Amended in Assembly April 24, 2014

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 1721


Introduced by Assembly Member Linder

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(Coauthor: Assembly Member Lowenthal)

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February 13, 2014


An act to amend Section 5205.5 of the Vehicle Code, relating to vehicles.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1721, as amended, Linder. Vehicles: high-occupancy vehicle lanes.

Existingbegin insert federalend insert law authorizes, until September 30, 2017, a state to allow specified labeled vehicles to use lanes designated for high-occupancy vehicles (HOVs).

Existing law authorizes the Department of Transportation to designate certain lanes for the exclusive use of HOVs, which may also be used, until January 1, 2019, or until the date the federal authorization expires, or until the Secretary of State receives that specified notice, whichever occurs first, by certain eligible low-emission and hybrid vehicles not carrying the requisite number of passengers otherwise required for the use of an HOV lane if the vehicle displays a vehicle identifier issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles.begin insert Existing law exempts a vehicle, eligible under these provisions to use HOV lanes, from toll charges imposed on single-occupant vehicles in designated high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes unless prohibited by federal law.end insert

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This bill would instead grant a vehicle, eligible under these provisions to use HOV lanes, a toll-free or reduced-rate passage in HOT lanes.

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Existing law requires that a vehicle, eligible under these provisions to use HOV lanes, be exempt from toll charges imposed on single-occupant vehicles in designated high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes unless prohibited by federal law. Existing law excludes from this exemption tolls pursuant to the federally supported value pricing and transit development demonstration program involving high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes conducted by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority for State Highway Route 10 or 110.

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This bill would also exclude from the above-described exemption a toll imposed for passage in HOT lanes designated for State Highway Route 15 in Riverside County.

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Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

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

P2    1

SECTION 1.  

Section 5205.5 of the Vehicle Code is amended
2to read:

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5205.5.  

(a) For purposes of implementing Section 21655.9,
4the department shall make available for issuance, for a fee
5determined by the department to be sufficient to reimburse the
6department for the actual costs incurred pursuant to this section,
7distinctive decals, labels, and other identifiers that clearly
8distinguish the following vehicles from other vehicles:

9(1) A vehicle that meets California’s super ultra-low emission
10vehicle (SULEV) standard for exhaust emissions and the federal
11inherently low-emission vehicle (ILEV) evaporative emission
12standard, as defined in Part 88 (commencing with Section
1388.101-94) of Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

14(2) A vehicle that was produced during the 2004 model-year or
15earlier and meetsbegin delete Californiaend deletebegin insert California’send insert ultra-low emission vehicle
16(ULEV) standard for exhaust emissions and the federal ILEV
17standard.

18(3) A vehicle that meets California’s enhanced advanced
19technology partial zero-emission vehicle (enhanced AT PZEV)
20standard or transitional zero-emission vehicle (TZEV) standard.

21(b) The department shall include a summary of the provisions
22of this section on each motor vehicle registration renewal notice,
23or on a separate insert, if space is available and the summary can
24be included without incurring additional printing or postage costs.

P3    1(c) The Department of Transportation shall remove individual
2HOV lanes, or portions of those lanes, during periods of peak
3congestion from the access provisions provided in subdivision (a),
4following a finding by the Department of Transportation as follows:

5(1) The lane, or portion thereof, exceeds a level of service C,
6as discussed in subdivision (b) of Section 65089 of the Government
7Code.

8(2) The operation or projected operation of the vehicles
9described in subdivision (a) in these lanes, or portions thereof, will
10significantly increase congestion.

11(3) The finding shall also demonstrate the infeasibility of
12alleviating the congestion by other means, including, but not
13limited to, reducing the use of the lane by noneligible vehicles or
14further increasing vehicle occupancy.

15(d) The State Air Resources Board shall publish and maintain
16a listing of all vehicles eligible for participation in the programs
17described in this section. The board shall provide that listing to
18the department.

