BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: AB 1336
SENATOR ALAN LOWENTHAL, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: Eng
VERSION: 5/4/09
Analysis by: Mark Stivers FISCAL: No
Hearing date: June 16, 2009
SUBJECT:
Photographic enforcement of street sweeping parking violations
DESCRIPTION:
This bill allows a local public agency to issue parking
citations for violation of street sweeping parking restrictions
based on digital images collected by an automated parking
enforcement system installed on street sweepers.
ANALYSIS:
Current state law establishes various parking offenses and
provides local governments with limited ability to adopt local
ordinances establishing additional parking offenses. Parking
offenses are civil rather than criminal violations, subject only
to a civil penalty.
A parking citation must include the violation, the date and
time, the location, the penalty payment due date, and the
procedure for the owner to pay the penalty or contest the
citation. The citation must also include the license number and
registration expiration date, the last four digits of the
vehicle identification number, and the color and make of the
vehicle cited.
If a person wishes to contest a parking citation, he or she may
request a free initial review by the issuing agency (the city or
county police or parking enforcement department) within 21 days.
If the issuing agency is satisfied that the violation did not
occur, that the registered owner was not responsible for the
violation, or that extenuating circumstances make dismissal of
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the citation appropriate in the interest of justice, the issuing
agency cancels the citation.
If the person is dissatisfied with the results of the initial
review, he or she may request an administrative hearing with the
citation processing agency (which may be the same as the issuing
agency or may be a public or private contractor) within 21 days
following the mailing of the results of the initial review.
Along with the request, the person must deposit the amount of
the penalty with the processing agency unless he or she can
demonstrate an inability to pay. The hearing must be conducted
by a qualified examiner and provide an independent, objective,
fair, and impartial review of the contested parking violation.
The officer or person who issued the citation is not required to
participate in the hearing, and the ticket itself is prima facie
evidence of the violation. Ultimately, a person may contest a
negative hearing decision in superior court.
Current law enacted in 2007 by AB 101 (Ma), Chapter 377, also
allows San Francisco until January 1, 2012 to issue citations
for violations of transit-only traffic lane parking restrictions
based on video images collected from cameras installed on
city-owned public transit vehicles.
This bill allows a local public agency to issue parking
citations for violation of street sweeping parking restrictions
based on digital images collected by an automated parking
enforcement system installed on street sweepers. Specifically,
the bill:
Defines a local public agency as a city, county, city and
county, district, or joint powers authority.
Requires that the automated parking enforcement system take
digital camera-based photographs and be linked with a
violation detection system that synchronizes the photograph
with the occurrence of a parking violation.
Allows a local public agency to install an automated parking
enforcement system on agency-owned or operated street sweepers
for the purpose of taking digital images of parking violations
in street sweeping lanes.
Provides that only a local public agency may operate an
automated parking enforcement system.
Requires cameras to be angled and focused in a way that
captures images of the vehicles' license plates without
unnecessarily capturing images of drivers, pedestrians, or
other vehicles.
AB 1336 (ENG) Page 3
Requires the local public agency to issue a public
announcement 30 days prior to issuing citations and to issue
only warnings during the 30-day period.
Requires a designated city employee who is qualified to issue
parking citations to review the images and determine if a
violation of parking restrictions has occurred.
Allows for citations to be issued only for violations captured
during the hours of the street sweeping parking restrictions,
except that the agency may not issue citations based on
photographic images for violations that occur after the street
has been swept.
Requires the local public agency to issue a citation within 15
days of the violation.
Requires the citation to state the parking violation and
include the date, time, and location of the violation, the
license plate number, the registration expiration date if
visible, the color of the vehicle, the make of the vehicle if
possible, the payment due date, the process for reviewing the
photographic evidence, and the process of paying or contesting
the citation.
Requires the local public agency to serve the citation by mail
to the registered owner's last known address listed with the
Department of Motor Vehicles and to maintain proof of mailing.
