Amended in Assembly March 19, 2013

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 528

Introduced by Assembly Member Lowenthal

February 20, 2013

An act to begin delete amend end delete begin insert repeal and add end insert Section 14036 of the Government Code, begin insert and to amend Section 185033 of the Public Utilities Code, end insert relating to transportation.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 528, as amended, Lowenthal. State Rail begin delete Plan. end delete begin insert Plan: High-Speed Rail Authority business plan. end insert

Existing law requires the Department of Transportation to prepare a 10-year State Rail Plan biennially for submission to the Legislature, Governor, and specified entities. The plan consists of 2 elements, a passenger rail element and a freight rail element, and sets forth various items that are required to be included in each element. begin insert Existing law requires the High-Speed Rail Authority to prepare, publish, adopt, and submit to the Legislature, not later than January 1, 2012, and every 2 years thereafter, a specified business plan, with specified elements, and to publish, at least 60 days prior to the publication of the plan, a draft business plan for public review and comment, as specified. end insert

begin insert

This bill would revise and recast the items required to be included in the 2 elements of the State Rail Plan and would change the date to May 1, 2014, by which the High-Speed Rail Authority is required to prepare, publish, adopt, and submit to the Legislature, and every 2 years thereafter, a specified business plan. The bill would make changes to the specified elements required to be included in the business plan.

end insert begin delete

This bill would make a nonsubstantive change to these provisions.

end delete

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  begin delete no end delete begin insert yes end insert . State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

begin insert

begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

end insert begin insert

The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:

end insert begin insert

(a) Passage of the federal Passenger Rail Investment and
Improvement Act of 2008 (PRIIA; 49 U.S.C. Sec. 22701 et seq.)
requires comprehensive rail plans in order for states to be eligible
for new federal rail capital grants. To comply with federal law,
the state rail plan must include, at a minimum, all of the following:

end insert begin insert

(1) An inventory of the existing transportation system and rail
services and facilities within the state, and an analysis of the role
of rail transportation within the state’s surface transportation
system.

end insert begin insert

(2) A review of all rail lines within the state, including proposed
high-speed rail corridors.

end insert begin insert

(3) A statement of the state’s passenger rail objectives.

end insert begin insert

(4) A general analysis of the transportation, economic, and
environmental impacts of rail in the state, including congestion
mitigation, trade and economic development, air quality, land use,
energy use, and community impacts.

end insert begin insert

(5) A long-range investment program for current and future
freight and passenger rail infrastructure in the state.

end insert begin insert

(b) The Department of Transportation, pursuant to Section
14036 of the Government Code, is responsible for the preparation
of a 10-year state rail plan. Furthermore, the department has been
designated by the Federal Railroad Administration as the
responsible agency for development of the federally required state
rail plan.

end insert

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 14036 of the end insert begin insert Government Code end insert begin insert is repealed. end insert

begin delete

14036.  

(a) The department shall prepare a 10-year State Rail
Plan biennially for submission to the Legislature, the Governor,
the Public Utilities Commission, and the California Transportation
Commission. The plan shall be submitted to the California
Transportation Commission on or before October 1, 1995, and on
or before October 1 of each odd-numbered year thereafter, for its
advice and consent, and to the Legislature, the Governor, and the
Public Utilities Commission by the following March 1. The plan
shall consist of a passenger rail element and a freight rail element.

(b) The passenger rail element shall contain all of the following:

(1) For capital and operating subsidies and costs, all actual
encumbrances for the prior two fiscal years; and for state
operations, all actual expenditures for the prior two fiscal years.
All revenues shall be identified by source.

(2) For capital and operating subsidies, estimated encumbrances
and revenues for the current year; and for state operations,
estimated expenditures for the current year. The department shall
use the same format as is required for prior year expenditures
pursuant to paragraph (1).

(3) For the budget year and the nine following fiscal years,
proposed encumbrances for capital and operating subsidies and
costs shall be reported in the same format as is required for the
prior year’s expenditures. For state operations, proposed
expenditures for the budget year shall be reported.

(4) The identification and cost of capital facilities necessary to
enhance competitiveness of rail passenger services, including, for
each intercity route, a list of at least the three highest priority
capital improvement projects, with cost estimates and a funding
plan.

(5) A performance evaluation of all services in operation for
the two prior years, including performance trends, potential for
efficiency and effectiveness, possible improvements, and strategies
to achieve that potential. This shall include an evaluation of all
feeder bus services, using, among other things, criteria based on
ridership levels, break-even points, and levels of growth in service
utilization. The number of daily feeder bus runs, if any, that failed
to carry even one passenger shall be identified.