19(e) (1) For purposes of subdivision (a), the Department of the
20California Highway Patrol and the department, in consultation
21with the Department of Transportation, shall design and specify
22the placement of the decal, label, or other identifier on the vehicle.
23Each decal, label, or other identifier issued for a vehicle shall
24display a unique number, which number shall be printed on, or
25affixed to, the vehicle registration.

26(2) Decals, labels, or other identifiers designed pursuant to this
27subdivision for a vehicle described in paragraph (3) of subdivision
28(a) shall be distinguishable from the decals, labels, or other
29identifiers that are designed for vehicles described in paragraphs
30(1) and (2) of subdivision (a).

31(f) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), for purposes of
32 paragraph (3) of subdivision (a), the department shall issue no
33more than 40,000 distinctive decals, labels, or other identifiers that
34clearly distinguish a vehicle specified in paragraph (3) of
35subdivision (a).

36(2) The department may issue a decal, label, or other identifier
37for a vehicle that satisfies all of the following conditions:

38(A) The vehicle is of a type identified in paragraph (3) of
39subdivision (a).

P4    1(B) The owner of the vehicle is the owner of a vehicle for which
2a decal, label, or other identifier described in paragraph (1) was
3previously issued and that vehicle for which the decal, label, or
4other identifier was previously issued is determined by the
5department, on the basis of satisfactory proof submitted by the
6owner to the department, to be a nonrepairable vehicle or a total
7loss salvage vehicle.

8(C) The owner of the vehicle applied for a decal, label, or other
9identifier pursuant to this paragraph within six months of the date
10on which the vehicle for which a decal, label, or other identifier
11was previously issued is declared to be a nonrepairable vehicle or
12a total loss salvage vehicle.

13(g) If the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, serving as
14the Bay Area Toll Authority, grants toll-free and reduced-rate
15passage on toll bridges under its jurisdiction to a vehicle pursuant
16to Section 30102.5 of the Streets and Highways Code, it shall also
17grant the same toll-free and reduced-rate passage to a vehicle
18displaying an identifier issued by the department pursuant to
19paragraph (1) or (2) of subdivision (a).

20(h) (1) Notwithstanding Section 21655.9, and except as
21provided in paragraph (2), a vehicle described in subdivision (a)
22that displays a decal, label, or identifier issued pursuant to this
23section shall bebegin delete exempt from toll charges imposed on
24single-occupant vehiclesend delete
begin insert granted a toll-free or reduced-rate
25passageend insert
in high-occupancy toll lanes as described in Section 149.7
26of the Streets and Highways Code unless prohibited by federal
27law.

28(2) (A) Paragraph (1) does not apply to the imposition of a toll
29imposed for passage on a toll road or toll highway, that is not a
30high-occupancy toll lane as described in Section 149.7 of the
31Streets and Highways Code.

32(B) On or before March 1, 2014, paragraph (1) does not apply
33to the imposition of a toll imposed for passage in lanes designated
34for tolls pursuant to the federally supported value pricing and
35transit development demonstration program operated pursuant to
36Section 149.9 of the Streets and Highways Code for State Highway
37 Route 10 or 110.

38(C) Paragraph (1) does not apply to the imposition of a toll
39charged for crossing a state-owned bridge.

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P5    1(D) Paragraph (1) does not apply to the imposition of a toll
2imposed for passage in lanes designated for tolls pursuant to
3Section 149.8 of the Streets and Highways Code for State Highway
4Route 15.

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5(i) If the Director of Transportation determines that federal law
6does not authorize the state to allow vehicles that are identified by
7distinctive decals, labels, or other identifiers on vehicles described
8in subdivision (a) to use highway lanes or highway access ramps
9for high-occupancy vehicles regardless of vehicle occupancy, the
10Director of Transportation shall submit a notice of that
11 determination to the Secretary of State.

12(j) This section shall become inoperative on January 1, 2019,
13or the date the federal authorization pursuant to Section 166 of
14Title 23 of the United States Code expires, or the date the Secretary
15of State receives the notice described in subdivision (i), whichever
16occurs first, and, as of January 1, 2019, is repealed, unless a later
17enacted statute, that becomes operative on or before January 1,
182019, deletes or extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative
19and is repealed.



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