BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1164
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
1164 (Gatto)
As Amended April 21, 2015
Majority vote
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|Committee |Votes |Ayes |Noes |
|----------------+------+----------------------+--------------------|
|Transportation |16-0 |Frazier, Achadjian, | |
| | |Baker, Bloom, Chu, | |
| | |Daly, Dodd, Eduardo | |
| | |Garcia, Gomez, Kim, | |
| | |Linder, Medina, | |
| | |Melendez, Nazarian, | |
| | |O'Donnell, Santiago | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+----------------------+--------------------|
|Appropriations |17-0 |Frazier, Achadjian, | |
| | |Baker, Bloom, Chu, | |
| | |Daly, Dodd, Eduardo | |
| | |Garcia, Gomez, Kim, | |
| | |Linder, Medina, | |
| | |Melendez, Nazarian, | |
| | |O'Donnell, Santiago | |
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SUMMARY: Requires the California Department of Transportation
(Caltrans) to conduct an annual evaluation and rating of the
quality of the state highway system, using specified measurements,
and to report on its findings. Specifically, this bill:
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1)Requires Caltrans to conduct an annual evaluation and rating of
the overall quality of the state highway system and the
resources needed to provide a system in good repair.
2)Requires the evaluation to demonstrate how resource, staffing,
and programming decisions impact the overall condition of the
state highway system.
3)Requires the evaluation to address the number of distressed lane
miles, bridge conditions, and life cycle
4)Requires Caltrans, until March 31, 2020, to submit annual
reports to the Legislature regarding its evaluation and rating.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, Caltrans indicates that, while it is already doing much
of the work required in this bill, because this bill does not
fully align with requirements of the federal Moving Ahead for
Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), the bill will entail
more work, which nevertheless can be accomplished within existing
resources."
COMMENTS: Caltrans is responsible for maintaining and operating
the approximately 50,000 lane-mile state highway system, including
nearly 13,000 bridges. The department monitors the condition and
operational performance of the state highway through periodic
inspections, traffic studies, and system analysis. From this,
Caltrans prepares its ten-year State Highway Operation Protection
Plan (SHOPP) plan. The plan is required by existing law to
include the identified needs for a ten-year period based on
quantifiable accomplishments and a cost estimate for at least the
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first five years. According to Caltrans, the goal-constrained
needs developed as a part of this analysis represents the
estimated cost to meet reasonable performance goals. For example,
for pavements, the goal is to reduce the current level of
distressed lane miles of pavement on the state highway system down
to 10% in ten years. Other elements of the SHOPP have similar
performance goals, such as:
1)Roadway preservation: Reduce to 10% the number of distressed
lane miles.
2)Bridge preservation: Reduce to 3% of bridges distressed.
3)Major damage: Restore damage within 180 days.
Through the 10-year SHOPP plan, and other tools, Caltrans uses a
strategic approach to managing highway assets. This approach has
been already endorsed at the federal and state level. In fact,
recent legislation at both the federal and state levels already
requires Caltrans to develop a system to evaluate its assets much
like the one required by this bill. For example, MAP-21 requires
each state to develop a risk-based asset management plan for the
national highway system to improve or preserve the condition of
the assets and the performance of the system. The plans are to
include strategies that lead to progress toward achieving specific
targets related to asset condition and performance. At a minimum,
states must address pavements and bridges but are encouraged to
include all infrastructure assets within the highway right-of-way
in their asset management plan.
Last session, the Legislature passed and the Governor signed SB
486 (DeSaulnier), Chapter 917, Statutes of 2014, that, among other
things, requires Caltrans to prepare an asset management plan to
guide development of the SHOPP. Asset management is a strategic
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and systematic process of operating, maintaining, and improving
physical assets. Caltrans focuses on engineering and economic
analysis, based upon quality information, to identify a structured
sequence of maintenance, preservation, repair, rehabilitation, and
replacement actions that will achieve and sustain a desired and
sustainable state of good repair over the lifecycle of the assets
at minimum practicable cost.
Unlike MAP-21, SB 486 did not identify specific categories of
assets to include in the asset management plan. Instead it
requires California Transportation Commission to adopt targets and
performance measures that reflect state policy goals and
objectives.
The author believes the state highway system is in dire need of
improvement. He notes that it is operating well beyond its design
life and beyond its capacity. Additionally, he is concerned that
continued population growth imposes even greater wear and tear on
the already-aging system. He introduced AB 1164 to provide a
valuable tool for decision makers to help them prioritize
projects.
Committee concern: The author's desire for a performance
management approach to managing the state's highway system is just
the sort of approach that could lead to a better use of the
state's limited transportation resources. The problem with this
bill is, however, this approach is already being done at the
local, state, and federal levels.
Please see the policy committee analysis for full discussion of
this bill.
AB 1164
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Analysis Prepared by:
Janet Dawson / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093 FN: 0000779