(6) A recommendation of a level of and program for services
over a 10-year period, including a list of service enhancements on
existing and additional routes, with funding and priority
recommendations. This shall include identification of feeder bus
service improvements and a management and operating plan for
achieving these improvements.

(7) An evaluation of reports by regional planning agencies and
county transportation commissions on commuter service
alternatives in their regions, including presentation of their
recommendations.

(8) A map showing all existing intercity and commuter
passenger rail routes and services, all proposed intercity and
commuter passenger rail routes and services, and all intercity and
commuter passenger rail routes and services that are the subject
of feasibility studies.

(9) A report on the expenditure of marketing activities funds
for purchases of media advertising of rail passenger services.

This report shall be prepared in consultation with the Public
Utilities Commission and the National Rail Passenger Corporation.
The department may consult with other agencies, organizations,
and persons with expertise. The department shall employ realistic
assumptions, using Public Utilities Commission cost data whenever
possible, with respect to the level of services it can provide and
the cost of these services when developing the program.

(10) A discussion of the department’s overall marketing strategy
as it relates to the intercity rail passenger service, including feeder
bus service, and a report on the expenditure of marketing activities
funds for purchases of media advertising of rail passenger services.

(11) A discussion of fare policies and practices, including all
of the following:

(A) The relationship of fare policies to ridership and yield,
including the impact of (A) a variety of regular fares, including
fares such as midweek and other off-peak discounts, (B) discount
fare blackouts during certain holiday travel periods on yield and
ridership, and (C) discount fares for small groups traveling
together.

(B) Lightly traveled route segments where current fares are too
high for the demand, and where ridership or yield, or both, would
increase with lower fares.

(C) A potential fare policy that would maximize both ridership
and yield.

(D) A summary of discussions with Amtrak on the subject of
fares.

(c) The freight rail element shall contain all of the following:

(1) Environmental aspects, which shall include air quality, land
use, and community impacts.

(2) Financing issues, which shall include a means to obtain
federal and state funding.

(3) Rail issues, which shall include regional, intrastate, and
interstate issues.

(4) Intermodal connections, which shall include seaports and
intermodal terminals.

(5) Current system deficiencies.

(6) Service objectives, such as improving efficiency,
accessibility, and safety.

(7) New technology, which shall include logistics and process
improvement.

(8) Light density rail line analyses, which shall include traffic
density, track characteristics, project selection criteria, and
benefit-cost criteria.

end delete

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 3. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 14036 is added to the end insert begin insert Government Code end insert begin insert , to
read: end insert

begin insert

begin insert 14036. end insert   

(a) The department shall prepare a 10-year State Rail
Plan. Pursuant to Section 22702 of Title 49 of the United States
Code, the department is designated as the state rail transportation
authority to prepare, maintain, coordinate, and administer the
plan.

(b) The passenger rail element shall contain all of the following:

(1) A statement of compliance with the requirements set forth
in the federal Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of
2008 (PRIIA; Public Law 110-432; 49 U.S.C. Sec. 22701 et seq.).

(2) Plans for a comprehensive and integrated statewide
passenger rail system, including high-speed rail, conventional
intercity and commuter rail, and connections to urban rail systems.

(3) A review of all high-speed rail routes, the rail freight system,
conventional intercity and commuter rail systems, and urban rail
system connections to high-speed rail and conventional intercity
and commuter rail systems, including a statement of the state’s
passenger rail objectives for routes in the state.

(4) In consultation with the freight railroad industry, an
identification of the improvements that have utility to both rail
freight and passenger rail services in the state.

(5) An inventory of the existing rail transportation system and
rail services and facilities in the state, and an analysis of the role
of rail transportation within the state’s overall transportation
system.

(c) The freight rail element shall contain all of the following:

(1) Environmental aspects that include air quality, land use,
and community impacts.

(2) Financing issues that include a means to obtain federal and
state funding.

(3) Rail issues that include regional, intrastate, and interstate
issues.

(4) Intermodal connections that include seaports and intermodal
terminals.

(5) A statement of current system deficiencies.

(6) Service objectives that improve efficiency, accessibility, and
safety.

(7) New technology that includes logistics and process
improvement.

(8) Light density rail line analyses that include traffic density,
track characteristics, project selection criteria, and benefit-cost
criteria.