Allows the person who was the registered owner of the vehicle
at the time of the violation to review the digital images of
the alleged violation on the internet or during normal
business hours at no cost.
Requires the local public agency, consistent with current law,
to cancel a citation if it determines that, in the interest of
justice, the citation should be canceled.
Allows an owner, consistent with current law, to request an
initial review, to request an administrative hearing, and
ultimately, to contest the citation in court.
Allows the local public agency, consistent with current law,
to contract with a private vendor for processing citations and
notice of delinquent violation, provided that the agency
maintains overall control of supervision of the automated
parking enforcement system.
Provides that there shall be no late fees or penalty increases
if the vehicle owner makes payment or contests the violation
within 21 days of the mailing of the citation or 14 days of
the mailing of a notice of delinquent parking violation.
Provides that the photographic images collected by an
automated enforcement system are confidential and may only be
accessed and used for the purposed of this program.
AB 1336 (ENG) Page 4
Requires the local public agency to destroy all photographic
images that do not involve violations within 15 days and all
images that do involve violations within six months or 60 days
after final disposition of the citation, whichever occurs
later.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose of the bill . According to the author, street sweepers
provide significant environmental and public health benefits
to the community by cleaning the streets of pollutants, trash,
and debris. Each vehicle parked in violation of street
sweeping restrictions prevents as many as three parking spaces
from being cleaned, significantly increasing the quantity of
debris, grease, oil, and other pollutants needlessly being
washed into the storm drains and greatly increasing costs, as
the cost of removing these contaminants from storm water
before it runs into rivers and bays is much greater than
sweeping them from the street. As a result, by increasing
enforcement of street sweeping parking restrictions, this bill
provides for a cleaner environment at much less cost.
2.Increases revenue too . Allowing local public agencies to
issue tickets from an office based on photographic evidence
will cost much less than employing parking control officers to
patrol city streets. The revenue generated per ticket,
however, remains the same. As a result, any city or county
that chooses to implement this authority is likely to see a
significant increase in revenue based both on the increased
number of tickets issued and the increased margin per ticket.
3.Modeled on AB 101 . AB 101 (Ma) of 2007 allows San Francisco
until January 1, 2012 to issue citations for violations of
transit-only traffic lane parking restrictions based on video
images collected from cameras installed on city-owned public
transit. AB 101 includes a number of procedural and privacy
protections for vehicle owners and the general public. The
language of this bill is almost identical to that of AB 101.
The real differences are that this bill applies statewide, as
opposed to a single jurisdiction, and does not sunset.
4.Other experiences . Chicago and Washington, D.C. already
utilize the automated street sweeper system, known as
SweeperCam, on their street sweepers. The system uses
photo-light sensing, character recognition, and global
positioning system (GPS) technology to spot parking violators
AB 1336 (ENG) Page 5
and fix their locations. The City of Chicago approved an
ordinance in 2008 and began using the system on a limited
number of street sweepers. Washington, D.C. is using the
automated technology on two street sweepers on a trial basis
and intends to expand implementation later this year.
5.Double referral . The Senate Rules Committee has referred this
bill both to this committee and the Judiciary Committee.
6.Technical amendments :
On page 4, line 15 strike "utilize" and insert "install
and operate"
On page 4, lines 16-17 strike "that includes the
installation of equipment"
On page 4, strike line 40, on page 5, strike lines 1-3
and insert "shall make a public announcement of the
automated parking enforcement system at least 30 days prior
to the commencement of issuing notices of parking violation
and shall only issue warning notices during this 30-day
period."
Make conforming amendments to Vehicle Code Section 40207
Assembly Votes:
Floor: 44-24
Trans: 10-3
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the Committee before noon on
Wednesday,
June 10, 2009)
SUPPORT: California Public Parking Association (sponsor)
City and County of San Francisco
City of Lakewood
City of San Diego
League of California Cities
OPPOSED: None received.