BILL ANALYSIS Ó SB 541 Page 1 Date of Hearing: August 19, 2015 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Jimmy Gomez, Chair SB 541 (Hill) - As Amended August 17, 2015 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Policy |Utilities and Commerce |Vote:|14 - 0 | |Committee: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------| | |Public Safety | |7 - 0 | | | | | | | | | | | |-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No SUMMARY: This bill codifies the State Auditor recommendations to strengthen the Public Utilities Commission's (PUC) oversight of transportation-related activities. This bill allows peace officers to impound buses and limousines of specified companies SB 541 Page 2 that carry passengers when they lack the required permits or licensing. Specifically, this bill: 1)Directs the PUC to coordinate enforcement with peace officers, as specified. 2)Authorizes the Attorney General, a district attorney, or a city attorney to prosecute actions or proceedings for the violation of any law committed in connection with a transaction involving the transportation of household goods and personal effects. 3)Requires the PUC to establish the specified goals related to its existing authority to provide oversight and regulation of transportation-related activities of household goods carriers and Charter Party Carriers (CPC), and Passenger Stage Corporations (PSC): 4)Requires the PUC to assess its capabilities to carry out the activities, specified in the goals, and submit a report to the Legislature by January 1, 2017, with an analysis of current capabilities and deficiencies, and recommendations to overcome any deficiencies identified. 5)Allows peace office to impound a bus or limousine of a CPC or PSC for 30 days if the officer determines that specified violations occurred while the driver was operating the vehicle of the charter-party carrier: 6)Clarifies that impoundment provisions do not apply to privately owned, personal vehicles, or to charter-party SB 541 Page 3 carriers that are not required to carry individual permits. FISCAL EFFECT: Increased one-time costs of approximately $250,000 for the PUC to assess the transportation program and submit an evaluation report to the Legislature. COMMENTS: 1)Purpose. According to the author, this bill improves the functions of the Transportation Enforcement Branch (the Branch) at the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to improve customer service and enforcement against illegally operating charter-party carriers, passenger stage corporations, and moving companies. 2)Background. In June 2014, the California State Auditor released a report examining the Branch within the Safety and Enforcement Division, efforts to regulate passenger carriers, as well as its use of fees collected from carriers. The report found that the Branch did not provide sufficient oversight of CPCs and PSCs to ensure consumer safety. The report made a number of recommendations to address problems SB 541 Page 4 identified by the Auditor. This bill codifies these recommendations by requiring the PUC to establish specific goals and assess its capabilities to achieve such goals, and submit a report to the Legislature with an analysis of current capabilities and deficiencies, and recommendations to overcome any deficiencies identified. To improve enforcement of the Branch, this bill authorizes peace officers to help in the enforcement of transportation-related services. The PUC would coordinate efforts with peace officers through educational outreach and establishing lines of communication. 3)Passenger Transportation. California law regulates different modes of passenger transportation for compensation, including taxi services, which are regulated by cities and/or counties, as well as CPCs and PSCs, which are regulated by the PUC. The division within the CPUC responsible to ensure that services are delivered in a safe and reliable manner is the Safety and Enforcement Division. The division is responsible for safety oversight in specific industries, including electric, natural gas, and telecommunications infrastructure; railroads, rail crossings, and light rail transit system; passenger carriers, ferries; and household goods carriers. The Division is funded through a fee assessed on various types of state-regulated vehicles, including passenger carriers. The PUC collects these fees from operators and deposits them in the Transportation Reimbursement Account. The PUC has set the fee for passenger carriers that seat no more than 15 persons at 1/3 of 1 percent of their annual gross revenue, plus a $10 quarterly fee or a $25 annual fee. The PUC is allowed to maintain an appropriate reserve in the account based on past and projected operating experiences. SB 541 Page 5 Analysis Prepared by:Jennifer Galehouse / APPR. / (916) 319-2081