(d) The final plan shall be submitted to the Transportation
Agency for approval pursuant to Section 22702 of Title 49 of the
United States Code. On or before March 1, 2017, the approved
plan shall thereafter be submitted to the Legislature, the Governor,
the Public Utilities Commission, the High-Speed Rail Authority,
and the commission.

(e) The plan shall be updated, at a minimum, every five years
thereafter.

end insert

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 4. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 185033 of the end insert begin insert Public Utilities Code end insert begin insert is amended
to read: end insert

185033.  

(a) The authority shall prepare, publish, adopt, and
submit to the Legislature, not later than begin delete January 1, 2012 end delete begin insert May 1,
2014 end insert , and every two years thereafter, a business plan. At least 60
days prior to the publication of the plan, the authority shall publish
a draft business plan for public review and comment. The draft
plan shall also be submitted to the Senate Committee on
Transportation and Housing, the Assembly Committee on
Transportation, the Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal
Review, and the Assembly Committee on Budget. begin delete The business
plan shall identify all of the following: the type of service the
authority anticipates it will develop, such as local, express,
commuter, regional, or interregional; a description of the primary
benefits the system will provide; a forecast of the anticipated
patronage, operating and maintenance costs, and capital costs for
the system; an estimate and description of the total anticipated
federal, state, local, and other funds the authority intends to access
to fund the construction and operation of the system; and the
proposed chronology for the construction of the eligible corridors
of the statewide high-speed train system. The business plan shall
also include a discussion of all reasonably foreseeable risks the
project may encounter, including, but not limited to, risks
associated with the project’s finances, patronage, right-of-way
acquisition, environmental clearances, construction, equipment,
and technology, and other risks associated with the project’s
development. The plan shall describe the authority’s strategies,
processes, or other actions it intends to utilize to manage those
risks. end delete

(b) (1)  begin delete In addition to the requirements of subdivision (a), the end delete
begin insert The end insert business plan shall include, but need not be limited to, all of
the following elements:

begin insert

(A) The type of service the authority is developing and the
proposed chronology for the construction of the statewide
high-speed rail system.

end insert begin delete

(A)

end delete

begin insert (B) end insert  Using the most recent patronage forecast for the system,
develop a forecast of the expected patronage begin delete and end delete begin insert , end insert service levels begin insert ,
and operating and maintenance costs end insert for the Phase 1 corridor as
identified in paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 2704.04
of the Streets and Highways Code and by each segment or
combination of segments for which a project level environmental
analysis is being prepared for Phase 1. The forecast shall assume
a high, medium, and low level of patronage and a realistic operating
planning scenario for each level of service. begin delete Alternative fare
structures shall be considered when determining the level of
patronage. end delete

begin delete

(B)

end delete

begin insert (C) end insert  Based on the patronage forecast in subparagraph (A),
develop alternative financial begin delete pro formas end delete begin insert scenarios end insert for the different
levels of service, and identify the operating break-even points for
each alternative. Each begin delete pro forma end delete begin insert scenario end insert shall assume the terms
of subparagraph (J) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (c) of Section
2704.08 of the Streets and Highways Code.

begin delete

(C)

end delete

begin insert (D) end insert  Identify the expected schedule for completing environmental
review, and initiating and completing construction for each segment
begin insert or combination of segments end insert of Phase 1.

begin delete

(D)

end delete

begin insert (E) end insert  Identify the source of federal, state, and local funds available
for the project that will augment funds from the bond begin delete act and the
level of confidence for obtaining each type of funding. end delete begin insert act. end insert

begin delete

(E)

end delete

begin insert (F) end insert  Identify written agreements with public or private entities
to fund components of the high-speed rail system, including
stations and terminals, begin insert and identify end insert any impediments to the
completion of the begin delete system, such as the inability to gain access to
existing railroad rights-of-way. end delete begin insert system. end insert

begin delete

(F)

end delete

begin insert (G) end insert  Identify alternative public-private development strategies
for the implementation of Phase 1.

begin insert

(H) A discussion of all reasonably foreseeable risks the project
may encounter, including, but not limited to, risks associated with
the project’s finances, patronage, right-of-way acquisition,
environmental clearances, construction, equipment, and
technology, and other risks associated with the project’s
development. The plan shall describe the authority’s strategies,
processes, or other actions it intends to utilize to manage those
risks.

end insert

(2) To the extent feasible, the business plan should draw upon
information and material developed according to other
requirements, including, but not limited to, the preappropriation
review process and the preexpenditure review process in the Safe,
Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Act for the 21st
Century pursuant to Section 2704.08 of the Streets and Highways
Code. The authority shall hold at least one public hearing on the
business plan and shall adopt the plan at a regularly scheduled
meeting. When adopting the plan, the authority shall take into
consideration comments from the public hearing and written
comments that it receives in that regard, and any hearings that the
Legislature may hold prior to adoption of the plan.

begin delete

SECTION 1.  

