Amended in Assembly April 8, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 914

Introduced by Assembly Member Brown

(Coauthors: Assembly Members Chang, Linder, Mayes, Obernolte, Rodriguez, and Steinorth)

(Coauthor: Senator Leyva)

February 26, 2015

An act to add Section 149.11 to the Streets and Highways Code, and to amend Section 5205.5 of the Vehicle Code, relating to transportation.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 914, as amended, Brown. Toll facilities: County of San Bernardino.

Existing law provides for the Department of Transportation and local authorities, with respect to highways under their respective jurisdictions, to authorize or permit exclusive or preferential use of highway lanes for high-occupancy vehicles (HOVs). Existing law authorizes the development and implementation of high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes under certain circumstances, pursuant to which vehicles that do not meet the vehicle occupancy requirements for use of an HOV lane may use the lane upon payment of a toll.

This bill would authorize the San Bernardino County Transportation Commission to construct and operate certain transportation facilities, as defined, on begin delete State end delete begin insert Interstate end insert Highway Routes 10 and 15, as toll facilities in the County of San Bernardino and, with the agreement of affected transportation agencies, in the Counties of Los Angeles and Riverside. The bill would require the toll revenues to be spent for specified transportation purposes and would authorize the commission to issue revenue bonds payable from toll revenues. The bill would require the commission to report to the Legislative Analyst on specified matters within 3 years of commencement of toll collection on a facility constructed under the bill. The bill would enact other related provisions.

Existing law authorizes the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue decals to not more than 70,000 vehicles meeting certain air quality standards, and provides that vehicles with these air quality decals may use high-occupancy vehicle lanes without meeting the applicable vehicle occupancy requirements. Existing law generally provides that the vehicles with air quality decals are not exempt from tolls on state-owned toll bridges or certain other toll facilities.

This bill would provide that vehicles with air quality decals would not be exempt from tolls on toll facilities implemented in the County of San Bernardino or adjoining counties under this bill.

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

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

SECTION 1.  

Section 149.11 is added to the Streets and
Highways Code, to read:

149.11.  

(a) For the purposes of this section, the following
terms shall have the following meanings:

(1) “Transportation corridors” means begin delete State end delete begin insert Interstate end insert Highway
Routes 10 and 15 in the County of San Bernardino, including
approaches and departures to and from, and direct connectors
between, the two highways.

(2) “Transportation corridor connectors” means the approaching
and departing connectors on begin delete State end delete begin insert Interstate end insert Highway Route 10
extending into the County of Los Angeles, as designated by
agreement with the Los Angeles County Metropolitan
Transportation Authority, and the connection to the begin delete State end delete begin insert Interstate end insert
Highway Route 15 express lanes project in the County of Riverside,
as designated by agreement with the Riverside County
Transportation Commission.

(3) “Transportation facilities” means toll lanes, high-occupancy
toll lanes, high-occupancy vehicle lanes, lanes or improvements
where tolls may be levied and may vary according to levels of
congestion or according to the type or occupancy of the vehicle,
improvements or lanes utilizing a combination of those options,
and approaches to those lanes and facilities incidental to or related
to the lanes or the operation of the lanes.

(b) (1) Notwithstanding Sections 149 and 30800 of this code,
and Section 21655.5 of the Vehicle Code, the San Bernardino
County Transportation Commission may finance, plan, develop,
design, construct, reconstruct, rehabilitate, improve, acquire,
administer, maintain, lease, and operate transportation facilities in
the transportation corridors and the transportation corridor
connectors. The commission may acquire property for the
transportation facilities and transportation corridor connectors
pursuant to Section 130220.5 of the Public Utilities Code.

(2) The San Bernardino County Transportation Commission
shall have the authority to set, levy, and collect tolls, user fees, or
other similar charges payable for the use of the transportation
facilities in the County of San Bernardino, and any other incidental
or related fees or charges, and to collect those revenues, in a
manner determined by the commission, in amounts as required for
the following expenditures relative to the transportation facilities
in the transportation corridors and transportation corridor
connectors and for the purposes of paragraph (3):

(A) Capital outlay, including the costs of design, construction,
right-of-way acquisition, and utilities adjustment.

(B) Operations and maintenance, including, but not limited to,
insurance, collection, and enforcement of tolls, fees, and charges.

(C) Repair and rehabilitation.

(D) Indebtedness incurred and internal loans and advances,
including related financial costs.

(E) Reserves.

(F) Administration, which shall not exceed 3 percent of the
revenues of toll facilities and associated transportation facilities.

(3) All revenue generated pursuant to paragraph (2) in excess
of the expenditure needs of that paragraph shall be used exclusively
for the benefit of the transportation corridors. These excess revenue
expenditures shall be described in an excess revenue expenditure
plan adopted and periodically updated by the board of directors
of the San Bernardino County Transportation Commission and
may include, but need not be limited to, the following eligible
expenditures:

(A) Expenditures to enhance transit service designed to reduce
traffic congestion within the transportation corridors in the County
of San Bernardino. Eligible expenditures include, but are not
limited to, transit operating assistance, the acquisition of transit
vehicles, and transit capital improvements otherwise eligible to be
funded under the state transportation improvement program
pursuant to Section 164.

(B) Expenditures to make operational or capacity improvements
designed to reduce traffic congestion or improve the flow of traffic
in the transportation corridors in the County of San Bernardino.
Eligible expenditures include, but are not limited to, any phase of
project delivery to make capital improvements to on ramps, off
ramps, connector roads, roadways, bridges, or other structures that
are necessary for or related to the tolled or nontolled transportation
facilities in the transportation corridors in the County of San
Bernardino.

