BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1752
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Date of Hearing: March 14, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION
Jim Frazier, Chair
AB 1752
(Melendez) - As Amended March 10, 2016
SUBJECT: Vehicles: registration fees
SUMMARY: Requires the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to
clearly identify the base vehicle registration fee as a separate
and distinct line item on the vehicle registration renewal
notice. Requires DMV to post on its web site a clear
description of each additional fee or surcharge added to the
base registration fee, including the statutory authority for
that fee or surcharge, and requires DMV to provide the address
to this website with each application.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Prohibits a person from driving, moving, or leaving a vehicle
or trailer on a highway or in an off-street parking facility
unless it is registered with DMV.
2)Requires that a registration fee of $43 be paid to the DMV for
an initial vehicle registration or registration renewal.
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3)Adds an additional $3 to the above fee to be deposited in the
Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Fund and
the Enhanced Fleet Modernization Subaccount.
4)Requires an additional registration fee, adjusted annually
based on the California Consumer Price Index (CPI), be paid to
DMV on behalf of the Department of the California Highway
Patrol (CHP) at the time of vehicle registration or renewal.
5)Authorizes the collection of certain other fees and surcharges
at the time of vehicle registration or renewal to support a
variety of state and local programs.
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown
COMMENTS: State law directs DMV to collect vehicle registration
fees along with other fees such as commercial motor vehicle
weight fees, license fees, and license plate fees when the
vehicle is first registered and annually thereafter. In
addition, DMV may be directed to collect locally-imposed fees
and surcharges that fund variety of programs such as law
enforcement efforts and air pollution abatement.
When a vehicle registration renewal notice is issued by DMV, the
fees that are being charged are prominently displayed and listed
by category under the heading of "fees" with a distinct sum
total due to the department and the date of required payment
clearly identified at the bottom in bold type. Where there are
a several fees in a given category - for example if a local
jurisdiction has assessed a number of law enforcement-related
fees - the fees are shown totaled by category.
The current vehicle registration fee is set in statute at $43.
This fee goes primarily to the Motor Vehicle Account to support
the state's administration and enforcement of laws regulating
the operation and registration of vehicles used on public
streets and highways. AB 8 (Perea), Chapter 401, Statutes of
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2013, added an additional $3 to this fee, $2 of which go to the
Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Fund for
the purpose of developing and deploying technology and
alternative and renewable fuels in the marketplace, and $1 that
goes to the Enhanced Fleet Modernization Subaccount for the
purpose of allowing for the voluntary retirement of passenger
vehicles and light-duty and medium-duty trucks that are high
polluters.
Existing law also directs DMV to collect a fee at the time of
registration or renewal on behalf of CHP to carry out duties
related to enforcing the Vehicle Code. This fee is indexed to
the CPI, and is currently set at $24. The current line item on
DMV's registration renewal notices titled "Registration Fee"
displays a total cost of $70, which includes the $43 dollar fee
established in statute, plus the $3 fee established by AB 8,
plus this $24 CHP fee.
For a local fee to be collected by DMV, there must be statutory
authority to do so. This authority typically requires the local
jurisdiction to pass an ordinance or resolution directing the
collection of the fee. Once fee collection is in place, local
jurisdictions are required to account for the monies collected
and expended. These local fees collected at the time of
registration or renewal are aggregated and listed separately on
the DMV notice under the item titled "County/District Fees."
Because several fees are combined on the DMV registration
renewal notice, the author contends that these notices lack
transparency with regard to what fees are being collected by DMV
over and above the base registration fee set in statute. To
address this, the bill would require DMV to clearly identify the
fee set in statute for the purpose of funding the operations of
DMV as the "base registration fee" on the renewal notice.
According to the author, "Most people do not know about the
programs they are funding through the vehicle registration
process," including the programs funded by the AB 8 fees and the
CHP fee. By requiring DMV to separately list these additional
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fees in a separate line item to provide information on its
website about the nature of these fees and their statutory
authority, the author seeks to enhance the transparency of the
vehicle registration process. This bill does not require each
portion of the fees currently collected as the "registration
fee" to be separately listed on the renewal notice, likely
reducing the additional administrative costs incurred by DMV
associated with printing renewal notices pursuant to this new
requirement.
DMV already displays a website address and toll-free telephone
number on the renewal notices providing access to additional
information to customers. The new requirement for a website
displaying the description and statutory authority for
registration fees could likely be adapted from the existing
information DMV already provides.
Previous legislation: AB 1998 (Grove) of 2014, would have
required the DMV to fully identify each fee and surcharge on
applications for initial vehicle registration and registration
renewal as a separate and distinct line item with the
corresponding statutory authority for that fee. AB 1998 was
held in this committee at the request of the author.
AB 8 (Perea), Chapter 401, Statutes of 2013, increased the
vehicle registration fee set in statute by $3 for the purpose of
funding specific environmental programs.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
AB 1752
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Support
Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association
United Californians for Tax Reform
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by:Justin Behrens / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093