Amended in Senate June 22, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 451


Introduced by Assembly Member Bonilla

February 23, 2015


An act to amend Section 21107.8 of the Vehicle Code, relating to vehicles.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 451, as amended, Bonilla. Private parking facilities.

Existing law authorizes a city or county, by ordinance or resolution, to find and declare that there are privately owned and maintained offstreet parking facilities within the city or county that are generally held open for use of the public for purposes of vehicular parking and requires, upon enactment of the ordinance or resolution, that specified traffic laws apply, including those related to basic speed law, reckless driving, and speed contests and exhibitions of speed, except as specified.

This bill would authorize a city or county to include in that ordinance or resolution authorization for the operator ofbegin insert aend insert privately owned and maintained offstreet parking facility to regulate unauthorized parking in that facility. The bill would, if a city or county has exercised that authority and unauthorized parking is regulated in a privately owned and maintained offstreet parking facility, require the owner or operator of the facility tobegin insert post language, as specified, stating that violators may be subject to a parking invoice fee, andend insert include in a parking fee invoice instructions that describe the manner in which to contest the parking fee invoice and prohibit the owner or operator from filing with, or transmitting to, the Department of Motor Vehicles a parking fee invoice, as specified. The bill would also require a city or county that authorizes private parking regulation to include, in its ordinance or resolution, specified provisions, including those related to dispute resolution.

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

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

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SECTION 1.  

Section 21107.8 of the Vehicle Code is amended
2to read:

3

21107.8.  

(a) (1)  Any city or county may, by ordinance or
4resolution, find and declare that there are privately owned and
5maintained offstreet parking facilities as described in the ordinance
6or resolution within the city or county that are generally held open
7for use of the public for purposes of vehicular parking. Upon
8enactment by a city or county of the ordinance or resolution,
9Sections 22350, 23103, and 23109 and the provisions of Division
1016.5 (commencing with Section 38000) shall apply to privately
11owned and maintained offstreet parking facilities, except as
12provided in subdivision (b).

13(2) (A) If a city or county enacts an ordinance or resolution
14authorized by paragraph (1), a city or county may include in that
15ordinance or resolution authorization for the operator of a privately
16owned and maintained offstreet parking facility to regulate
17unauthorized parking in that facility.

18(B) (i) If a city or county has exercised its authority pursuant
19to subparagraph (A) and unauthorized parking is regulated in a
20privately owned and maintained offstreet parking facility, the
21owner or operator of that facility shall include in a parking fee
22invoice instructions that describe the manner in which to contest
23the parking fee invoice.

24(ii) If a city or county has exercised its authority pursuant to
25subparagraph (A) and unauthorized parking is regulated in a
26privately owned and maintained offstreet parking facility, the
27owner or operator of that facility shall not file with, or transmit to,
28the Department of Motor Vehicles a parking fee invoice for the
29purpose of having the Department of Motor Vehicles attempt to
30collect unpaid parking fees by refusing to issue or renew a license
31pursuant to Section 12808.1 or refusing to renew the registration
32of a vehicle pursuant to Section 4760.

P3    1(b) begin insert(1)end insertbegin insertend insertNotwithstandingbegin delete the provisions ofend delete subdivision (a),begin delete noend delete
2begin insert anend insert ordinance or resolution enacted thereunderbegin delete shallend deletebegin insert does notend insert apply
3to any offstreet parking facility describedbegin delete thereinend deletebegin insert in that subdivisionend insert
4 unless the owner or operator has caused to be posted in a
5conspicuous place at each entrance to that offstreet parking facility
6a notice not less than 17 by 22 inches in size with lettering not less
7than one inch in height, to the effect that the offstreet parking
8facility is subject to public moving vehiclebegin delete laws.end deletebegin insert laws and violators
9may be subject to a parking invoice fee.end insert

begin insert

10(2) If applicable, a parking receipt distributed to drivers shall
11include language explicitly stating that violators may be subject
12to a parking invoice fee.

end insert

13(c) No ordinance or resolution shall be enacted under subdivision
14(a) without a public hearing thereon and 10 days prior written
15notice to the owner and operator of the privately owned and
16maintained offstreet parking facility involved.

17(d)  Section 22507.8 may be enforced without enactment of an
18ordinance or resolution as required under subdivision (a) or the
19 posting of a notice at each entrance to the offstreet parking facility
20as required underbegin insert paragraph (1) ofend insert subdivision (b).

21(e) The department shall not be required to provide patrol or
22enforce any provisions of this code on any privately owned and
23maintained offstreet parking facility subject to the provisions of
24this code under this section except those provisions applicable to
25private property other than by action under this section.

26(f) A city or county that authorizes private parking regulation
27pursuant to this section shall, in its ordinance or resolution, include
28provisions that include all of the following:

29(1) Procedures of dispute resolution in accordance with those
30procedures set forth in Section 40215, which shall include all of
31the following:

32(A) A written and publicly available dispute resolution policy
33that includes specified time periods for notifications, review, and
34appeal.

35(B) An administrative hearing process that includes all of the
36following:

37(i) Options for a hearing in person or by mail.

38(ii) Administrative review.

P4    1(iii) A hearing by a third-party examiner who has been
2adequately trained and who provides an independent, objective,
3begin delete fairend deletebegin insert fair,end insert and impartial review.

4(iv) Personal delivery or delivery by first-class mail of an
5examiner’s decision.

6(v) Authority for the examiner to allow payment of the parking
7charge in installments for persons showing evidence of inability
8to pay the parking charge in full.

9(2) A prohibition against incentives based on the number of
10invoices issued or the number or percent of disputed invoices
11adjudicated that uphold parking charges.

12(3) A cap on a parking invoice fee that is commensurate with
13the most nearly equivalent municipal parking fine.

14(4) Measures to prevent a private parking regulator from
15representing itself as a government enforcement agency, including
16a prohibition against use of terminology in ordinances or
17resolutions, and in parking fee invoices, which are restricted to
18governmental law enforcement, and a requirement for a
19conspicuous statement on parking fee invoices to the effect that
20“This parking charge notice is not issued by the [local
21government].”



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