BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION AND HOUSING Senator Jim Beall, Chair 2015 - 2016 Regular Bill No: SB 491 Hearing Date: 4/28/2015 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Author: |Committee on Transportation and Housing | |----------+------------------------------------------------------| |Version: |4/22/2015 | ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes | ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Consultant|Alison Dinmore | |: | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- SUBJECT: Transportation: omnibus bill DIGEST: This bill makes non-controversial changes to sections of law relating to transportation. ANALYSIS: Existing law: According to the Legislative Analyst's Office, the cost of producing a bill in 2001-2002 was $17,890. By combining multiple matters into one bill, the Legislature can make minor changes to law in the most cost-effective manner. Proposals included in this transportation omnibus bill must abide by the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee policy on omnibus committee bills. The proponent of an item submits proposed language and provides background materials to the committee for the item to be described to legislative staff and stakeholders. Committee staff provides a summary of the items and the proposed statutory changes to all majority and minority consultants in both the Senate and Assembly, as well as all known or presumed interested parties. If an item encounters any opposition and the proponent cannot work out a solution with the opposition, the item is omitted from or amended out of the bill. Proposals in the bill must reflect a consensus and be without opposition from legislative members, agencies, and other stakeholders. SB 491 (Committee on Transportation and Housing) Page 2 of ? This bill makes non-controversial changes to sections of law relating to transportation. Specifically, the bill includes the following provisions. The proponent of each provision is noted in brackets. 1) California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) project delivery reports (Section 1). Senate Bill (SB) 486 (2014) was a transparency bill that sought to provide greater visibility of Caltrans operations by requiring more reporting of capital and support budgets for the State Highway Operation and Protection Program (SHOPP). Caltrans' amendments were taken incorrectly and the bill mistakenly required Caltrans to report the projected delivery date of the construction phase of a project. It is not feasible for Caltrans to report on the projected delivery date of the construction phase of a SHOPP project because this date is controlled by a contractor, not Caltrans. This requirement would not provide a reflection or improvement of Caltrans' operations. This bill removes the requirement for the department to report the delivery date of the construction phase of a project. [Submitted by the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee] 2) State Transportation Improvement Plan (Sections 2, 5, and 6). State law contains an outdated title for the Federal Statewide Transportation Improvement Program and an incorrect reference to federal law relating to that program. It also provides insufficient time for the state to incorporate into the State Transportation Improvement Plan and SHOPP all projects approved by the California Transportation Commission. This bill ensures that state statute is in conformity with federal statute and allows adequate time to incorporate these changes into state plans. [Submitted by the California Department of Transportation] 3) Public meetings to adopt project-selection criteria (Section 3). The Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) administers the $4 vehicle registration surcharge for projects that reduce vehicle emissions. The California Health and Safety Code (HSC) Section 44241(d) requires the BAAQMD to return 40% of the revenues to the county in which the revenues are collected for allocation by a "program manager." Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) serves as the program manager for these funds in SB 491 (Committee on Transportation and Housing) Page 3 of ? Santa Clara County. HSC Section 44231(f) requires the program manager to hold one or more public meetings at least once a year for the purpose of: 1) adopting criteria for expenditure of the funds, and 2) reviewing the projects to be funded. VTA feels it is not necessary to hold public hearings and adopt the same criteria again, year after year, if the criteria for project selection has not changed. This bill provides that hearings on project selection criteria are only required if the criteria have changed. [Submitted by Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA)] 4) California State Transportation Agency reference (Section 4). Existing law, effective July 1, 2013, replaces the Business, Transportation, and Housing Agency with the California State Transportation Agency and the California Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency. This bill replaces an outdated reference to the Secretary of the Business, Transportation, and Housing Agency with a reference to the Secretary of Transportation. [Submitted by the Assembly Transportation and Housing Committee] 5) Highway relinquishments (Section 7, 8). This bill deletes state highway route segment descriptions from the code given that the highway segments have been relinquished by the California Transportation Commission to local jurisdictions. [Submitted by the Office of Assemblymember Ridley-Thomas] 6) Separated bikeways (Section 9). Caltrans worked extensively with the author and sponsor of Assembly Bill (AB) 1193 to shape the bill into something that technically worked well for both Caltrans and local governments. One of the technical amendments that Caltrans proposed was to change the word "protected" in the definition of cycle tracks to "separated" in Streets and Highways Code Section 890.4(d). While this change was accepted by the author's office, the sponsor (California Bicycle Coalition), the League of California Cities, the California State Association of Counties, and the Consumer Attorneys of California, it did not make it fully into the bill. This bill changes the word "protected" to "separated" in the Streets and Highway Code. [Submitted by the California Department of Transportation] SB 491 (Committee on Transportation and Housing) Page 4 of ? 