BILL NUMBER: AB 348	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  JULY 7, 2011
	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, 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
 to prepare, in consultation with the departm   ent,
 a report to be submitted to the Legislature on the
effectiveness of the zone.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  no
  yes  . 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, 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 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  , in consultation with
the department,  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.
   (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.
   (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.
   (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.