(4) To the extent the San Bernardino County Transportation
Commission plans to construct or operate transportation facilities
begin insert or transportation corridor connectors end insert in the Counties of Los
Angeles or Riverside, it shall enter into an agreement with the Los
Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority or the
Riverside County Transportation Commission, as applicable,
subject to approval of the board of directors of the San Bernardino
County Transportation Commission and the board of directors of
the affected entity.

(5) If the transportation facilities constructed and operated by
the San Bernardino County Transportation Commission connect
to, or are near, similar toll facilities constructed and operated by
the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
or the Riverside County Transportation Commission, the respective
entities shall enter into an agreement providing for the coordination
of the toll facilities operated by each entity.

(c) The San Bernardino County Transportation Commission
shall carry out the program in cooperation with the department
pursuant to a cooperative agreement that addresses all matters
related to the design, construction, maintenance, and operation of
state highway system facilities in connection with the transportation
facilities.

(d) Single-occupant vehicles that are certified or authorized by
the San Bernardino County Transportation Commission for entry
into, and use of, the begin delete high-occupancy toll lanes end delete begin insert transportation
facilities end insert implemented pursuant to this section are exempt from
Section 21655.5 of the Vehicle Code, and the driver shall not be
in violation of the Vehicle Code because of that entry and use.

(e) Agreements between the San Bernardino County
Transportation Commission, the department, and the Department
of the California Highway Patrol shall identify the respective
obligations, liabilities, and responsibilities of each entity. The
agreements shall provide for reimbursement of state agencies, from
revenues generated by the transportation facility or other funding
sources that are not otherwise available to state agencies for
transportation-related projects, or for costs incurred in connection
with the implementation or operation of the transportation facilities.

(f) (1) The San Bernardino County Transportation Commission
may issue bonds at any time to finance any costs necessary to
implement the transportation facilities established pursuant to this
section and any expenditures provided for in paragraphs (2) and
(3) of subdivision (b), payable from the revenues generated from
the transportation facilities and any other sources of revenues
available to the commission that may be used for these purposes,
including, but not limited to, sales tax revenue, development impact
fees, or state and federal grants.

(2) The maximum bonded indebtedness that may be outstanding
at any one time shall not exceed an amount that may be serviced
from the projected revenues available as described in paragraph
(1).

(3) The bonds shall bear interest at a rate or rates not exceeding
the maximum allowable by law, payable at intervals determined
by the commission.

(4) Any bond issued pursuant to this subdivision shall contain
on its face a statement to the following effect:

“Neither the full faith and credit nor the taxing power of the
State of California is pledged to the payment of principal of, or
interest on, this bond.”

(5) Bonds shall be issued pursuant to a resolution of the
governing board of the commission adopted by a majority vote of
its governing board. The resolution or bond authorizing instrument
shall state all of the following:

(A) The purposes for which the proposed debt is to be incurred.

(B) The estimated cost of accomplishing those purposes.

(C) The amount of the principal of the indebtedness.

(D) The maximum term of the bonds and the maximum interest
rate.

(E) The denomination or denominations of the bonds, which
shall not be less than five thousand dollars ($5,000).

(F) The form of the bonds.

(g) Not later than three years after the San Bernardino County
Transportation Commission first collects revenues from any of the
transportation facilities authorized by this section, the commission
shall submit a report to the Legislative Analyst on its findings,
conclusions, and recommendations concerning the transportation
facilities. The report shall include an analysis of the effect of the
transportation facilities on the adjacent mixed-flow lanes and any
comments submitted by the department and the Department of the
California Highway Patrol regarding operation of the transportation
facilities.

(h) This section shall not prevent the department or any local
agency from constructing improvements in the transportation
corridors that compete with the transportation facilities, and the
San Bernardino County Transportation Commission shall not be
entitled to compensation for the adverse effects on toll revenue
due to those competing improvements.

(i) If any provision of this section or the application thereof is
held invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or
applications of this section that can be given effect without the
invalid provision or application, and to this extent the provisions
are severable.

begin insert

(j) Nothing in this section shall authorize the conversion of any
existing nontoll or nonuser-fee lanes into tolled or user-fee lanes,
except that a high-occupancy vehicle lane may be converted into
a transportation facility, as defined in paragraph (3) of subdivision
(a).

end insert

SEC. 2.  

Section 5205.5 of the Vehicle Code is amended to
read:

5205.5.  

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

(1) A vehicle that meets California’s super ultra-low emission
vehicle (SULEV) standard for exhaust emissions and the federal
inherently low-emission vehicle (ILEV) evaporative emission
standard, as defined in Part 88 (commencing with Section
88.101-94) of Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

(2) A vehicle that was produced during the 2004 model-year or
earlier and meets California’s ultra-low emission vehicle (ULEV)
standard for exhaust emissions and the federal ILEV standard.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

(f) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), for purposes of
paragraph (3) of subdivision (a), the department shall issue no
more than 70,000 distinctive decals, labels, or other identifiers that
clearly distinguish a vehicle specified in paragraph (3) of
subdivision (a).

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

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

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

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

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

(h) (1) Notwithstanding Section 21655.9, and except as
provided in paragraph (2), a vehicle described in subdivision (a)
that displays a decal, label, or identifier issued pursuant to this
section shall be granted a toll-free or reduced-rate passage in
high-occupancy toll lanes as described in Section 149.7 of the
Streets and Highways Code unless prohibited by federal law.

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

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

(C) Paragraph (1) does not apply to the imposition of a toll
imposed for passage on a transportation facility for which tolls are
imposed pursuant to Section 149.11 of the Streets and Highways
Code.

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

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

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