BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: sb 1418
SENATOR ALAN LOWENTHAL, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: wiggins
VERSION:
2/19/2010
Analysis by: Mark Stivers FISCAL: yes
Hearing date: April 20, 2010
SUBJECT:
Highway call boxes and motorist aid services
DESCRIPTION:
This bill makes a number of changes to the statute governing
service authorities for freeway emergencies.
ANALYSIS:
Under current law, a county board of supervisors and the city
councils of a majority of the cities having a majority of the
population of cities within the county may establish a service
authority for freeway emergencies. In the larger regions, the
regional transportation agency may function as the service
authority for any member county whose board of supervisors and
majority of cities so authorize.
A service authority for freeway emergencies may impose a fee of
$1 per year on vehicles registered in the county. The authority
must use these funds for the implementation, maintenance, and
operation of a system of call boxes on freeways, expressways,
unincorporated county roads, and state highway routes that
connect these roads. The Department of Transportation
(Caltrans) and the California Highway Patrol (CHP) must each
review and approve plans for implementation of a system of call
boxes proposed for any state highway route and receive
reimbursement from the service authority for all costs incurred
due to review and approval of the plan.
If the funds from the $1 vehicle registration fee exceed the
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amount needed to implement, maintain, and operate the call box
system, the authority may use the excess funds to provide
additional motorist aid services or support, including, but not
limited to:
Changeable message signs.
Lighting for call boxes.
Support for traffic operations centers.
Freeway service patrols.
This bill makes a number of changes to state law governing
service authorities for freeway emergencies. Specifically, the
bill:
Deletes the requirement that an authority operate and fund a
system of call boxes.
Requires an authority to spend its funds on implementation,
maintenance, and operation of systems, projects, and programs
to aid and assist motorists, including, but not limited to, a
call box system, freeway service patrol, mobile roadside
assistance systems, intelligent transportation systems,
incident management programs and coordination, traveler
information system programs, and support for traffic operation
centers.
Allows an authority to charge a fee of up to $2 per vehicle in
the county, in $1 increments.
Provides that an authority's amendment to its existing call
box plan is deemed approved if Caltrans and CHP do not reject
the amendment within 120 days of receipt.
Allows the Bay Area's Metropolitan Transportation Commission
(MTC), in counties where it functions as the authority, to
place call boxes in parking or roadway areas in state and
federal parks where telecommunication services are
unavailable, provided that MTC and the park administrator
agree.
Limits the applicability of Americans with Disabilities Act
(ADA) requirements to call boxes, as opposed to the entire
motorist aid system.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose of the bill . According to the author, demands on
service authority programs have increased due to additional
congestion and changing technologies, and the existing $1
service authority fee no longer provides sufficient funding
for authorities to a maintain existing successful programs,
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address increasing demand for motorist aid services, and take
advantage of new technologies to reach a more diverse customer
base. Moreover, service authorities have limited authority
to implement a broader range of motorist aid services to meet
evolving needs. This bill seeks to address these problems by
allowing a $2 fee per vehicle and by providing more
flexibility on what services an authority may fund.
In addition, the author is interested in making it easier to
install call boxes at state and federal park facilities. Over
the past few years, a number of drowning and other accidents
have occurred at state beaches along the Sonoma Coast where
pay phones have been removed and there is no cell coverage.
Had call boxes been available, witnesses could have called in
the emergency, and emergency crews could have arrived much
sooner. This bill makes clear that MTC may install and
operate call boxes at such remote parks.
2.Allows increased fees and funding . The current authorization
for a service authority to charge a $1 fee on each vehicle
registered in the county has existed unchanged since 1986. A
1986 dollar is now worth fifty-one cents. Allowing services
authorities to increase fees to $2 per vehicle will add an
incremental cost to the registration of a vehicle but provide
additional revenue to maintain and improve services to
motorists.
3.Allows the elimination of call boxes without state input .
While this bill allows an authority to maintain call boxes, it
makes call boxes only one of many different types of motorist
aid services an authority may choose to offer. In essence,
then, this bill removes the requirement that a service
authority operate and maintain a system of call boxes before
operating other services. This change would make it easier
for service authorities to eliminate call boxes.
Under current law, an authority may, with the approval of
Caltrans and the CHP, amend its call box plan to reduce the
number of call boxes it operates. The authority, however,
must fully fund the call box plan before funding other
services. By giving authorities the flexibility not to fund
their own call box plan, this bill effectively allows
authorities to reduce the number of or eliminate call boxes
without having to amend its plan with state approval.
As cell phone use increases, the use of call boxes has
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diminished. MTC provided committee staff with a chart
demonstrating that the annual total of call box calls in the
Bay Area has fallen from a high of 216,000 in 1996 to 29,000
in 2009, an 87% decrease, while the number of call boxes
declined only 27% during that same time period. Nonetheless,
29,000 persons in the Bay Area alone represents a large number
of callers that did not have access to a cell phone in their
time of need. Given that service authorities may already
amend their call box plans with state approval to reduce the
number of call boxes, the committee may wish to consider
maintaining the requirement for service authorities to operate
and maintain those call boxes that remain in the plan before
offering other services.
4.ADA language . This bill includes a provision that applies
federal ADA requirements only to a call box network and not to
any other portion of a motorist aid system. First, the state
cannot create an exemption to federal law. Second, while it
is likely that ADA would not be relevant to some parts of a
motorist aid system (for example, traveler information
systems), there may be other portions of a system to which ADA
should apply to ensure access for all users. The committee
may wish to consider removing this change from the bill.
5.Arguments in opposition . Opponents argue that motorists are
already overburdened with hidden vehicle fees and should not
be subjected to further increases in the cost of vehicle
ownership unless they elect to tax themselves.
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the Committee before noon on
Wednesday,
April 14, 2010)
SUPPORT: Metropolitan Transportation Commission (sponsor)
California State Association of Counties
OPPOSED: California New Car Dealers Association