Amended in Assembly March 28, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2746

Introduced by Assembly Member Obernolte

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(Coauthors: Assembly Members Baker, Bigelow, Brown, Cooper, Dahle, Gallagher, Ting, and Wood)

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February 19, 2016

begin delete An act to amend Sections 1808.7, 1808.10, and 42007 of, and to repeal and amend Section 41501 of, the Vehicle Code, relating to traffic school. end delete begin insert An act to add Section 311.2 to the Public Utilities Code, relating to the Public Utilities Commission. end insert

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2746, as amended, Obernolte. begin delete Traffic school: intervals. end delete begin insert Public Utilities Commission: contracts: electronic submissions. end insert

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Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory authority over public utilities and can establish its own procedures, subject to statutory limitations or directions and constitutional requirements of due process. The Public Utilities Act requires the commission to establish procedures to permit the submission of informal complaints through electronic means.

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This bill would require the commission to adopt procedures authorizing the submittal of electronic signatures and documents by all parties on contracts involving the commission.

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Under existing law, after a deposit of bail and bail forfeiture, a plea of guilty or no contest, or a conviction, a court may order a continuance of a proceeding against a person, who receives a notice to appear in court for a violation of a statute relating to the safe operation of a vehicle, in consideration for successful completion of a course of instruction at a licensed school for traffic violators, a licensed driving school, or any other court-approved program of driving instruction. Existing law requires the record of the Department of Motor Vehicles relating to the first proceeding and conviction in any 18-month period for completion of a traffic violator school program to be confidential, not be disclosed, except as specified, and to be used only for statistical purposes by the department.

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This bill would reduce the applicable time period between convictions under the circumstances described above from 18 months to 12 months. The bill also would make various conforming and technical changes.

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

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

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begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

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begin insert Section 311.2 is added to the end insert begin insert Public Utilities
Code end insert begin insert , to read: end insert

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begin insert 311.2. end insert   

The commission shall adopt procedures authorizing the
submittal of electronic signatures and documents by all parties on
contracts involving the commission.

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SECTION 1.  

This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the
California Educated Driver Act of 2016.

SEC. 2.  

Section 1808.7 of the Vehicle Code, as added by
Section 2.5 of Chapter 599 of the Statutes of 2010, is amended to
read:

1808.7.  

(a) The record of the department relating to the first
proceeding and conviction under Section 1803.5 in any 12-month
period for completion of a traffic violator school program is
confidential, shall not be disclosed to any person, except a court
and as provided for in subdivision (b), and shall be used only for
statistical purposes by the department. A violation point count
shall not be assessed pursuant to Section 12810 if the conviction
is confidential.

(b) The record of a conviction described in subdivision (a) shall
not be confidential if any of the following circumstances applies:

(1) The person convicted holds a commercial driver’s license,
as defined by Section 15210.

(2) The person convicted holds a commercial driver’s license
in another state, in accordance with Part 383 (commencing with
Section 383.1_) of Subchapter B of Chapter III of Subtitle B of
Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

(3) The violation occurred in a commercial motor vehicle, as
defined in subdivision (b) of Section 15210.

(4) The conviction would result in a violation point count of
more than one point pursuant to Section 12810.

(c) This section shall become operative on July 1, 2011.

SEC. 3.  

Section 1808.10 of the Vehicle Code is amended to
read:

1808.10.  

The record of the department relating to the first
proceeding and conviction for a driver licensed with a class A
license, class B license, or commercial class C driver’s license in
any 12-month period who is allowed, for a traffic offense while
operating a vehicle requiring only a class C or a class M license,
to complete a course of instruction at a traffic violator school, is
not confidential and shall be disclosed for purposes of Title 49 of
the Code of Federal Regulations and to insurers by the department
for insurance underwriting and rating purposes.

SEC. 4.  

Section 41501 of the Vehicle Code, as added by
Section 12.5 of Chapter 216 of the Statutes of 2010, is repealed.

SEC. 5.  

Section 41501 of the Vehicle Code, as amended by
Section 311 of Chapter 296 of the Statutes of 2011, is amended to
read:

41501.  

(a) After a deposit of bail and bail forfeiture, a plea of
guilty or no contest, or a conviction, the court may order a
continuance of a proceeding against a person, who receives a notice
to appear in court for a violation of a statute relating to the safe
operation of a vehicle, in consideration for successful completion
of a course of instruction at a licensed school for traffic violators,
a licensed driving school, or any other court-approved program of
driving instruction, and pursuant to Section 1803.5 or 42005, the
court may order that the conviction be held confidential by the
department in accordance with Section 1808.7. The court shall
notify a person that only one conviction within 12 months will be
held confidential.

(b) Subdivision (a) does not apply to a person who receives a
notice to appear as to, or is otherwise charged with, a violation of
an offense described in subdivisions (a) to (e), inclusive, of Section
12810.

