BILL ANALYSIS �
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 2659|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 2659
Author: Blumenfield (D)
Amended: 8/24/12 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE : 8-0, 7/3/12
AYES: DeSaulnier, Gaines, Kehoe, Lowenthal, Pavley, Rubio,
Simitian, Wyland
NO VOTE RECORDED: Harman
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SENATE FLOOR : 39-0, 8/9/12
AYES: Alquist, Anderson, Berryhill, Blakeslee, Calderon,
Cannella, Corbett, Correa, De Le�n, DeSaulnier, Dutton,
Emmerson, Evans, Fuller, Gaines, Harman, Hernandez, Huff,
Kehoe, La Malfa, Leno, Lieu, Liu, Lowenthal, Negrete
McLeod, Padilla, Pavley, Price, Rubio, Runner, Simitian,
Steinberg, Strickland, Vargas, Walters, Wolk, Wright,
Wyland, Yee
NO VOTE RECORDED: Hancock
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : Not relevant
SUBJECT : Vehicles: drivers licenses
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill permits the Department of Motor
Vehicles (DMV) to waive the driving skills test required to
CONTINUED
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obtain a commercial driver's license (CDL) for a person
with a U.S. Armed Forces military driver's license in
compliance with federal regulations, and delete the
requirement that the signature of the driver whom the
vehicle is being rented to be written in the presence of
the person renting the vehicle and instead allows the
person renting the vehicle to instead compare the
photograph on the driver's license of the person with the
person to whom the vehicle is to be rented, except as
specified.
Senate Floor Amendments of 8/24/12 add new provisions to
the bill relative to renting a car. The amendments delete
the requirement that the signature of the driver whom the
vehicle is being rented to be written in the presence of
the person renting the vehicle and instead allow the person
renting the vehicle to instead compare the photograph on
the driver's license of the person with the person to whom
the vehicle is to be rented, except as specified.
Senate Floor Amendments of 8/22/12 add double-jointing
language with AB 2188 (Lowenthal).
ANALYSIS : Existing law requires a person to have a valid
CDL of the appropriate class in order to operate a
commercial vehicle in the state. DMV issues a CDL to an
applicant only after he/she passes written and driving
skills tests and meets other requirements depending on the
particular type of vehicle the applicant seeks to operate.
Federal regulations outline specific skills and knowledge a
person must demonstrate before he or she is eligible for a
CDL. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the
federal agency responsible for commercial vehicle
oversight, recently amended its regulations to allow states
to waive this skills test for an applicant possessing a
military commercial vehicle license and who certifies that:
1. Within the two-year period immediately prior to
applying, he/she has not had:
A license suspended or revoked;
Any conviction for major offenses (e.g., DUI or
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leaving the scene of an accident);
More than one conviction for serious traffic
violations (e.g., excessive speeding or reckless
driving);
Any conviction arising in connection with a traffic
accident, nor any record of an accident in which
he/she was at fault.
2. He/she is, or within the prior 90 days was, regularly
employed in a military position requiring operation of a
commercial vehicle for at least the prior two years.
This bill:
1. Permits DMV to waive the driving skills test required to
obtain a commercial driver's license for a person with a
US Armed Forces military driver's license in compliance
with federal regulations.
2. Deletes the requirement that the signature of the driver
whom the vehicle is being rented to be written in the
presence of the person renting the vehicle and instead
allows the person renting the vehicle to instead compare
the photograph on the driver's license of the person
with the person to whom the vehicle is to be rented.
3. Exempts a "rental company," as defined, from the
requirement in item 2 above if the rental is subject to
the terms of a membership agreement that allows the
renter to gain physical access to a car without a key
through use of a code, key card, or by other means that
allow the car to be accessed at a remote location or at
a business location of the rental company outside of
that location's regular hours of operation.
4. Contains double-jointing language with AB 2188
(Lowenthal).
Comments
According to the author's office, recent veterans represent
a disproportionate number of the country's unemployed
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population. Further, research suggests that many of these
recent veterans were military transport operators, and
therefore share skills similar to commercial drivers. At
the same time, the author contends, the transport industry
reports a shortage of truck drivers. This bill attempts to
address these two problems by permitting DMV to adopt the
federal waiver standards for the CDL skills test.
According to the author's office, 15 other states have
adopted the federal standards, including New York, Florida,
Missouri, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. With a high veteran
unemployment rate and a labor shortage in the trucking
industry, the author's office believes this bill benefits
the state by allowing qualified veterans to obtain a
commercial driver's license in a timely and safe manner.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/6/12)
California Chamber of Commerce
California Distributors Association
California Grocers Association
California Independent Grocers Association
California Manufacturers & Technology Association
California Retailers Association
California State Commanders Veterans Council
California Trucking Association
National Federation of Independent Business
Operation Gratitude
United Chambers of the San Fernando Valley
Veterans of Foreign Wars
JJA:d 8/27/12 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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