BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 178 Page 1 Date of Hearing: April 8, 2013 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION Bonnie Lowenthal, Chair AB 178 (Gaines) - As Introduced: January 24, 2013 SUBJECT : Freeway signs: business logo program SUMMARY : Expands the California Department of Transportation's (Caltrans') business logo program from rural areas (with populations to under 5,000) to more urban areas with populations up to 50,000 but only if the urban area has had a highway bypass completed since 2002. EXISTING LAW: 1)Directs Caltrans to adopt rules and regulations that allow the placement near freeways identifying the presence of specific roadside businesses offering food, lodging, camping services, approved 24-hour pharmacy services, or specific approved attractions, under the following conditions: a) All business applicants must have equal access to the program; and, b) Caltrans is prohibited from placing business logo signs within urban areas designated by the United State Bureau of Census as having a population of 5,000 or more. FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown COMMENTS : The business logo program was originally created to provide motorists with information regarding specific roadside businesses offering gas, food, lodging, or camping services alongside rural areas and to include 24-hour pharmacies specific attractions. Implementing regulations promulgated by Caltrans set forth criteria for businesses to be included in the program. For example, gas stations must meet the following criteria: 1)The business must be generally neat, clean, and have a comfortable appearance and an adequate scope of services. 2)For gas stations, a business must be located within one mile AB 178 Page 2 of the freeway interchange and it must provide vehicle services, including fuel, oil, tire repair, battery, and radiator water. It must also provide public restrooms, water fountains, and telephones and it must be open for a specified number of hours per day. According to the author, this bill is intended to help communities such as Lincoln, whose business community has been negatively impacted by the opening of the Lincoln Bypass last year. The bypass diverts traffic from the historic downtown and its fuel and food service providers. Lincoln is not eligible to participate in the business logo program because its population exceeds the definition of rural. Application of this bill's provisions will be limited to small urban communities for which a bypass has been completed after 2002. Currently, there are only a handful of bypasses that have recently been constructed, are being developed, or are being considered in a small urban areas for which these provisions might apply, for example, bypasses in Brawley, Willits, Los Banos, Amador, and Angels Camp. Previous legislation : AB 1257 (Chandler), Chapter 560, Statutes of 1992, expanded the business logo program beyond rural areas alongside of Interstate 5 to other rural areas of California. SB 599 (Knight), of 1997, would have required Caltrans to allow business logo signs in areas with populations larger than 5,000 if the city submits a written request to the department for such placement. The bill failed passage in the Senate Transportation Committee. AB 1923 (Dickerson), Chapter 576, Statutes of 2002, was originally introduced to expand the business logo program to areas up to 15,000. The bill was subsequently amended, and eventually signed to prohibit Caltrans from taking down business logo signs in areas with populations that exceeded 5,000 but did not exceed 10,000. AB 1495 (La Malfa), Chapter 119, Statutes of 2007, requires Caltrans to incorporate an "RV-friendly" symbol in the business AB 178 Page 3 logo program. SB 377 (Aanestad), Chapter 378, Statutes of 2008, requires Caltrans to adopt rules and regulations adding 24-hour pharmacy services and specified categories of approved attractions to the business logo program. REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION : Support League of California Cities Lincoln Area Chamber of Commerce Opposition None on file Analysis Prepared by : Janet Dawson / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093