AB 1174, as amended, Bonilla. Automotive Repair Act: violations: regulations: reports.
The Automotive Repair Act provides for the licensure and regulation of automotive repair dealers, among others, by the Chief of the Bureau of Automotive Repair under the supervision and control of the Director of Consumer Affairs. The act requires the director, on the director’s initiative or in response to a complaint, to investigate a violation of the act, or of any regulation adopted pursuant to the act, by any automotive repair dealer, automotive technician, or employee, partner, officer, or member of any automotive repair dealer. The act authorizes the director to adopt and enforce the rules and regulations that the director determines are reasonably necessary to carry out the purposes of the act and declaring the policy of the bureau, including a system for the issuance of citations pursuant to a specified law. The act, except as specified, makes a violation of any requirement of the act by any person punishable as a misdemeanor.
This bill would clarify that the specified law under which the director may adopt and enforce rules and regulations under the Automotive Repair Act authorizes any board, bureau, or commission within the Department of Consumer Affairs to establish, by regulation, a system for the issuance to a licensee of a citation when the licensee is in violation of the applicable licensing act or any regulation adopted pursuant thereto.
This billbegin delete wouldend deletebegin insert end insertbegin insertwould, with certain exceptions,end insert require the bureau to adopt regulations regarding the bureau’s policies and procedures
for handling complaints, investigations, and all the bureau’s methods of resolution, as specified. The bill would require the bureau to post on its Internet Web site the regulations adopted. The bill would require the bureau to track and retain data on every method of resolution attempted and completed by the bureau for each automotive repair dealer, including, but not limited to, the type of complaint being resolved. The bill would require the bureau to submit a report to the Legislature by January 1, 2018, and annually thereafter, that details the bureau’s resolution efforts, as specified.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 9882 of the Business and Professions
2Code is amended to read:
(a) There is in the Department of Consumer Affairs a
4Bureau of Automotive Repair under the supervision and control
5of the director. The duty of enforcing and administering this chapter
6is vested in the chief who is responsible to the director. The director
7may adopt and enforce those rules and regulations that he or she
8determines are reasonably necessary to carry out the purposes of
9this chapter and declaring the policy of the bureau, including a
10system for the issuance of citations for violations of this chapter
11as specified in Section 125.9, which authorizes any board, bureau,
12or commission within the department to establish, by regulation,
P3 1a system for the issuance to a licensee of a citation when the
2licensee is in violation of the applicable
licensing act or any
3regulation adopted pursuant thereto. These rules and regulations
4shall be adopted pursuant to Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section
511340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
6(b) Notwithstanding any other law, the powers and duties of the
7bureau, as set forth in this article and under the Automotive Repair
8Act, shall be subject to review by the appropriate policy committees
9of the Legislature. In that review, the bureau shall have the burden
10of demonstrating a compelling public need for the continued
11existence of the bureau and its regulatory program, and that its
12function is the least restrictive regulation consistent with the public
13health, safety, and welfare. The review shall be performed as if
14this chapter were scheduled to be repealed as of January 1, 2019.
Section 9882.6 is added to the Business and Professions
16Code, to read:
(a) The bureau shall adopt regulations regarding the
18bureau’s policies and procedures for handling complaints,
19investigations, and all the bureau’s methods of resolution,
20including, but not limited to, education, training, conferences, and
21mediation.begin insert For purposes of this section, “policies and procedures”
22shall not include the bureau’s policies and procedures for
23conducting undercover investigations. end insert
24(b) The regulations shall include, but not be limited to, all of
25the following:
26(1) How a complaint is to be filed with the bureau.
27(2) How a complaint is to be investigated by the bureau.
28(3) How mediation is used by the bureau. The regulations
29regarding mediation shall clearly identify when mediation is used,
30how mediation is implemented by the bureau, and how mediation
31data is collected and reported by the bureau.
32(c) The bureau shall post on its Internet Web site all regulations
33adopted pursuant to the requirements of this section.
Section 9882.7 is added to the Business and Professions
35Code, to read:
(a) The bureau shall track and retain data on every
37method of resolution attempted and completed by the bureau for
38each automotive repair dealer, including, but not limited to, all of
39the following:
40(1) The type of complaint being resolved.
P4 1(2) The remedy or remedies sought and obtained in resolution,
2including, but not limited to, restitution, refund, work to be redone
3at no charge, bill adjustments, returns or exchanges, and the dollar
4amount of any remedy, if applicable.
5(3) The number of complaints where resolution was attempted
6but
where no remedy was reached and the number of complaints
7where any method of resolution was successful.
8(b) The bureau shall submit a report to the Legislature by
9January 1, 2018, and annually thereafter, that details the bureau’s
10resolution efforts. The report shall include, but not be limited to,
11the data in subdivision (a).
12(c) The report shall be submitted pursuant to Section 9795 of
13the Government Code.
14(d) “Method of resolution” for purposes of this section includes,
15but is not limited to, education, training, conferences, and
16mediation.
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