BILL ANALYSIS
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 882
Author: Fuller (R)
Amended: 5/4/09 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE : 9-0, 7/7/09
AYES: Lowenthal, Huff, Ashburn, DeSaulnier, Harman,
Hollingsworth, Pavley, Simitian, Wolk
NO VOTE RECORDED: Kehoe, Oropeza
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 78-0, 5/26/09 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Accident victim memorial signs
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill allows the Department of
Transportation to erect up to 20 signs per year in memory
of non-driving-under-the-influence accident victims to read
Please Drive Safely In Memory of (victim's name)."
ANALYSIS : Current law establishes the "Please Don't
Drink and Drive" Victims Memorial Sign Program, which
allows the Department of Transportation (Caltrans), when
requested or agreed to and paid for by an immediate family
member of a driving-under-the-influence (DUI) accident
victim, to place signs along state highways in close
proximity to the accident site commemorating the victim and
CONTINUED
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reminding motorists not to drink and drive. The signs
read, "Please Don't Drink and Drive - In Memory of
(victim's name)."
The program applies to accidents in which the at-fault
driver was convicted of second-degree murder, gross
vehicular manslaughter, or vehicular manslaughter while
driving under the influence or in which the at-fault driver
was driving under the influence but died in the accident or
was not prosecuted due to mental incompetence. Any victim
involved in an accident after January 1, 1991 may be
memorialized, except for the intoxicated driver him- or
herself. An immediate family member or any other person
who obtains the consent of an immediate family member may
request a sign. If there is any opposition to the sign by
an immediate family member, however, no sign shall be
placed. Caltrans is required to charge the requesting
party a fee to cover the cost of the sign and the program.
The fee is currently $1000. The signs remain in place for
seven years or until the sign is no longer serviceable,
whichever comes first. Caltrans is also required to adopt
guidelines for the program and to place signs in accordance
with its general sign placement guidelines and with
applicable federal limitations. During the first four
years of the program (2002-2006), Caltrans erected 29 DUI
victim memorial signs. There are roughly 60 of these signs
in place now statewide.
This bill allows Caltrans to erect up to 20 signs per year
in memory of non-DUI accident victims to read "Please Drive
Safely - In Memory of (victim's name)." A sign may
memorialize any victim involved in an accident after
January 1, 1991, provided that the accident did not involve
drugs or alcohol. An immediate family member or any other
person who obtains the consent of an immediate family
member may request a sign. If there is any opposition to
the sign by an immediate family member, however, no sign
shall be placed. Caltrans is required to charge the
requesting party a fee to cover the cost of the sign and
the program. The signs remain in place for seven years or
until the sign is no longer serviceable, whichever comes
first. Caltrans is also required to adopt guidelines for
the program and to place signs in accordance with its
general sign placement guidelines and with applicable
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federal limitations.
Background
Similar in concept to existing programs . This bill builds
on and uses the framework of the existing DUI victim
memorial sign program established in 2002. In report to
the Legislature on the DUI victim memorial sign program
submitted in 2006, Caltrans wrote that the number of
alcohol-related fatalities in the 16 counties in which
signs had been erected decreased from 789 in the three-year
period prior to the program to 710 during for the
three-year period after the program began, but that it
could not be ascertained if the drop was related to the
memorial sign program. Caltrans also noted that it had not
observed a reduction in makeshift memorials. Despites
such findings, Caltrans endorsed the permanent extension of
the DUI victim memorial sign program, citing benefits to
victims' families, local communities, and the state for
very little cost and effort. It should also be noted that
this new, non-DUI victim memorial program would be similar
to the current practice of naming highway segments for
deceased individuals of note.
Different in practice to existing programs . While similar
in concept to the DUI victim sign program and the practice
of highway naming, this program will differ in significant
ways. First is potential volume. The DUI victim sign
program has very narrow qualifying criteria, and highway
namings require passage of a resolution by the Legislature.
For this program, the only criteria are that the person
died in a non-DUI accident and that the family members pay
for the costs of the sign and program. Hundreds, if not
thousands, of persons are killed on California highways
each year, which could result in a flood of applications
for memorial signs, creating significant workload for
Caltrans and adding to driver distraction. In the Assembly
Transportation Committee, the author accepted an amendment
suggested by the committee chair to limit the number of new
non-DUI victim signs statewide to no more than 20 per year.
While this amendment addressed the volume concern, it
raises new issues related to process. Caltrans administers
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the existing DUI victim sign through its twelve districts.
In order to monitor the number of applications and maintain
the limit under this new program, Caltrans will have to
centralize operations at headquarters or at least establish
new procedures for coordination across districts. In
addition, Caltrans will probably have to require applicants
to raise the funds prior to submitting an application, date
stamp every request, and then, if the 20-sign limit has
been reached, hold on to applications and the collected
funds until the next year. These differences may increase
the cost of the Please Drive Safely signs above the $1000
Caltrans currently charges for a DUI victim sign.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 7/22/09)
ABATE of California
AAA Northern California
Automobile Club of Southern California
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the authors office
fatal accident sites on state highways often become
unofficial memorials to their victims. Grieving family
members often create memorials that include flowers,
balloons, and stuffed animals. Caltrans, however, quickly
removes these displays because it is unlawful to place such
items along a highway. The author's office believes that
memorial signs can both help families of victims through
the grieving process and provide a legal manner in which to
memorialize a lost loved one. In addition, the signs help
bring home the point to all drivers that unsafe driving can
be deadly.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Arambula, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Tom Berryhill, Blakeslee, Block, Blumenfield,
Brownley, Buchanan, Caballero, Charles Calderon, Carter,
Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon,
DeVore, Duvall, Emmerson, Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fletcher,
Fong, Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani, Gaines, Galgiani,
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Garrick, Gilmore, Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi,
Hernandez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jones, Knight, Lieu,
Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Miller, Monning,
Nava, Nestande, Niello, Nielsen, John A. Perez, V. Manuel
Perez, Portantino, Price, Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Silva,
Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Audra Strickland, Swanson,
Torlakson, Torres, Torrico, Tran, Villines, Yamada, Bass
NO VOTE RECORDED: Jeffries, Krekorian
JJA:do 7/22/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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