BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �



                                                                  SB 627
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   July 6, 2011

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Felipe Fuentes, Chair

                   SB 627 (Walters) - As Amended:  April 25, 2011 

          Policy Committee:                              
          TransportationVote:14-0

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program: 
          No     Reimbursable:              No

           SUMMARY  

          This bill requires the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to 
          approve or disapprove a license renewal application for an 
          owner, operator or instructor of a driving school or traffic 
          violator school with 30 days of receiving a complete 
          application.

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          Minor, absorbable costs to DMV, which reports it generally is 
          able to respond to license renewal requests within 30 days of 
          receipt. 

           COMMENTS  

           1)Rationale  .  The author and sponsors (the Driving School 
            Association of California, Inc. and the Traffic Safety 
            Consultants, Inc.) are concerned that recently enacted 
            legislation, which requires DMV to license and regulate online 
            traffic violator schools, will delay DMV's review and approval 
            of licenses for traditional driving schools and traffic 
            violator schools.  These proponents intend this bill to 
            provide assurance that DMV will continue to process license 
            renewal requests promptly.

           2)Background.   Existing law requires all owners, operators and 
            instructors of a driving school or traffic violator school to 
            be licensed by DMV.  Owners and operators must renew their 
            licenses annually, whereas instructors much renew their 
            licenses every three years.

            DMV reports that it processes approximately 200 license 







                                                                  SB 627
                                                                  Page  2

            renewal applications a year.  DMV mails renewal notices to 
            licensees 45 days in advance of license expiration.  DMV 
            contends it routinely approves complete license renewal 
            applications prior to the licenses' expiration dates and that 
            there is no backlog of license renewal applications, though 
            the department acknowledges it recently experienced a delay in 
            license renewal processing.  DMV also reports that, typically, 
            it does not fine or otherwise sanction a school for simply 
            operating with an expired license. 

            Nonetheless, bill proponents express concern that recently 
            enacted legislation (AB 2499, Portantino, Chapter 299, 
            Statutes of 2010), which requires DMV to regulate online and 
            home-study traffic school violator schools, will delay DMV's 
            processing of license renewal requests.  Such delays force 
            schools to choose between temporarily operating without a 
            license or ceasing operations until DMV license renewal is 
            received.

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Jay Dickenson / APPR. / (916) 319-2081