BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1135
Page A
Date of Hearing: April 20, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION
Mike Eng, Chair
AB 1135 (Skinner) - As Amended: April 13, 2009
SUBJECT : Odometer readings
SUMMARY : Requires vehicle owners to record their odometer
readings when applying for registration renewal. Specifically,
this bill :
1)Makes various findings and declarations regarding the
research, transportation planning and air quality benefits
that would accrue from having more accurate data available on
vehicle miles traveled (VMT).
2)Requires vehicle owners, at the time of application for
renewal of a vehicle registration, to report the current
odometer reading.
3)Provides that this information, except for the name and
address of the vehicle owner and the license plate number of
the vehicle, is public information.
4)Requires the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to group the
information into census blocks and create a database that can
sort the data by block group, census tract, city and county.
5)Requires the data to be made available on DMV's website on an
annual basis.
EXISTING LAW : Requires vehicle registration renewal applicants
to file an application and pay specified fees.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : The author is presenting this bill as a means of
assisting metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) to meet
their regional greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions targets under SB
375 (Steinberg) Chapter 728, Statutes of 2008. SB 375 requires
MPOs to include sustainable community strategies in their
regional transportation plans (RTPs) for the purpose of reducing
GHG emissions, aligns planning for transportation and housing,
and creates incentives for the implementation of these
AB 1135
Page B
strategies.
Supporters cite the fact that transportation accounts for nearly
40% of all California's GHG emissions, which will consequently
require significant reductions in VMT in order to meet state GHG
reduction mandates.
Current estimates of VMT are derived from models that rely on
sampled, extrapolated, and often outdated data. They may be
based on the volume of fuels that are sold, data retrieved from
loop detectors on freeways and other traffic counting
mechanisms, travel demand modeling, and odometer data recorded
at Smog Check inspections. VMT estimates derived through these
means can vary significantly from region to region and are
inherently less helpful at distinguishing between different
neighborhoods and measuring impacts from transit-oriented
development and land-use policies to reduce driving.
Supporters contend that "accurate VMT data will assist local and
regional decision-makers in better understanding the impact of
land use on driving patterns. As strategies like new transit
investments, transportation pricing, and focusing growth near
transit are undertaken this data will give us a measure of how
these changes impact driving. These data will enable us to make
more informed choices that can reduce inefficiencies, maximize
cost-effectiveness, and identify the most robust strategies to
reduce global warming pollution associated with transportation."
Although this bill contains what appears to be sufficient
safeguards to protect against inappropriate use of the gathered
information, privacy advocates and individual vehicle owners may
view the bill's requirement as posing an intrusion upon their
privacy rights or an unnecessary burden. Additionally, some may
perceive the bill as a precursor to a VMT tax, which has been
discussed as a more equitable and stable transportation
financing mechanism than the existing excise tax on motor
vehicle fuels.
Any concern about privacy issues would seem to be overblown as
this bill specifically precludes the dissemination of data
regarding individual vehicle owners. And any move to impose a
VMT tax would require separate legislation from this -
legislation that would certainly spark its own debate about
taxing policy and would necessarily be considered on its own
merits. Enacting this bill would not logically make the passage
AB 1135
Page C
of a VMT tax any easier than it would otherwise be.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
TransFORM California (sponsor)
American Lung Association of California
Bay Area Air Quality Management District
Breathe California
California Air Pollution Control Officers Association
CALPIRG
Chinatown Community Development Center
Conservation League of California Voters
EAH Housing
Ecocity Builders
Environmental Defense Fund
Friends of BRT
Metropolitan Transportation Commission
Natural Resources Defense Council
Planning and Conservation League
Sierra Club California
Opposition
None received
Analysis Prepared by : Howard Posner / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093