BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular Session
SB 882 (Hertzberg) - Crimes: public transportation: minors
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|Version: January 15, 2016 |Policy Vote: PUB. S. 5 - 1 |
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|Urgency: No |Mandate: No |
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|Hearing Date: April 25, 2016 |Consultant: Jolie Onodera |
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This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.
Bill
Summary: SB 882 would prohibit a minor from being charged with
an infraction or misdemeanor for evading a transit fare.
Fiscal
Impact:
Criminal fine/fee/surcharge revenues : Unknown, potentially
significant reduction in criminal penalty collections
statewide (General/Special/Local Funds) to the extent local
agencies continue to issue criminal citations in lieu of
levying administrative penalties upon minors as recently
authorized pursuant to SB 413 (Chapter 765/2015). The
magnitude of the impact on the state and local jurisdictions
would be dependent on various factors including but not
limited to the number of minors who would have been cited for
the offense, the number of counties imposing administrative
penalties in lieu of criminal fines, the level of enforcement
SB 882 (Hertzberg) Page 1 of
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by local entities, and the collection efforts in each
jurisdiction.
Public transportation agencies : Potentially significant
ongoing administrative penalty revenue losses (Local Funds) to
agencies that have enacted ordinances imposing administrative
penalties in lieu of criminal fines for fare evasion, to the
extent prohibiting the charging of a minor under the Penal
Code also precludes transit operators from imposing a penalty
that exceeds the fine amounts established in the Penal Code,
which could potentially be interpreted to be a fine amount of
$0 imposed on minors for fare evasion.
Criminal justice system : Potentially significant future cost
savings resulting from reduced involvement with the courts,
local law enforcement agencies including county probation
departments, and child welfare services.
Background: Existing law provides that a person who evades the payment of
a fare on a public transit system, including the misuse of a
transfer, pass, ticket, or token, or providing unacceptable
proof of payment upon request of a transit system
representative, is guilty of an offense subject to the following
penalties:
Upon a first or second violation, an infraction
punishable by a fine not to exceed $250 and by community
service for a total time not to exceed 48 hours over a
period not to exceed 30 days, during a time other than the
violator's hours of school attendance or employment.
A third or subsequent violation is a misdemeanor
punishable by a fine of not more than $400 or by
imprisonment in a county jail for a period of not more than
90 days, or by both that fine and imprisonment.
Under existing law pursuant to PC § 640(e), public
transportation agencies may enact and enforce an ordinance to
impose and enforce an administrative penalty for specified acts,
including the evasion of the payment of a fare of the system.
(PUC § 99580(a).)
In setting the amounts of administrative penalties for the
specified violations, including fare evasion, public
SB 882 (Hertzberg) Page 2 of
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transportation agencies are prohibited from establishing penalty
amounts that exceed the maximum fine amount set forth in PC §
640. (PUC § 99580(e).)
Prior to January 1, 2016, transportation agencies were
prohibited from imposing administrative penalties for transit
violations on minors, and instead were required to pursue
transit violations by minors through criminal charges if the
agency chose to pursue the matter. The provisions of SB 413
(Wieckowski) Chapter 765/2015, which became effective January 1,
2016, provided transportation agencies with the authority to
extend the enforcement and imposition of administrative
penalties for transit violations to include minors.
Related Legislation: AB 891 (Campos) 2016 would provide
students who are eligible for free or reduced-price meals with
free transportation to and from school, and would require each
local education agency to designate a liaison to address
transportation issues. This bill is pending on the Suspense File
of the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
Prior Legislation: SB 413 (Wieckowski) Chapter 765/2015 added
violations to the list of activities that are infractions
related to transit operators, as well as authorized transit
operators to levy administrative penalties against minors as
potential violators of all existing infractions.
AB 426 (Lowenthal) Chapter 100/2011 permits specified transit
authorities to create ordinances that allow a person cited for a
violation be afforded an opportunity to complete an
administrative process that imposes only a civil penalty.
Requires that penalties be deposited in the respective general
fund of the county in which the citation is administered.
SB 1749 (Migden) Chapter 258/2006 authorized certain transit
operators to enforce administrative penalties for transit
violations. While SB 1749 provided this administrative process
for adults, it specifically excluded minors from the
administrative penalty process.
Proposed Law:
This bill would prohibit a minor from being charged with an
infraction or misdemeanor for evading a transit fare.
SB 882 (Hertzberg) Page 3 of
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Staff
Comments: By prohibiting minors from being charged with an
infraction or misdemeanor offense for transit fare evasion, the
provisions of this bill will have a fiscal impact on various
local agencies and the courts.
To the extent local transit agencies would have issued criminal
citations in lieu of levying administrative penalties upon
minors, the provisions of this bill could result in a
significant reduction in fee, fine, and penalty revenues to the
state and counties. Statewide data on the number of criminal
fines assessed is unavailable, and the magnitude of the impact
on the state and local jurisdictions would be dependent on
various factors including but not limited to the number of
minors who would have been cited for the offense, the number of
counties imposing administrative penalties in lieu of criminal
fines, the level of enforcement by local entities, and the
collection efforts in each jurisdiction.
As drafted, it is unclear whether local transit operators would
retain the authority to levy a fiscal penalty on minors for fare
evasion. Although the provisions of PUC § 99580(a) allow a local
agency to enact an ordinance to impose and enforce an
administrative penalty for fare evasion, pursuant to PUC §
99580(e), transit agencies are prohibited from establishing
penalty amounts that exceed the maximum fine amount set forth in
the Penal Code, which could be interpreted to be a fine amount
of $0 imposed on minors for fare evasion. Such an interpretation
could result in unknown, but potentially significant reductions
in ongoing fiscal penalty revenues to local transit operators.
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