Section 14036 of the Government Code is
amended to read:

14036.  

(a) The department shall prepare a 10-year State Rail
Plan biennially for submission to the Legislature, the Governor,
the Public Utilities Commission, and the California Transportation
Commission. The plan shall be submitted to the California
Transportation Commission on or before October 1, 1995, and on
or before October 1 of each odd-numbered year thereafter, for its
advice and consent, and to the Legislature, the Governor, and the
Public Utilities Commission by the following March 1. The plan
shall consist of a passenger rail element and a freight rail element.

(b) The passenger rail element shall contain all of the following:

(1) For capital and operating subsidies and costs, all actual
encumbrances for the prior two fiscal years; and for state
operations, all actual expenditures for the prior two fiscal years.
All revenues shall be identified by source.

(2) For capital and operating subsidies, estimated encumbrances
and revenues for the current year; and for state operations,
estimated expenditures for the current year. The department shall
use the same format as is required for prior year expenditures
pursuant to paragraph (1).

(3) For the budget year and the nine following fiscal years,
proposed encumbrances for capital and operating subsidies and
costs, reported in the same format as is required for the prior year’s
expenditures. For state operations, proposed expenditures for the
budget year shall be reported.

(4) The identification and cost of capital facilities necessary to
enhance competitiveness of rail passenger services, including, for
each intercity route, a list of at least the three highest priority
capital improvement projects, with cost estimates and a funding
plan.

(5) A performance evaluation of all services in operation for
the two prior years, including performance trends, potential for
efficiency and effectiveness, possible improvements, and strategies
to achieve that potential. This shall include an evaluation of all
feeder bus services, using, among other things, criteria based on
ridership levels, break-even points, and levels of growth in service
utilization. The number of daily feeder bus runs, if any, that failed
to carry even one passenger shall be identified.

(6) A recommendation of a level of and program for services
over a 10-year period, including a list of service enhancements on
existing and additional routes, with funding and priority
recommendations. This shall include identification of feeder bus
service improvements and a management and operating plan for
achieving these improvements.

(7) An evaluation of reports by regional planning agencies and
county transportation commissions on commuter service
alternatives in their regions, including presentation of their
recommendations.

(8) A map showing all existing intercity and commuter
passenger rail routes and services, all proposed intercity and
commuter passenger rail routes and services, and all intercity and
commuter passenger rail routes and services that are the subject
of feasibility studies.

(9) A report on the expenditure of marketing activities funds
for purchases of media advertising of rail passenger services.

This report shall be prepared in consultation with the Public
Utilities Commission and the National Rail Passenger Corporation.
The department may consult with other agencies, organizations,
and persons with expertise. The department shall employ realistic
assumptions, using Public Utilities Commission cost data whenever
possible, with respect to the level of services it can provide and
the cost of these services when developing the program.

(10) A discussion of the department’s overall marketing strategy
as it relates to the intercity rail passenger service, including feeder
bus service, and a report on the expenditure of marketing activities
funds for purchases of media advertising of rail passenger services.

(11) A discussion of fare policies and practices, including all
of the following:

(A) The relationship of fare policies to ridership and yield,
including the impact of (A) a variety of regular fares, including
fares such as midweek and other off-peak discounts, (B) discount
fare blackouts during certain holiday travel periods on yield and
ridership, and (C) discount fares for small groups traveling
together.

(B) Lightly traveled route segments where current fares are too
high for the demand, and where ridership or yield, or both, would
increase with lower fares.

(C) A potential fare policy that would maximize both ridership
and yield.

(D) A summary of discussions with Amtrak on the subject of
fares.

(c) The freight rail element shall contain all of the following:

(1) Environmental aspects, which shall include air quality, land
use, and community impacts.

(2) Financing issues, which shall include a means to obtain
federal and state funding.

(3) Rail issues, which shall include regional, intrastate, and
interstate issues.

(4) Intermodal connections, which shall include seaports and
intermodal terminals.

(5) Current system deficiencies.

(6) Service objectives, such as improving efficiency,
accessibility, and safety.

(7) New technology, which shall include logistics and process
improvement.

(8) Light density rail line analyses, which shall include traffic
density, track characteristics, project selection criteria, and
benefit-cost criteria.

end delete