BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2620
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 2620 (Eng)
As Amended May 28, 2010
Majority vote
TRANSPORTATION 10-0 APPROPRIATIONS 12-5
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|Ayes:|Bonnie Lowenthal, Bill |Ayes:|Fuentes, Ammiano, |
| |Berryhill, Blumenfield, | |Bradford, |
| |Buchanan, Eng, Furutani, | |Charles Calderon, Coto, |
| |Galgiani, Hayashi, | |Davis, |
| |Niello, Solorio | |Monning, Ruskin, Skinner, |
| | | |Solorio, Torlakson, |
| | | |Torrico |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
| | |Nays:|Conway, Harkey, Miller, |
| | | |Nielsen, Norby |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Dedicates up to 15% of net toll revenues from future
toll facilities on the state highway system for specified
purposes. Specifically, this bill :
1)Make legislative findings and declarations regarding the
decreasing level of available funding for maintenance,
preservation, and rehabilitation of the state highway system
and the increasing needs in these areas.
2)Provides that up to 15% of net toll revenues, as defined,
generated by future toll facilities on the state highway
system are to be dedicated to funding projects in the State
Highway Operation and Protection Program (SHOPP) within the
corridor in which the revenues were generated.
3)Limits administrative costs for the toll facility to no more
than 3%.
4)Applies the bill's provisions to toll facilities authorized
after January 1, 2010; subjects toll facilities authorized
after this date to a cooperative agreement between the
Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and the public agency
that is developing the toll facility.
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5)Requires that the cooperative agreement must include a
determination of the appropriate percentage of net toll
revenues to be dedicated to projects in the SHOPP based on
factors including debt service and facility administration,
operations, and maintenance costs.
6)Prohibits toll revenues directed to the SHOPP from being
borrowed or otherwise diverted.
7)Authorizes Caltrans and the public agency developing the toll
facility to apply to the California Transportation Commission
(CTC) to direct the toll revenues to other projects on the
state highway system in the county, including capital projects
other than those in the SHOPP.
EXISTING LAW :
8)Authorizes various specific transportation agencies and/or
joint powers agencies to conduct value-pricing high-occupancy
toll lane programs in specific state highway system corridors.
9)Authorizes regional transportation agencies or Caltrans to
enter into public-private partnership agreements for
transportation projects, under specific conditions and until
January 2, 2017.
10)Authorizes Caltrans and other public agencies to enter into
agreements to develop toll facilities in order to increase the
construction of new capacity or improvements for the state
transportation system consistent with specified goals.
11)Requires Caltrans to prepare the SHOPP identifying major
capital improvements that are needed to preserve and protect
the state highway system; limits SHOPP projects to, among
other things, those projects that do not add capacity to the
system.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to Assembly Appropriations Committee,
requires an allocation of toll revenues from future toll
facilities for rehabilitation of the state highway on which a
toll facility is developed or another state highway within the
same county. Depending on the amount required to be set aside
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for this purpose, fulfilling this obligation would have an
undetermined impact on the toll charges.
COMMENTS: Regional transportation agencies are generally
responsible for making improvements within the urban areas of
the state highway system. Increasingly, these regional
transportation agencies are considering developing toll
facilities on the state highway system as a means of funding
transportation improvements in the corridor and in the region.
Several such toll facilities have already been authorized in
statute and others are being considered.
Despite the role of the regional transportation agencies in
making improvements to the state highway system, Caltrans is the
owner-operator of the system. Any improvements made to the
system have to have Caltrans' approval, typically via a
cooperative agreement, and have to be constructed consistent
with Caltrans' design standards. Further, Caltrans is
responsible for the maintenance and operation of the
system-costs for which are soaring as the system ages well
beyond its design life. Caltrans is also legally responsible
for the state highway system and assumes related tort
liabilities.
According to the author, the intent of this bill is to increase
the amount of money available for use in SHOPP. The SHOPP is a
four-year program of projects developed to reduce collisions,
restore major damage, preserve bridges, preserve the roadway and
roadside, enhance mobility, and preserve other transportation
facilities related to the state highway system.
In February 2010, the CTC adopted the $6.75 billion, four-year
2010 SHOPP. This SHOPP has less funding compared to the 2008
SHOPP. The capacity to add new projects has been reduced
primarily due to the reduction of available funding. Further,
the escalation of construction costs continues to erode the
buying power of the limited funding that is available. The
decline of available funding for the SHOPP together with the
following items continues to strain the ability to meet
rehabilitation and preservation needs on the state highway
system:
12)The continuing increase in vehicle travel and goods movement
contribute to an increasing rate of pavement and bridge
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deterioration, new traffic collision concentration locations,
and increasing hours of traffic congestion.
13)The continued under-funding of preservation and
rehabilitation delays needed projects and ultimately increases
the cost when projects are undertaken.
This bill acknowledges that the backbone of regions' plans for
developing and operating toll facilities is the state highway
system-a state asset. As such, it directs some portion of the
revenues derived from the toll facilities to Caltrans to
preserve and maintain the system.
This bill does not apply to high-occupancy toll (HOT) lane
facilities already authorized, for instance, those in San Diego,
Alameda, Santa Clara, Riverside, and Los Angeles counties.
Previous legislation: SB 1422 (Ridley-Thomas) Chapter 547,
Statutes of 2008 authorized a value-pricing and transit
development demonstration program involving HOT lanes to be
conducted, administered, developed, and operated on State
Highway Route 110 (SR) and Interstate 10 in Los Angeles County
by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
AB 1954 (Jeffries) Chapter 421, Statutes of 2008 authorized a
value-pricing and transit program involving HOT lanes to be
developed and operated on SR 15 in Riverside County by the
Riverside County Transportation Commission.
AB 2032 (Dutra) Chapter 418, Statutes of 2004 authorized the San
Diego Association of Governments, the Sunol Smart Carpool Lane
Joint Powers Authority, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation
Authority, and the Alameda County Congestion Management Agency
to undertake value-pricing programs involving various HOT lanes
under the jurisdiction of these agencies.
Analysis Prepared by : Janet Dawson / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093
FN: 0004726