(c) This section shall become operative on July 1, 2011.

SEC. 6.  

Section 42007 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read:

42007.  

(a) (1) (A) The clerk of the court shall collect a fee
from every person who is ordered or permitted to attend a traffic
violator school pursuant to Section 41501 or 42005 in an amount
equal to the total bail set forth for the eligible offense on the
uniform countywide bail schedule. As used in this subdivision,
“total bail” means the amount established pursuant to Section
1269b of the Penal Code in accordance with the Uniform Bail and
Penalty Schedule adopted by the Judicial Council, including all
assessments, surcharges, and penalty amounts. If multiple offenses
are charged in a single notice to appear, the “total bail” is the
amount applicable for the greater of the qualifying offenses.
However, the court may determine a lesser fee under this
subdivision upon a showing that the defendant is unable to pay
the full amount.

(B) The fee shall not include the cost, or any part thereof, of
traffic safety instruction offered by a traffic violator school.

(2) The clerk may accept from a defendant who is ordered or
permitted to attend traffic violator school a payment of at least 10
percent of the fee required by paragraph (1) upon filing a written
agreement by the defendant to pay the remainder of the fee
according to an installment payment schedule of no more than 90
days as agreed upon with the court. The Judicial Council shall
prescribe the form of the agreement for payment of the fee in
installments. When the defendant signs the Judicial Council form
for payment of the fee in installments, the court shall continue the
case to the date in the agreement to complete payment of the fee
and submit the certificate of completion of traffic violator school
to the court. The clerk shall collect a fee of up to thirty-five dollars
($35) to cover administrative and clerical costs for processing an
installment payment of the traffic violator school fee under this
paragraph.

(3) If a defendant fails to make an installment payment of the
fee according to an installment agreement, the court may convert
the fee to bail, declare it forfeited, and report the forfeiture as a
conviction under Section 1803. The court may also charge a failure
to pay under Section 40508 and impose a civil assessment as
provided in Section 1214.1 of the Penal Code or issue an arrest
warrant for a failure to pay. For the purposes of reporting a
conviction under this subdivision to the department under Section
1803, the date that the court declares the bail forfeited shall be
reported as the date of conviction.

(b) Revenues derived from the fee collected under this section
shall be deposited in accordance with Section 68084 of the
Government Code in the general fund of the county and, as may
be applicable, distributed as follows:

(1) In any county in which a fund is established pursuant to
Section 76100 or 76101 of the Government Code, the sum of one
dollar ($1) for each fund so established shall be deposited with the
county treasurer and placed in that fund.

(2) In any county that has established a Maddy Emergency
Medical Services Fund pursuant to Section 1797.98a of the Health
and Safety Code, an amount equal to the sum of each two dollars
($2) for every seven dollars ($7) that would have been collected
pursuant to Section 76000 of the Government Code and,
commencing January 1, 2009, an amount equal to the sum of each
two dollars ($2) for every ten dollars ($10) that would have been
collected pursuant to Section 76000.5 of the Government Code
with respect to those counties to which that section is applicable
shall be deposited in that fund. Nothing in the act that added this
paragraph shall be interpreted in a manner that would result in
either of the following:

(A) The utilization of penalty assessment funds that had been
set aside, on or before January 1, 2000, to finance debt service on
a capital facility that existed before January 1, 2000.

(B) The reduction of the availability of penalty assessment
revenues that had been pledged, on or before January 1, 2000, as
a means of financing a facility that was approved by a county board
of supervisors, but on January 1, 2000, is not under construction.

(3) The amount of the fee that is attributable to Section 70372
of the Government Code shall be transferred pursuant to
subdivision (f) of that section.

(c) For fees resulting from city arrests, an amount equal to the
amount of base fines that would have been deposited in the treasury
of the appropriate city pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision
(b) of Section 1463.001 of the Penal Code shall be deposited in
the treasury of the appropriate city.

(d) The clerk of the court, in a county that offers traffic school
shall include in any courtesy notice mailed to a defendant for an
offense that qualifies for traffic school attendance the following
statement:

 

NOTICE: If you are eligible and decide not to attend traffic
school your automobile insurance may be adversely affected. For
drivers with a noncommercial driver’s license, one conviction in
any 12-month period will be held confidential and not show on
your driving record if you complete a traffic violator school
program. For drivers with a commercial driver’s license, one
conviction in any 12-month period will show on your driving
record without a violation point if you complete a traffic violator
school program.

 

(e) Notwithstanding any other law, a county that has established
a Maddy Emergency Medical Services Fund pursuant to Section
1797.98a of the Health and Safety Code shall not be held liable
for having deposited into the fund, prior to January 1, 2009, an
amount equal to two dollars ($2) for every ten dollars ($10) that
would have been collected pursuant to Section 76000.5 of the
Government Code from revenues derived from traffic violator
school fees collected pursuant to this section.

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