BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 2247
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 2247 (Bonnie Lowenthal)
As Amended August 6, 2012
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |75-0 |(May 14, 2012) |SENATE: |31-4 |(August 13, |
| | | | | |2012) |
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Original Committee Reference: PUB. S.
SUMMARY : Specifies the penalties for the unauthorized sales or
peddling of any good, merchandise, property, or services in a
transit facility or vehicle.
The Senate amendments :
1) Permit an officer issuing a ticket for fare evasion or for a
passenger conduct violation to fix incorrect data on the ticket
by attaching a written form to the original ticket, thereby
allowing for timely entry of the corrected information in the
processing agency's data system.
2) Require the issuing agency to mail a copy of the correction
to the address provided by the person cited at the time the
original ticket was served.
3) Delete the provision which would have repealed Penal Code
Section 602.7, prohibiting the unauthorized sales or peddling
of goods on the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District
(BART) or the Southern California Rapid Transit District.
4) Make unauthorized peddling or sales of goods on a public
transit system other than BART or the Southern California Rapid
Transit District an infraction only where the public transit
system passes a resolution or ordinance prohibiting those
activities.
5) Double joints this bill with AB 492 (Galgiani) to avoid
chaptering issues.
EXISTING LAW :
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1)Prohibits unauthorized sales or peddling on any property,
facility, or vehicle owned by the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid
Transit District or the Southern California Rapid Transit
District, and makes this conduct punishable as an infraction.
2)Makes any of the following acts committed on or in a public
transit facility or vehicle an infraction punishable by a fine not
to exceed $250, and by up to 48 hours of community service:
a) Eating or drinking in or on a system facility or vehicle in
areas where those activities are prohibited by that system;
b) Disturbing another person by loud or unreasonable noise;
c) Smoking in or on a system facility or vehicle in areas where
those activities are prohibited by that system;
d) Expectorating upon a system facility or vehicle; and,
e) Skateboarding, roller skating, bicycle riding, roller
blading, or operating a motorized scooter in a system facility,
vehicle, or parking structure. This paragraph does not apply
to an activity that is necessary for utilization of the transit
facility by a bicyclist, including, but not limited to, an
activity that is necessary for parking a bicycle or
transporting a bicycle aboard a transit vehicle, if that
activity is conducted with the permission of the transit agency
in a manner that does not interfere with the safety of the
bicyclist or other patrons of the transit facility.
3)Punishes a first or second violation of the following acts as an
infraction punishable by a fine not to exceed $250, and by up to
48 hours of community service, and punishes a third or subsequent
violation as a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than
$400 or by imprisonment in the county jail for a period of not
more than 90 days, or by both that fine and imprisonment:
a) Evasion of the payment of a fare of the system. For
purposes of this section, fare evasion includes entering an
enclosed area of a public transit facility beyond posted signs
prohibiting entrance without obtaining valid fare, in addition
to entering a transit vehicle without valid fare;
b) Misuse of a transfer, pass, ticket, or token with the intent
to evade the payment of a fare; and,
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c) Unauthorized use of a discount ticket or failure to present
proof of eligibility to use a discount ticket.
4)Provides that the following acts committed on or in a public
transit facility or vehicle are punishable by a fine of not more
than $400, by imprisonment in the county jail for a period of not
more than 90 days, or by both that fine and imprisonment:
a) Willfully disturbing others on or in a system facility or
vehicle by engaging in boisterous or unruly behavior;
b) Carrying an explosive, acid or inflammable liquid in a
public transit facility or vehicle;
c) Urinating or defecating in a system facility or vehicle,
except in a lavatory. However, this paragraph shall not apply
to a person who cannot comply with this paragraph as a result
of a disability, age, or a medical condition;
d) Willfully blocking the free movement of another person in a
system facility; and,
e) Willfully tampering with, removing, displacing, injuring, or
destroying any part of any light rail train or bus equipment.
5)Declares that notwithstanding statutory provisions deeming certain
acts as to be infractions, specified transit authorities may enact
and enforce an ordinance providing that any of the specified acts
over which the authority has jurisdiction, shall be subject only
to an administrative penalty imposed and enforced in a civil
proceeding.
6)Permits specified local or regional transit agencies to contract
with designated persons to act as its agents in enforcing
statutory provision relating to public transit offenses. These
persons are designated as public officers, not peace officers, and
are not allowed to carry weapons or to exercise arrest powers.
They may issue citations for infractions occurring in a public
transit facility or vehicle.
7)Provides that an infraction is not punishable by imprisonment.
8)States that a person charged with an infraction shall not be
entitled to a trial by jury, or to have the public defender or
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other counsel appointed at public expense to represent him or her
unless he or she is arrested and not released on his or her
written promise to appear, his or her own recognizance, or a
deposit of bail.
9)States that, except as otherwise provided by law, all provisions
of law relating to misdemeanors shall apply to infractions
including, but not limited to, powers of peace officers,
jurisdiction of courts, periods for commencing action and for
bringing a case to trial and burden of proof.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill specified the penalties for the
unauthorized sales or peddling of any good, merchandise, property,
or services in a transit facility or vehicle. Specifically, this
bill :
1)Made a violation of unauthorized sales or peddling on or in a
public transit facility or vehicle an infraction punishable by a
fine not to exceed $250 and by community service not to exceed 48
hours.
2)Repealed Penal Code Section 602.7, which prohibits the
unauthorized sale or peddling of goods and services on property of
the San Francisco BART and the Southern California Rapid Transit
District.
3)Made conforming changes to other statutes.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations Committee,
pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "The people who take public
transit in California are, whether by choice or not, environmental
heroes.
"One of the ways we can say thank you is to do everything we can to
make sure transit is clean, safe and orderly.
"AB 2247 moves in that direction by making it easier to ride a train
without being set upon by so-called pirate vendors, who sell
bootlegged DVDs and other items, from platforms, or by going car to
car, intruding on what little personal space a passenger has.
"Riders have complained. AB 2247 will address this important issue
and will go a long way to create a safer and more comfortable public
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transit experience for all Californians."
Please see the policy committee analysis for a full discussion of
this bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Sandy Uribe / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744
FN: 0004541