BILL NUMBER: AB 348	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 27, 2011
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 13, 2011
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 25, 2011

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Buchanan
   (Coauthor: Assembly Member Bonilla)
   (Coauthors: Senators DeSaulnier and Hancock)

                        FEBRUARY 10, 2011

   An act to add and repeal Section 97.4 of the Streets and Highways
Code, relating to highways.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 348, as amended, Buchanan. Highways: Safety Enhancement-Double
Fine Zone.
   Existing law requires the Department of Transportation to
designate a state highway segment as a Safety Enhancement-Double Fine
Zone if specified conditions are met, including that the governing
board of the city or county in which the segment is located has by
resolution indicated that it supports the designation.
   This bill would, notwithstanding these requirements and until
January 1, 2017,  designate   provide for the
designation of  the segment of county highway known as Vasco
Road, between the State Highway Route 580 junction in Alameda County
and the Walnut Boulevard intersection in Contra Costa County, as a
Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone upon the approval of the boards
of supervisors of Alameda County and Contra Costa County. The bill
would also impose specified duties on the local governing bodies
regarding that double fine zone  , including a report  
to be submitted to the Legislature on the effectiveness of the zone
 .
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 97.4 is added to the Streets and Highways Code,
to read:
   97.4.  (a) Notwithstanding subdivision (a) of Section 97, the
segment of county highway known as Vasco Road, between the State
Highway Route 580 junction in Alameda County and the Walnut Boulevard
intersection in Contra Costa County, shall  
may  be designated as the Vasco Road Safety Enhancement-Double
Fine Zone upon the approval of resolutions of the Alameda County and
Contra Costa County boards of supervisors supporting that
designation.
   (b) Each local governing body  in whose jurisdiction a
double fine zone is designated by   that chooses to
designate a double fine zone in its jurisdiction pursuant to 
this section shall, prior to the establishment of a double fine zone,
do all of the following:
   (1) Undertake a public awareness campaign to inform the public of
the double fine zone designation, where it is located, its purpose,
and its consequences.
   (2) Where appropriate, implement increased traffic safety
enhancements, enforcement, and other roadway safety measures in
coordination with the establishment of the double fine zone.
   (c) The Vasco Road Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone is subject
to the rules and regulations adopted by the department prescribing
uniform standards for warning signs to notify motorists that,
pursuant to Section 42010 of the Vehicle Code, increased penalties
apply for traffic violations that are committed within a Safety
Enhancement-Double Fine Zone as authorized under Section 97.
   (d) The local authority having jurisdiction over the Vasco Road
Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone shall place and maintain the
warning signs identifying these segments by stating that a "Special
Safety Zone Region Begins Here" and a "Special Safety Zone Ends Here."

   (e) If a double fine zone is designated pursuant to this section,
the Counties of Alameda and Contra Costa shall jointly conduct an
evaluation of its effectiveness and submit their findings in one
report to the Assembly Committee on Transportation and the Senate
Committee on Transportation and Housing one year prior to the
termination of the double fine zone. The report shall include a
recommendation on whether the zone should be reauthorized by the
Legislature, as well as a comparative evaluation of the volume and
speed of traffic, the number and severity of collisions, and the
contributing factors that led to collisions prior to and following
the establishment of the double fine zone.  
   (e) 
    (f)  The Vasco Road Safety Enhancement-Double Fine Zone
does not increase the civil liability of the state or local authority
having jurisdiction over the highway segment under Division 3.6
(commencing with Section 810) of Title 1 of the Government Code or
any other law relating to civil liability. 
   (f) 
    (g)  (1) Only the base fine shall be enhanced pursuant
to this section.
   (2) Notwithstanding any other law, any additional penalty,
forfeiture, or assessment imposed by any other statute shall be based
on the amount of the base fine before enhancement or doubling and
shall not be based on the amount of the enhanced fine imposed
pursuant to this section. 
   (g) 
    (h)  This section shall remain in effect only until
January 1, 2017, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later
enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2017, deletes or
extends that date.