BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular Session
SB 344 (Monning) - Commercial driver's license: education
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|Version: February 24, 2015 |Policy Vote: T. & H. 11 - 0 |
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|Urgency: No |Mandate: No |
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|Hearing Date: May 4, 2015 |Consultant: Mark McKenzie |
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This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.
Bill
Summary: SB 344 would require an individual to successfully
complete a course of instruction from a commercial motor vehicle
driver training institution that has been certified by the
Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) in order to obtain a
commercial driver's license.
Fiscal
Impact:
DMV would incur one-time startup costs of approximately $1.8
million in 2016-17, and approximately $1.12 million annually
ongoing (Motor Vehicle Account). See staff comments.
Unknown costs to the Bureau of Private Postsecondary Education
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(BPPE) to license and regulate an estimated 250 schools that
are currently exempt from these requirements. BPPE costs are
expected to be fully covered by initial and ongoing fees
charged to training schools. (Private Postsecondary Education
Administration Fund)
Assuming 250 schools would be subject to BPPE regulation,
initial application fee revenues would be approximately $1.25
million (or more if a school has multiple branches). Ongoing
license renewal revenues would be $875,000 (or more if a
school has multiple branches). Additional annual "institution
fee" revenues would be proportional to BPPE costs for
regulating these schools. (Private Postsecondary Education
Administration Fund)
Background: Existing law prohibits an individual from operating a
commercial motor vehicle unless he or she has in his or her
immediate possession a valid commercial driver's license of the
appropriate class. A person may not be issued a commercial
driver's license until he or she has passed a written and
driving test that complies with the minimum federal standards to
operate a commercial motor vehicle. DMV may waive the driving
test for an individual with military commercial motor vehicle
experience if the individual is currently licensed with the U.S.
Armed Forces and his or her driving record and experience meet
the minimum federal standards. Members and reservists of the
U.S. Armed Forces, National Guard, and U.S. Coast Guard are
exempt from all commercial driver's license requirements and
sanctions.
Existing law establishes the BPPE within the Department of
Consumer Affairs to provide consumer protections for students
and provide regulatory oversight of private postsecondary
educational and vocational institutions. The BPPE is required
to review, investigate, and approve private postsecondary
institutions, programs, and courses of instruction, and
authorized to take formal action against institutions to ensure
compliance. Existing law provides for exemptions from BPPE
regulation and oversight for a number of schools and
institutions. One exemption is provided for institutions that
do not award degrees and that solely provide educational
programs for total charges of less than $2,500. Institutions
regulated by BPPE must pay the following fees:
1) A one-time $5,000 application fee for approval to
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operate; a $3,000 fee for approval to operate a new branch;
and a $750 fee for approval to operate by means of
accreditation.
2) An annual $3,500 renewal fee for an institution's main
campus; a $3,000 renewal fee for each branch; and a $500
renewal fee for an institution approved to operate by means
of accreditation.
3) A $500 processing fee for authorization of a substantive
change to an approval to operate, or a $250 processing fee
for authorization of a substantive change to an approval to
operate by means of accreditation.
4) An annual institution fee of the lesser of $25,000 or an
amount equal to 3/4 of a percent of the revenues an
institution receives from students in California, and a
$1,000 annual branch fee for each branch or campus
operating in the state.
Total annual fees must be proportional to the BPPE's cost of
regulating the institution.
Proposed Law:
SB 344 requires a person to successfully complete a course of
instruction from a commercial motor vehicle driver training
institution that has been certified by DMV in order to obtain a
commercial driver's license, beginning on January 1, 2017. The
bill also prohibits DMV from certifying a training institution
until it has approved the institution's training program and
requires DMV to update its standards as necessary to comply with
guidance or requirements established by the Federal Motor
Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). Commercial drivers with
specified military training and licensure, and drivers certified
under an approved employer-testing program are exempt from these
requirements.
The bill also prohibits DMV-certified schools from claiming an
exemption from licensing and regulation by the BPPE as of
January 1, 2017.
Staff
Comments: This bill would require DMV to establish minimum
standards for training programs and certify that each training
institution's programs are in compliance with those standards.
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An institution's training program must include, at a minimum,
standards necessary to ensure that a driver is proficient in
safely operating a commercial vehicle, and that comply with
federal regulations. To meet these requirements, DMV will be
required to develop and adopt comprehensive regulations
establishing commercial driving school curricula and
certification procedures, and review and certify curriculum for
an estimated 250 commercial driving schools prior to
implementation. DMV indicates that it would incur one-time
costs of approximately $1.79 million in 2016-17 to conduct these
activities and any necessary programming. Staff notes that it
is highly unlikely that DMV would be able to adopt regulations
and certify schools, let alone allow sufficient time for
prospective drivers to complete a certified course, prior to the
January 1, 2017 implementation date specified in the bill.
DMV anticipates ongoing costs of approximately $1.12 million per
year, beginning in 2017-18, for workload related to significant
increases in call volumes, certification of additional schools,
and modifications to curriculum requiring review.
Federal regulations require an individual to successfully pass
written and driving tests that meet federal standards in order
to obtain a commercial driver's license, but do not currently
require completion of a course of instruction. The federal
Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21)
directs FMCSA to establish minimum training requirements for
individuals seeking a commercial driver's license. FMCSA has
established a stakeholder committee, which is currently
examining minimum training requirements, including length of
classroom and behind-the-wheel experience, accreditation versus
certification of commercial driver training programs and
schools, curricula for passenger, property and hazardous
materials carriers, instructor qualifications, and other areas
of consideration. Draft regulations are expected to be
published later this year, and adoption of final regulations is
expected in 2016. Typically, states have three years to comply
with new federal requirements.
This bill requires DMV to update school training standards as
necessary to comply with FMCSA guidance or requirements. In
practical application, this bill would require DMV to establish
minimum standards for training programs and require schools to
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develop curriculum to meet those standards (and in the meantime
acquire a license to operate from the BPPE) prior to the
adoption of final federal regulations. It is likely that DMV
would have duplicative workload to update its regulations and
minimum instructional standards very soon after the adoption of
its initial regulations to meet whatever final federal
regulations are adopted, which will then require additional
duplicative workload for each school to get curriculum
recertified by DMV.
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