BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: AB 237
SENATOR ALAN LOWENTHAL, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: carter
VERSION: 4/23/09
Analysis by: Carrie Cornwell FISCAL: yes
Hearing date: June 9, 2009
SUBJECT:
Inspection of loads: metal products
DESCRIPTION:
This bill allows a police officer, sheriff, or sheriff's deputy
to stop, inspect, and take custody of the load of a vehicle
transporting timber, livestock, poultry, farm produce, crude
oil, petroleum products, metal products, or inedible kitchen
grease.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law authorizes the California Highway Patrol (CHP)
officer to stop any vehicle that is transporting timber,
livestock, poultry, farm produce, crude oil, petroleum products,
or inedible kitchen grease and to inspect the bill of lading,
delivery papers, or other evidence to determine whether the
driver is legally in possession of the load. If the officer
reasonably believes that the driver is not in legal possession
of the load, then the CHP officer must take custody of the
vehicle and its load and turn them over to the sheriff of the
county in which the officer made the stop.
Existing law charges the sheriff with receiving and safekeeping
of the apprehended timber, livestock, poultry, farm produce,
crude oil, petroleum products, metal products, or inedible
kitchen grease and with immediately proceeding with an
investigation in cooperation with the CHP.
The bill :
1.Adds metal products to this list of types of loads for which a
AB 237 (CARTER) Page 2
CHP officer may stop, inspect, and take custody of the vehicle
if the officer reasonably believes that the driver is not in
legal possession of the load.
2.Authorizes a member of a county sheriff's office or a member
of a city police department, in addition to a member of the
CHP, to stop, inspect, and take custody of these loads.
3.Requires that when the city policy department makes the
initial stop, then the sheriff must cooperate with the police
department in the resulting investigation.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose . The author introduced this bill at the request of the
Sheriff of San Bernardino County to address the growing
prevalence of metal thefts from large construction sites,
public utility yards, farms, ranches, schools, and other
locations. She believes the bill will aid law enforcement in
curtailing the metal thefts by allowing law enforcement to
inspect vehicles carrying loads of metal in the furtherance of
their investigations. Metal theft is growing because of the
rise in scrap metal prices. This bill expands the statutory
authority to inspect loads for theft without a warrant or
probable cause to a member of the county sheriff's office and
a city police department.
2.Arguments in opposition . Opponents contend that this bill
will give law enforcement a license to stop anyone at any time
who is hauling an exposed piece of metal, which they contend
raises a very significant probable cause issue as to whether
the simple hauling of metal gives rise to the presumption that
a theft has occurred. Opponents further argue that the bill is
vague as to what proof a driver may provide to law enforcement
to assure the officer that the load is legally in the driver's
possession and thus avoid impoundment of the load.
3.Existing policy . While this bill empowers local law
enforcement authorities to make stops and inspections and adds
metal to the loads, it does not change the existing state
policy that allows peace officers, currently limited to CHP
officers, to stop and inspect loads being hauled on public
highways to ensure that those loads are not stolen goods. In
addition, existing law provides that shipping papers, such as
a bill of lading, are sufficient evidence that the driver is
in legal possession of the load. CHP reports that it is rare
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for a stop to result in taking a load into custody and that
drivers with legal loads are very typically in possession of
shipping papers necessary to satisfy an officer.
4.CHP Amendment Request . CHP is neutral on this bill, but has
requested that in addition to "metal products" the bill also
add "metal alloy products" to the types of loads that may be
stopped and inspected. CHP asserts that the term metal
products is too limiting for the type of thefts that are
occurring. The committee or the author may wish to amend the
bill to add metal alloy products to the list of types of loads
that an officer may stop and inspect.
Assembly Votes:
Floor: 73 - 0
Appr: 16 - 0
Pub S: 7 - 0
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the Committee before noon on
Wednesday,
June 3, 2009)
SUPPORT: San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department
(sponsor)
Alameda County Sheriff
Amador County Sheriff
Butte County Sheriff
California Farm Bureau Federation
California State Association of Counties
California State Sheriffs' Association
Contra Costa County Sheriff
City of Costa Mesa
Del Norte County Sheriff
El Dorado County Sheriff
Harbor Association of Industry and Commerce
League of California Cities
Mariposa County Sheriff
Shasta County Sheriff
Tuolumne County Undersheriff
Ventura County Sheriff
Yolo County Sheriff
OPPOSED: Institute of Scrap Recycling, California Chapters
SA Recycling