BILL NUMBER: AB 541	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  JUNE 18, 2013
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 22, 2013

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Daly
   (Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Wagner)

                        FEBRUARY 20, 2013

   An act to add and repeal Section 25354 of the Vehicle Code,
relating to buses.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 541, as amended, Daly. Buses: illuminated advertising:
University of California, Irvine.
   (1) Existing law authorizes a bus operated by a publicly owned
transit system on regularly scheduled service to be equipped with
illuminated signs that display information directly related to public
service and include, among other things, destination signs,
route-number signs, run-number signs, public service announcement
signs, or a combination of those signs, visible from any direction of
the vehicle, that emit any light color, other than the color red
emitted from forward-facing signs, pursuant to specified conditions.
   Existing law authorizes, until January 1, 2017, a pilot program
allowing up to 25 buses operated by the City of Santa Monica's
publicly owned transit system for the first 2 years of the pilot
program, and up to 30 buses thereafter, to be equipped with
illuminated signs that display advertising subject to certain
conditions. Existing law also requires the City of Santa Monica to
submit a specified report  by July 1, 2016, on roadway and
pedestrian safety  to the Legislature and the Department of
the California Highway  Patrol.   Patrol by July
1, 2016, on the incidence of adverse impacts. 
   This bill would authorize, until January 1, 2019, the University
of California, Irvine (university) to  operate  
implement  a pilot program similar to the  one
  program  operated by the City of Santa Monica.
 If the university elects to implement a pilot program, the bill
would require, on or before March 1, 2014, the university to
determine whether the City of Santa Monica has at least 12 transit
buses equipped with specified illuminated signs. The bill would
permit the university to implement the pilot program only if it
determines that the City of Santa Monica has less than 12 transit
buses equipped, as specified.  The bill would  request
  also require, if the university implements the pilot
program,  that the university submit a  report 
 report, in collaboration with the Department of the California
Highway Patrol and other officials,  by July 1, 2018, on the
incidence of adverse impacts  on roadway and pedestrian
safety due to the utilization of illuminated signs on transit buses
displaying advertising, if any  , to the  department
  and the  Legislature.
   (2) This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as
to the necessity of a special statute for the University of
California, Irvine.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  no
  yes  . State-mandated local program: no.


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

  SECTION 1.  Section 25354 is added to the Vehicle Code, to read:
   25354.  (a) Notwithstanding Sections 25400 and 25950,  and
except as provided in subdivision (c),  a bus operated by the
University of California, Irvine's public transport system on
regularly scheduled service, in addition to the illuminated signs
described in Section 25353, may also be equipped with illuminated
signs that display advertising and that emit any light color, if all
of the following conditions are met:
   (1) Each illuminated sign displaying advertising emits diffused
nonglaring light.
   (2) Each illuminated sign displaying advertising is limited in
size to a display area of not greater than 4,464 square inches.
   (3) Each illuminated sign displaying advertising does not
resemble, and is not installed in a position that interferes with the
visibility or effectiveness of, a required lamp, reflector, or other
device upon the vehicle.
   (4) Each illuminated sign displaying advertising is only placed on
one or both sides of the vehicle, and is not placed in a
forward-facing or rear-facing position, and no more than one such
sign is placed on either side of any single vehicle.
   (5) The mixing of individually colored light emitting diode
elements, including red, is allowed in each illuminated sign
displaying advertising as long as the emitted color formed by the
combination of light emitting diode elements is not red.
   (b) (1) An illuminated sign displaying advertising may be operated
as a dynamic message sign in a paging or streaming mode. However,
the electronic message sign display shall remain static while a bus
is operating on a freeway, as that term is defined in Section 257 of
the Streets and Highways Code.
   (2) The following definitions shall govern the construction of
paragraph (1):
   (A) "Paging," meaning character elements or other information that
is presented for a period of time and then disappears all at once
before the same or new elements are presented, is permitted if the
display time of each message is between 2.7 and 10 seconds. Blanking
times between each message shall be between 0.5 and 25 seconds.
   (B) "Streaming," meaning character elements or other information
moving smoothly and continuously across the display, is permitted if
the character movement time, from one end of the display to the
other, is at least 2.7 seconds, and the movement time of the entire
message does not exceed 10 seconds. 
   (c) On or before March 1, 2014, the University of California,
Irvine, if it elects to implement a pilot program pursuant to this
section, shall determine whether the City of Santa Monica has at
least 12 transit buses equipped with illuminated signs that are
operational pursuant to Section 25353.1. The University of
California, Irvine, may implement the pilot program authorized by
this section only if it determines that the City of Santa Monica has
less than 12 transit buses equipped with illuminated signs that are
operational pursuant to Section 25353.1.  
   (c) By July 1, 2018, the Legislature requests that the 
    (d)     If the  University of
California, Irvine  report   implement 
 s the pilot program pursuant to this section, it shall submit
  a report  to the Legislature  and the department
 on the incidence of adverse impacts on roadway and pedestrian
safety due to the utilization of illuminated signs on transit buses
displaying advertising pursuant to this section, if  any.
  any, by July 1, 2018.  The report shall be the
product of a collaborative effort between university law enforcement
and transit officials, other law enforcement officials  in 
whose jurisdictions the university's transit vehicles operate, and
the department.  The report shall be submitted in compliance with
Section 9795 of the Government Code.  
   (d) 
    (e)  The University of California, Irvine's public
transport system may, pursuant to subdivision (a), operate up to 25
buses with illuminated signs displaying advertising for two years,
after which time the city may increase the number of buses with the
signs to up to 30. 
   (e) 
    (f)  This section shall remain in effect only until
January 1, 2019, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later
enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2019, deletes or
extends that date.
  SEC. 2.  The Legislature finds and declares that a special law is
necessary and that a general law cannot be made applicable within the
meaning of Section 16 of Article IV of the California Constitution
because the University of California, Irvine's public transit system
is operating a revenue deficit in light of budget reductions and is
evaluating several strategies designed to enhance revenue to offset
operational expenses, including the use of electronic illuminated
signage affixed to the side of buses to sell advertising, and this
act would allow the university to increase its revenues on a pilot
program basis.