BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: ab 2366
SENATOR MARK DESAULNIER, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: eng
VERSION: 5/25/12
Analysis by: Carrie Cornwell FISCAL: yes
Hearing date: June 26, 2012
SUBJECT:
Vehicle equipment: correctable violations
DESCRIPTION:
This bill increases the cost of a fix-it ticket issued on a
parking ticket from $10 to $25.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law makes numerous Vehicle Code violations that involve
vehicle equipment, vehicle registration, display of license
plates, and possession of driver's licenses subject to a notice
to correct, sometimes called a "fix-it" ticket. Typically, to
resolve a fix-it ticket, a person must show a peace officer the
correction (e.g., a repaired taillight if the driver was cited
for an inoperative taillight), have the peace officer sign the
ticket, and then return that ticket with $25 to the court.
A local parking enforcement officer, when issuing a parking
citation, may cite a vehicle for an equipment violation on that
same citation. A local parking enforcement officer may also
cite a vehicle for a registration or license plate violation
with or without a parking citation. If a local parking
enforcement officer issues a fix-it ticket, then existing law
provides that the fix-it ticket penalty after correction is only
$10.
This bill increases the cost of a fix-it ticket issued by a
parking enforcement officer to $25, making it equivalent to a
fix-it ticket issued by a peace officer.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose . The author notes that a correction penalty for
equipment, vehicle registration, and license plate violations
issued by a parking enforcement officer is currently $10 and
AB 2366 (ENG) Page 2
has not increased in over 18 years. An average parking
citation in this state costs the issuing agency about $25 to
process, which includes staffing, equipment costs, and
printing. When a parking enforcement officer issues a
correctable violation and then the vehicle owner corrects it,
the issuing agency does not cover its expenses. This creates
a disincentive for local parking authorities to enforce
equipment, registration, and license plate violations. The
proponents assert that increasing the penalty will provide the
incentive to actively enforce these violations.
2.Revenues from fix-it tickets . Existing fix-it ticket law that
sets the penalty for a corrected violation issued by a peace
officer at $25 directs $15 of that revenue to the state's
court construction fund, $3.30 to the county's general fund,
$3.30 to the general fund of the local government in whose
jurisdiction an officer issued the citation, and $3.40 to the
State of California's penalty fund. If a local parking
enforcement officer issues the fix-it ticket, the resulting
$10 penalty goes half to the local jurisdiction and half to
the State of California. This bill would not change that
split.
3.Opposition . The California Association of Highway Patrolman
opposes the bill because escalating penalties and fees
associated with traffic and other citations are negatively
impacting Californians' ability to afford life's necessities.
Assembly Votes:
Floor: 56 - 20
Appr: 12 - 0
Trans: 12 - 0
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the committee before noon on
Wednesday, June 20,
2012)
SUPPORT: California Public Parking Association (sponsor)
Los Angeles County Professional Peace Officers
Association (sponsor)
Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs
League of California Cities
Riverside Sheriffs' Association
OPPOSED: California Association of Highway Patrolman
AB 2366 (ENG) Page 3