7) Driver license suspensions (Section 10). Vehicle Code Section1808(c) requires the DMV to make available or disclose suspensions and revocations of the driving privilege while the suspension or revocation is in effect, and for three years following termination of the action or reinstatement of the privilege. Driver license suspension actions taken pursuant to Welfare and Institutions (WI) Code Sections13202.6 and 13202.7, 256, or 11350.6 shall be disclosed only during the actual time period in which the suspension is in effect. WI Code Section 11350.6 requires the DMV to suspend the driver license of an individual who has failed to pay their required child support. In 1999, WI Section 11350.6 was repealed and renumbered to Family Code Section 17520. This bill adds the appropriate reference to the Family Code. References to the repealed WI sections should remain in Vehicle Code Section 1808, as some drivers suspended in the past will continue to show the repealed WI section as a conviction on their driver license record. Additionally, it is possible for a driver to continue to be suspended under WI Code Section 11350.6 because they did not reinstate their license for any number of reasons, including incarceration. It is necessary for the DMV to track and disclose both sections. [Submitted by the Department of Motor Vehicles] 8) DMV Employer Pull Notice program (Section 11). The Employer Pull Notice (EPN) program was established to provide employers and regulatory agencies with a means to ensure driver safety through the ongoing review of driver records. As a result of a drafting error contained in AB 1047 (Linder, Chapter 649, Statutes of 2013), drivers of buses with a gross vehicle weight rating of 26,000 pounds or less were excluded from Vehicle Code Section 1808.1(k), and therefore no longer required to be enrolled in the EPN program. AB 1047 was intended to bring California's commercial driver license program into compliance with Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulations to ensure that California can continue to operate its Commercial Driver License program, receive federal highway funds, and be eligible for federal safety grants. This bill clarifies that any driver license endorsement issued pursuant to Vehicle Code Section 15278 is required to be enrolled in the Department of Motor Vehicles Employer Pull Notice program. [Submitted by the California Highway Patrol] SB 491 (Committee on Transportation and Housing) Page 5 of ? 9) Administrative hearings for suspension or revocation (Section 12). Vehicle Code Section 13557 specifies the DMV's authority and requirements for administrative hearings for drivers whose privileges are suspended or revoked for driving under the influence and other offenses. Vehicle Code Section 13558 authorizes any person who has received a suspension or revocation notice for specified offenses, including driving under the influence offenders, to request an administrative hearing within 10 days of receipt of the notice of suspension or revocation. The 2011 maintenance of the codes bill (AB 1023, Wagner, Chapter 296, Statutes of 2011) made technical changes to Vehicle Code Section 13557, which included the renumbering of Vehicle Code Section 13357(b)(2) to Vehicle Code Section 13557(b)(3). However, the bill did not make necessary conforming changes to Vehicle Code Section 13558 to provide the new paragraph reference. This bill corrects the code section reference error in Vehicle Code Section 13558, which incorrectly refers to Vehicle Code Section 13357(b)(2), when it should refer to Vehicle Code Section 13557(b)(3). [Submitted by the Department of Motor Vehicles] 10) Low-Cost Auto Insurance (LCAI) program extension (Sections 13 and 14). Vehicle Code Sections 16020.1 and 16020.2, beginning January 1, 2016, create an exemption for drivers in the county of Los Angeles and the city and county of San Francisco from providing proof of financial responsibility as part of the vehicle registration renewal process or to law enforcement. These sections were developed as part of a conference committee compromise during the establishment of the Department of Insurance's LCAI program (SB 171, Escutia, Chapter 794, Statutes of 1999 and SB 527, Speier, Chapter 807, Statutes of 1999). The operative date of Vehicle Code Sections 16020.1 and 16020.2 is the same as the sunset date of the LCAI program. Generally, the operative date of these sections is extended along with the sunset date of the LCAI program. However, due to an oversight, the operative date of the exemptions was not extended along with the sunset date during the last legislative session (SB 1273, Lara, Chapter 487, Statutes of 2014). Failure to extend this date means that unlike the rest of Californians, drivers in the county SB 491 (Committee on Transportation and Housing) Page 6 of ? of Los Angeles and the city and county of San Francisco will not have to show proof of insurance to register their vehicles or to law enforcement entities, beginning next year. This bill rectifies the oversight of SB 1273 and prevents any operational issues for DMV by extending the operative dates of Vehicle Code Sections 16020.1 and 16020.2 from January 1, 2016 to January 1, 2020. [Submitted by the Department of Motor Vehicles] 11) Federal conformity (Sections 15-22, 24, 25). The state of California was audited by members of the United States Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) unit. The purpose of this audit was to review California's Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program (MCSAP) for compliance with federal mandates. During their audit, the FMCSA identified specific sections of the Vehicle Code as lacking consistency or compatibility with existing federal regulations and recommended these sections be considered for revision to gain uniformity with federal statute. This bill brings California's statutes in line with those required federally in Title 49 of the United States Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). [Submitted by the California Highway Patrol] 12) Earbud use (Section 23). Statute prohibits wearing of headsets or earplugs while operating a motor vehicle or bicycle, with specified exceptions such as emergency responders or hearing aid wearers. Statute does not explicitly prohibit wearing of earbuds, such as those used with a smartphone or iPod. This bill explicitly prohibits earbud use while operating a motor vehicle or bicycle. [Submitted by the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee] COMMENTS: 1) Purpose of this bill. The purpose of omnibus bills is to include technical and non-controversial changes to various committee-related statutes into one bill. This allows the legislature to make multiple, minor changes to statutes in one bill in a cost-effective manner. The SB 491 (Committee on Transportation and Housing) Page 7 of ? Senate Committee on Transportation and Housing insists that its transportation omnibus bill be a consensus measure. If there is no consensus on a particular item, it cannot be included. There is no known opposition to any item in this bill. FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes Local: Yes POSITIONS: (Communicated to the committee before noon on Wednesday, April 22, 2015.) SUPPORT: None received OPPOSITION: None received -- END --