BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1574
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Date of Hearing: May 4, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Lorena Gonzalez, Chair
AB
1574 (Chiu) - As Amended April 12, 2016
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|Policy |Utilities and Commerce |Vote:|13 - 0 |
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| |Transportation | |15 - 0 |
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: YesReimbursable:
No
SUMMARY:
This bill requires the Public Utilities Commission (PUC),
beginning January 1, 2018, to verify with the DMV that the
buses, limousines, and modified limousines used by a passenger
stage corporation (PSC) or a charter-party carrier (CPC) have
been reported and meet safety requirements. Specifically, this
bill:
AB 1574
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1)Requires PUC to:
a) Verify with DMV, on an annual basis, that buses,
limousines, and modified limousines used by a PSC or CPC
have been reported to the PUC by the carrier.
b) Ensure that all newly registered buses, limousines, or
modified limousines of PSCs or CPCs, and reported by DMV,
meet all statutory and regulatory requirements for safe
operation.
c) Take immediate steps, when it becomes aware of a new
such vehicle not reported to the commission, to require the
carrier to update its reporting of buses, limousines, and
modified limousines to the PUC and request the CHP to
conduct a safety inspection of the vehicle.
2)Requires every PSC and CPC to report annually to the PUC, in
addition to the list of all their buses, limousines, and
modified limousines used in transportation for compensation,
the vehicle registration information for each vehicle.
3)Prohibits the PUC from issuing or continuing in effect any
permit or certificate of a PSC or CPC that does not submit the
vehicle registration information for each vehicle reported to
the commission.
4)Requires the DMV to notify the PUC when a CPC or PSC renews or
first registers a bus, limousine, or modified limousine, and
to provide the PUC with information that will allow it to
identify the vehicle.
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FISCAL EFFECT:
1)It is unknown how many additional buses and limousines not
currently reported to the PUC will come under the commission's
purview due to the receipt of registration information from
the DMV. The commission estimates this number could be up to
25,000 vehicles. The DMV notes that it would be reliant on
carriers to self-report to the department, thus adding
uncertainty to any estimate. Nevertheless, the PUC would need
additional staff regarding increased vehicle registrations and
new permit applications from CPCs and PSCs, with the attendant
additional regulatory activity associated with the additional
registrations, plus one-time and ongoing information
technology support costs. Total costs to the commission would
be several hundred thousand dollars annually, but again, will
depend on the amount of additional workload. [Transportation
Reimbursement Account]
2)The CHP will incur costs for inspections of additional CPC/PSC
vehicles identified through this bill. Estimated costs are
about $200,000 for every additional 2,500 vehicle inspections.
[Motor Vehicle Account]
3)The DMV will incur one-time special fund cost of around
$225,000 to establish four new body-type codes, in order to
distinguish auto or commercial vehicles used by a PSC or CPC.
[Motor Vehicle Account]
COMMENTS:
1)Background. PSCs provide transportation to the general public
on an individual fare basis, such as scheduled bus operators,
which are buses that operate on a fixed route and scheduled
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services, or airport shuttles, which operate on an on-call
door-to-door share the ride service.
CPCs are a charter vehicle, on a pre-arranged basis, for the
exclusive use of an individual or group. Charges are based on
the mileage or time of use, or a combination of both. The PUC
does not regulate the fees charged by CPCs. Types of CPCs
include limousines, tour buses, sightseeing services, and
charter and party buses.
2)Purpose. The author introduced this bill in response to a tour
bus crash in San Francisco in November 2015 that injured 20
people. According to the author, although the bus was
registered with the DMV, it was not registered with the PUC,
and therefore the bus was not inspected by CHP before it went
into operation. The author states that, "Ensuring full
inspections and eliminating ghost buses are important steps we
need to take so that tourists and residents do not become
victims of regulatory loopholes." By requiring DMV and CPUC
to collect and share identifying information, the author
intends to ensure that all vehicles operated by CPCs or PSCs
are properly accounted for and inspected.
3)Related Legislation. AB 1677 (Ting), pending in this
committee, requires the CHP to develop protocols for the
inspection of tour buses by local agencies.
Analysis Prepared by:Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916)
319-2081
AB 1574
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