BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1430|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 1430
Author: Hill (D)
Amended: 3/25/14
Vote: 27 - Urgency
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE : 8-0, 4/29/14
AYES: DeSaulnier, Gaines, Beall, Galgiani, Hueso, Lara, Pavley,
Roth
NO VOTE RECORDED: Cannella, Liu, Wyland
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Enforcement of ground transportation services at
airports
SOURCE : San Francisco International Airport
DIGEST : This bill prohibits unregulated transportation
operators from taking passengers to public airports.
ANALYSIS : Existing law provides that a person who enters or
remains on airport property owned by a city, county, or city and
county, but located in another county, and sells, peddles, or
offers for sale any goods, merchandise, property, or services of
any kind whatsoever, including transportation services on or
from, the airport property, without express written consent of
the governing board of the airport property, is guilty of a
misdemeanor. Existing law as described above does not include
transportation services to airport property.
CONTINUED
SB 1430
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This bill makes it a misdemeanor for transportation services to
take passengers to public airports without the express written
consent of the airport governing board.
Background
According to the author's office, the California Legislature has
granted governing bodies of publicly owned airports broad
authority to manage their operations, including granting
exclusive operating agreements to commercial enterprises. In
exercising such authority, airport governing bodies are required
to consider, among other things, public safety.
Consequently, San Francisco International Airport (SFO) has the
authority to and does require commercial ground transportation
companies doing business on SFO roadways to have operating
permits. This includes all charter party carriers regulated by
the Public Utilities Commission (e.g., limousine operators and
the newly designated transportation network companies such as
Uber and SideCar), charter bus services, and shared ride van
services.
Because SFO is owned by the City and County of San Francisco,
but located in San Mateo County, the Legislature passed Penal
Code Section 602.4 to enable the San Francisco Police Department
to enforce SFO's rules and regulations against businesses that
operate unlawfully at SFO. The San Mateo District Attorney
prosecutes violators of SFO's rules and regulations.
Employing a very narrow interpretation of Section 602.4, under
some circumstances the San Mateo District Attorney has declined
to prosecute illegally operating transportation network
companies under Section 602.4 because, while the statute
prohibits unpermitted businesses form operating "on or from"
SFO, it does not, in the opinion of the San Mateo DA, prohibit
commercial transportation operators from taking passengers "to"
SFO.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/13/14)
San Francisco International Airport (source)
SB 1430
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ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to SFO, transportation
network companies like Uber and Lyft are currently operating
illegally at SFO by offering airport-return trip services to
arriving air travelers who, at the end of their visit, will need
to use ground transportation to return to the airport for
departure home by air. Because current law does not include
trips to the airport, these return trip services being offered
on airport property constitute a legal loophole. The San Mateo
County District Attorney, who prosecutes violations of illegal
commercial activity on airport property, has declined to
prosecute these cases because statute only includes
transportation services from and on, but not to the airport.
This bill would close the loophole by including transportation
services to airports.
JA:nl 5/13/14 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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