BILL ANALYSIS Ó
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Kevin de León, Chair
SB 55 (Hill) - Ignition interlock devices: repeat driving under the
influence offenders.
Amended: May 6, 2013 Policy Vote: Public Safety 7-0
Urgency: No Mandate: Yes
Hearing Date: May 20, 2013 Consultant: Jolie Onodera
This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.
Bill Summary: SB 55 would, commencing July 1, 2014, require a
repeat driving under the influence (DUI) offender to install an
ignition interlock device (IID) on his or her vehicles for a
specified period of time in order to get a restricted license or
to reinstate his or her license, as specified.
Fiscal Impact:
One-time programming costs to the Department of Motor
Vehicles (DMV) of $260,000 (Special Fund*).
Ongoing costs to DMV of $400,000 (Special Fund*) to
administer the statewide IID program, to be offset by fees
(to be determined by the DMV).
Ongoing costs for installation of IIDs to be covered by the
offender or the IID provider, subject to a sliding scale
payment schedule based on income.
Increased non-reimbursable local enforcement costs offset
to a degree by fine revenue for violations of the statewide
IID requirements.
*Motor Vehicle Account
Background: Existing law provides that a person convicted of a
first-time DUI may apply for a restricted license for driving to
and from work and to and from a driver-under-the-influence
program if specified requirements are met, paying all applicable
fees, submitting proof of insurance and proof of participation
in a program. For a second or subsequent DUI offense, a person
can get his or her license reinstated earlier if he or she
agrees to install an IID along with his or her enrollment in the
required program, proof of insurance, and payment of specified
fees.
AB 91 (Feuer) Chapter 217/2009 created an IID pilot project
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effective July 1, 2010, in the counties of Alameda, Los Angeles,
Sacramento and Tulare, requiring a person convicted of a DUI to
install an IID for five months upon a first offense, 12 months
for a second offense, 24 months for a third offense, and 36
months for a fourth or subsequent offense. On or before January
1, 2015, the DMV is required to report to the Legislature
regarding the effectiveness of the pilot program in reducing the
number of first-time DUI violations and repeat DUI offenses in
the pilot counties.
Proposed Law: This bill would, commencing July 1, 2014,
notwithstanding any other provision of law, require a repeat DUI
offender to install an IID as a condition of being issued a
restricted driver's license, being reissued a driver's license,
or having a privilege to operate a motor vehicle reinstated
subsequent to a conviction for a violation or suspension of a
driver's license. Specifically, this bill:
Provides that if a person is convicted of a DUI, he or
she must install an IID for 12 months if convicted of a
second offense, 24 months if convicted of a third offense,
36 months if convicted of a fourth or subsequent offense.
Provides that if a person is convicted of a DUI with
injury, he or she must install an IID for 24 months if
convicted of a second offense, 36 months if convicted of a
third offense, and 48 months if convicted of a fourth or
subsequent offense.
Provides that the term of the violation shall begin once
the person has given proof to DMV of the installment.
Provides that a person must pay a fee, as determined by
the DMV, sufficient to cover the reasonable costs of
administration of the program.
Provides that a person is exempt from these requirements
if within 30 days of the notification, the person certifies
to the DMV all of the following:
o The person does not own a vehicle.
o The person does not have access to a vehicle
at his or her residence.
o The person no longer has access to the vehicle
being driven by the person at the time he or she was
arrested for a violation that subsequently resulted in
a conviction for a violation listed in this
subdivision.
o The person acknowledges that he or she is only
allowed to drive a vehicle that is fitted with a
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functioning IID.
o The person acknowledges that he or she is
required to have a valid driver's license before he or
she can drive.
Requires every manufacturer to provide IID devices to
adopt the following fee schedule, with the remaining cost
to be absorbed by the provider :
o For a person with income of 100% of the
federal poverty level (FPL) or below - 10% of the cost
of the IID.
o For a person with income of 101% - 200% of the
FPL - 25% of the cost of the IID.
o For a person with income of 201% - 300% of the
FPL - 50% of the cost of the IID.
o All other offenders are responsible for 100%
of the cost of the IID.
Provides that the cost of the ignition interlock device
may only be raised annually equal to the Consumer Price
Index.
Provides that "vehicle" does not include a motorcycle
until the state certifies an IID that can be installed on a
motorcycle, and a person subject to an IID restriction
shall not operate a motorcycle for the duration of the IID
restriction period.
Related Legislation: AB 520 (Ammiano) Chapter 657/2011 allowed a
person convicted of alcohol-related reckless driving ("wet
reckless") to apply for a restricted license early if he or she
complies with specified requirements, including installation of
an IID.
AB 91 (Feuer) Chapter 217/2009 established a four-county pilot
program within the DMV that requires a person convicted of
driving under the influence to install an IID, as specified, on
all vehicles he or she owns or operates.
Staff Comments: It is estimated that the current pilot program
in the counties of Alameda, Los Angeles, Sacramento, and Tulare
covers approximately half of California's population. The DMV's
initial report covering the period of July 2010 - October 2012
indicated that out of 61, 664 participants, only 22,960 persons,
or 37 percent, were repeat DUI offenders over the report period.
Extending the approximately 11,000 repeat DUI offenders
participating in the pilot each year, it is projected that
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approximately 22,000 persons statewide could be impacted under
the IID provisions of this bill.
The DMV would incur one-time programming costs of approximately
$260,000 (Motor Vehicle Account) to make the necessary system
changes prior to implementation on July 1, 2014, of the
statewide program for repeat DUI offenders. As the provisions of
this bill authorize the DMV to charge a fee sufficient to cover
the reasonable costs of administration of the program, ongoing
administrative costs of $400,000 (Motor Vehicle Account) are
estimated to be fully offset by fees.
This bill provides that costs for the installation of IIDs is to
be covered by the offender or the IID provider, subject to a
sliding scale payment schedule based on an offender's income.
This provision is consistent with operations under the pilot,
and no additional state costs are anticipated.
The DMV is required to report on the existing pilot project by
January 1, 2015, regarding the effectiveness of the pilot
project in reducing the number of first-time DUI violations and
repeat offenses in the specified counties. Staff notes that
statewide implementation of the provisions of this bill on July
1, 2014, would not afford the Legislature the time to consider
the findings and recommendations of that report which could
inform on best practices to the structure and implementation of
a statewide program.
Recommended Amendments: In order to provide the Legislature with
an opportunity to consider the findings and recommendations from
the 2015 DMV report on the pilot that could inform best
practices for continuation of the statewide program, staff
recommends an amendment to sunset the provisions of this measure
on January 1, 2016, which could be extended or removed pursuant
to subsequent legislation.