BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 988|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 988
Author: Jones (R)
Amended: 6/15/14 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE : 11-0, 7/2/13
AYES: DeSaulnier, Gaines, Beall, Cannella, Galgiani, Hueso,
Lara, Liu, Pavley, Roth, Wyland
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 75-1, 5/29/13 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : New Motor Vehicle Board: recreational off-highway
vehicles
SOURCE : California Motorcycle Dealers Association
DIGEST : This bill includes dealers of recreational
off-highway vehicles (ROHVs) and utility-terrain vehicles under
the purview of the New Motor Vehicle Board (Board).
ANALYSIS : Existing law defines vehicle manufacturers,
distributors, dealers, franchisors, and franchisees and
prescribes their licensing requirements.
Existing law also creates the Board within Department of Motor
Vehicles (DMV) to act as an independent, quasi-judicial
authority to resolve disputes between franchised dealers and
manufacturers of new vehicles, including motorcycles and
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AB 988
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all-terrain vehicles. Existing law further assigns the Board
with responsibility to help resolve disputes between consumers
of new vehicles and dealers or manufacturers of new motor
vehicles.
AB 1595 (Cook, Chapter 165, Statutes of 2012) defined ROHVs as a
motor vehicle designed for operation primarily off of the
highway and that has:
A steering wheel;
Non-straddle seating for the operator and passengers;
A maximum speed capability of greater than 30 miles per hour;
and
An engine displacement equal to or less than 1,000 cubic
centimeters.
AB 1595 included ROHVs among off-highway vehicles subject to DMV
registration and identification requirements.
This bill:
1.Includes dealers of recreational off-highway vehicles (ROHVs)
and utility-terrain vehicles under the purview of the Board.
2.Excludes dealers who deal exclusively in all-terrain vehicles
from appointment to the Board as a new motor vehicle dealer.
Comments
Prior to AB 1595 taking effect in January 2013, existing law
considered ROHVs to be a form of all-terrain vehicle, despite
the fact that there are inherent differences in how these two
vehicles are designed, configured, and operated. AB 1595
distinguished ROHVs as a separate and distinct category of
vehicle and established laws to govern their safe operation. By
distinguishing ROHVs as a class of vehicle separate from
all-terrain vehicles, AB 1595 made it unclear as to whether or
not ROHVs continue to fall under the jurisdiction of the Board
and how ROHV dealers should otherwise be treated for licensing
and bonding purposes. The author introduced this bill to
clarify that ROHVs are subject to the jurisdiction of the Board,
as they were up until January 1, 2013, and that dealers of ROHVs
should be regulated in the same manner as motorcycle and
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all-terrain vehicle dealers.
The author notes that placing ROHVs under the purview of the
Board will allow ROHV buyers to continue to take advantage of
the Board's consumer arbitration program and allow ROHV
manufacturers and dealers to continue to use the Board as a
means to settle disputes. The sponsor, the California
Motorcycle Dealers Association, includes members that sell ROHVs
and who wish to remain under the jurisdiction of the Board for
both disputes with manufacturers and with consumers. The
sponsor asserts that the Board's work to resolve disputes helps
to avoid costly legal bills and to lessen the workload of
California's overcrowded court system.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 7/1/14)
California Motorcycle Dealers Association (source)
ABATE
Nick's Computer Works
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 75-1, 5/29/13
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Bigelow, Bloom,
Blumenfield, Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown,
Buchanan, Ian Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chesbro, Conway, Cooley,
Dahle, Daly, Dickinson, Eggman, Fong, Fox, Frazier, Beth
Gaines, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gorell, Gray,
Grove, Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Roger Hernández, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Levine, Logue, Lowenthal, Maienschein, Mansoor,
Medina, Melendez, Mitchell, Morrell, Mullin, Muratsuchi,
Nazarian, Nestande, Olsen, Pan, Patterson, Perea, V. Manuel
Pérez, Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Rendon, Salas, Skinner, Stone,
Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wieckowski, Wilk, Williams,
Yamada, John A. Pérez
NOES: Chávez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Donnelly, Holden, Linder, Vacancy
JA:e 7/1/14 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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