe navigation in the San
Francisco Bay and River system and Monterey Bay.
Additionally, this bill is intended to further enhance
safety and accountability in the state's existing oversight
regime for its licensed pilots - which will, in turn,
ensure continued and improved support of California's
comprehensive oil spill prevention and response regime,
improve public safety navigation, and protect both the
environment and California's maritime economy in the
process.
Note: See Senate Governmental Organization Committee's
analysis for historical background concerning bar
pilots and prior and related legislation.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/15/12)
Pacific Merchant Shipping Association (source)
California Trade Coalition
Ocean Conservancy
Save the Bay
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the sponsor, the
Pacific Merchant Shipping Association, this bill makes the
following safety enhancements to pilotage in Monterey Bay,
the Bays of San Francisco, San Pablo and Suisun, as well
as, the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers:
1. Conforms to National Transportation Safety Board's
recommendation that any continuing pilot education
training program include the hazards of fatigue and
effective strategies to prevent fatigue while on duty.
2. Conforms to the federal Oil Pollution Act of 1990 by
providing work hours structure to ensure effective
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operation of vessels.
3. Conforms to the Business and Professions Code and
Medical Board safety provisions relating to information
about a pilot trainee's alcohol use or drug use while on
the job and other behavior disorders that may impact
his/her ability to safely operate a vessel.
4. Provides that if the Board refuses to issue or renew a
license, the Board would be required to use the APA
process.
5. Requires the Board to participate in the DMV pull notice
program for all pilot licensees and trainees. This
would allow the Board to be notified if
a pilot gets a driving under the influence or if the
licensee's driver license is suspended or revoked.
DLW:k 8/28/12 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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