BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON ENERGY, UTILITIES AND COMMUNICATIONS
Senator Ben Hueso, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: SB 697 Hearing Date: 4/21/2015
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|Author: |Hertzberg |
|-----------+-----------------------------------------------------|
|Version: |4/9/2015 As Amended |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------
|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|Consultant:|Nidia Bautista |
| | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
SUBJECT: Charter-party carriers of passengers
DIGEST: This bill would repeal the requirement of the
California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to issue a decal
to charter-party carriers of passengers.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1. Authorizes the CPUC to regulate various transportation
services, including charter-party carriers of passengers,
defined as persons engaged in the transportation of persons
by motor vehicle for compensation on a prearranged basis
over any public highway in the state, except for taxi cabs
which are regulated by local agencies. (Public Utilities
Code, Chapter 8 §§§5351, 5360, 5353)
2. Requires a charter-party carrier to obtain from the CPUC
a permit or certificate to operate which establishes that
the person or corporation is financially and
organizationally capable to conduct the transportation
service, including complying with all applicable laws and
regulations. (Public Utilities Code §§ 5371 & 5374)
3. Requires a charter-party carrier to display a
distinctive identifying symbol, in the form prescribed by
the CPUC, showing the classification to which the carrier
belongs. (Public Utilities Code §5385)
4. Requires the CPUC to issue specified decals for
SB 697 (Hertzberg) Page 2 of ?
charter-party carrier vehicles designed to carry not more
than eight passengers, including the driver, and who have a
valid permit or certificate from the CPUC. The decal shall
be a minimum size of two and half inches by six inches and
affixed to the lower right hand corner of the rear bumper.
(Public Utilities Code §5385.5)
This bill repeals the provision of the law requiring the CPUC to
issue specified decals for charter party carrier vehicles
designed to carry not more than eight passengers, including the
driver.
Background
Senate Bill 611 (Hill, Chapter 860, Statutes of 2014) addresses
safety issues related to modified limousines. Among its
provisions, the bill repealed sections of the Public Utilities
Code that provided for special "livery" license plates issued by
the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), which were used in lieu
of requiring decals on these vehicles. (Public Utilities Code
§5385.6 (d) noted that the "special license plate shall be in
lieu of the decal required to be issued and displayed pursuant
to §5385.5.") As a result, the requirement to issue decals is
now effective for limousines serving eight or less passengers,
vehicles that must be registered with the CPUC. However, the
CPUC is not producing these decals, nor has it issued these
decals in two decades.
For the time being, the CPUC has issued a "Temporary
Acknowledgement of Vehicle Added Letter" to be kept in the
permitted vehicle at all times. The agency has informed these
vehicle owners/operators that the decals are not currently in
production, but will be issued to the drivers once in
production.
The CPUC already requires charter-party carriers to display a
distinctive identifying symbol prescribed by the CPUC based on
classification. Examples of these symbols include:
Transportation Charter Party (TCP) identification number along
the bumper of limousine vehicles, or identifying symbols as
filed by each Transportation Network Company (TNC), such as Uber
or Lyft.
Comments
SB 697 (Hertzberg) Page 3 of ?
For the 2015-16 proposed budget, the CPUC has requested a budget
change proposal for $227,000 to hire three staff within the
transportation division who would among other tasks work on
decals. It's unclear if the CPUC would still anticipates any
work related to decals should this bill becomes law.
Prior/Related Legislation
SB 611 (Hill, Chapter 860, Statutes of 2014) addresses safety
issues related to modified limousines, including requiring the
California Highway Patrol (CHP) to develop and implement an
inspection program for these vehicles. The bill also repealed
provisions in law that required charter-party carriers to obtain
special "livery" license plates issued by the DMV, which were in
lieu of the requirements to affix a decal as noted above.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.: Yes Local: No
SUPPORT:
California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) (Sponsor)
Greater California Livery Association
OPPOSITION:
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: The CPUC, the sponsor of the bill,
suggest this is a simple cleanup of the code to capture the
intent of the changes in SB 611 (Hill, 2014). They argue that
when SB 611was being considered last year there was widespread
belief amongst the parties that the "decal" required in Public
Utilities Code §5385.5 was synonymous with the distinctive
identifying symbols, specifically the Transportation Charter
Party (TCP) identification, prescribed by Public Utilities Code
§5385.
The CPUC also notes it has not issued "decals" in twenty years
and the agency lacks the resources to process the many thousands
of decals that would be needed. The CPUC's preferred approach is
to delete the section in law requiring the issuance of decals.
Instead they hope to avoid directing resources towards an
activity that wasn't intended and is not needed since the
SB 697 (Hertzberg) Page 4 of ?
charter-party carriers already have a requirement to have a
distinctive identification symbol on their vehicles.
-- END --