BILL ANALYSIS �
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
SB 1310 (Simitian) - Vehicles: electronic wireless
communications devices: prohibitions.
Amended: April 25, 2012 Policy Vote: T&H 6-1
Urgency: No Mandate: Yes
Hearing Date: April 25, 2012
Consultant: Mark McKenzie
This bill does not meet the criteria for referral to the
Suspense File.
Bill Summary: SB 1310 would increase penalties related to the
use of a wireless communication device while driving, prohibit
bicyclists from using a handheld communication device, establish
an education program on the dangers of cell phone use and text
messaging while driving, and require the driver's license exam
to include a test of the applicants understanding of the dangers
related to distracted driving, as specified.
Fiscal Impact:
Unknown increase in penalty revenues (General Fund, various
special funds, local funds).
Minor costs, if any, to the Department of Motor Vehicles to
include a specific question on the driver's license exam
(Motor Vehicle Account).
Unknown revenue gains, likely in the low millions, from
fines collected for use by the Office of Traffic Safety for
a distracted driving education program (Distracted Driver
Education Fund - created by this bill)
Likely minor reimbursable mandate costs by requiring county
treasurers to divert $10 from each fine to the SCO for
deposit into the Distracted Driver Education Fund (General
Fund).
Unknown court programming costs related to withholding
penalty assessments and charges on bicycle convictions,
partially offset by fines collected (Trial Court Trust
Fund).
Background: Existing law generally prohibits a person from
using a handheld wireless phone, unless equipped with hands-free
technology, or engaging in text-based communication while
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operating a motor vehicle. The base fine is $20 for an initial
offense for either violation and $50 for each subsequent
offense. After all penalty assessments, fees, and surcharges
are added to the base fine, the total bail for a base fine of
$20 is $159 and the total bail for a base fine of $50 is $279.
Proposed Law: SB 1310 would make the following changes related
to the laws prohibiting the use of a handheld electronic
communication device while driving:
Require the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) driver's
license examination to include a test of the applicants
understanding of the distractions and dangers of handheld cell
phone use and text messaging while driving.
Increase the base fines for using an electronic communication
device while driving from $20 to $30 for a first offense, and
from $50 to $60 for a subsequent offense.
Assign a driver's license violation point for a second or
subsequent conviction of using an electronic communication
device while driving, as specified.
Authorize primary enforcement of a violation for using any
wireless communication device for drivers under the age of 18.
Extend the prohibition against handheld cell phone use and
text messaging to bicycle riders, and impose a total fine of
$20 for a first offense and $50 for a subsequent offense. A
violation point would not be assessed for a bicycle violation.
Require a county treasurer to submit $10 from each fine
collected for these violations to the State Controller for an
education program on the dangers of cell phone use and text
messaging while driving. The funds would be deposited into a
new Distracted Driver Education Fund and allocated to the
Office of Traffic Safety (OTS), upon appropriation by the
Legislature in the Budget Bill.
Authorize a county treasurer to withhold a sufficient amount
from each fine collected for bicyclist convictions to
reimburse the courts for their actual, reasonable, and
necessary costs associated with processing bicyclist
violations.
Related Legislation: SB 28 (Simitian), which was vetoed by
Governor Brown last year, is substantially similar to this bill,
except that bill would have doubled the penalties to $50 for a
first offense and $100 for a subsequent offense for texting or
talking while driving, rather than adding $10 to each offense.
The lower fines in SB 1310 are in response to the Governor's
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veto message, which stated the following:
I certainly support discouraging cell phone use while driving
a car, but not ratcheting up the penalties as prescribed by
this bill.
For people of ordinary means, current fines and penalty
assessments should be sufficient deterrent.
Staff Comments: The bill explicitly requires DMV to include a
test of an applicant's understanding of the dangers of handheld
cell phone use and text messaging while driving on the driver's
license examination. Existing law explicitly requires the
examination to include a test of the applicant's knowledge and
understanding of laws governing the operation of vehicles, the
ability to read and understand simple English used in traffic
and directional signs, and an understanding of traffic signs and
symbols. DMV's current 18-question examination already includes
a specific question about distracted driving, so any costs to
update manuals and retain a question on the examination would be
absorbable. Programming costs to add a violation point to
specified convictions would also be minor.
SB 1310 would increase the base fines for distracted driving,
and establish new penalties for riding a bicycle while using an
electronic communication device. The total bail amounts imposed
for convictions on drivers using a handheld communications
device include the base fine and any applicable penalties,
assessments, surcharges, or fees specified in existing law. For
example, the total bail on a $20 base fine would be $159, the
total bail on a $30 base fine would be $199, the total bail on a
$50 base fine would be $279, and the total bail on a $60 base
fine would be $319. Staff notes that the increase in base fines
for convicted drivers would result in significant increases in
penalty revenues that would benefit the General Fund, and other
special and local funds pursuant to statutory formulas. Staff
does not anticipate that a $10 increase in base fines would have
a significant deterrent effect on behavior. In 2010, the
California Highway Patrol issued about 12,000 to 14,000
citations for cell phone violations each month (no comparable
data is available for local law enforcement). Assuming an
annual average of 156,000 citations in a year, this bill would
generate an additional $1.56 million for the General Fund alone,
not including violations issued by local law enforcement.
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The bill specifies that the fines that apply to bicyclists are
not subject to additional penalties, assessments, surcharges, or
fees that would apply to the base fine imposed on convicted
drivers. Existing court case management systems are programmed
to automatically add penalty assessments on convictions, so the
requirement to withhold the assignment of these additional
amounts would compel the courts to incur one-time programming
costs to withhold the assignment of penalty assessments on
convictions that apply to bicyclists. The Judicial Council
reports that statewide, the courts currently use 70 different
case management systems, each of which vary in capacity and
capability. Costs to reprogram these systems are unknown but
potentially significant. The bill includes language authorizing
the courts to recover their actual, reasonable, and necessary
costs associated with administering this provision from fines
collected for convictions. It is unlikely that the amount of
fines collected from bicycle violations would be sufficient to
fully offset programming costs in the short-term.
SB 1310 would also require the county treasurer to submit $10
from each fine collected to the State Controller, and require
the Controller to deposit those funds in the Distracted Driver
Education Fund for an education program on the dangers of
distracted driving. Using the assumptions noted above, staff
estimates that this bill would generate at least $2 million to
$3 million in revenues, which would be available to the Office
of Traffic Safety for this purpose, upon appropriation by the
Legislature. OTS administers traffic safety grant funds,
primarily federal funds, for programs intended to reduce deaths,
injuries, and economic losses resulting from traffic collisions.
The funds generated by this bill would supplement existing
educational and outreach efforts related to distracted driving.
The bill creates a potentially reimbursable state-mandated local
program by placing new duties on county treasurers. While costs
associated with transferring $10 from each distracted driver
fine to the Controller may qualify for reimbursement, staff
estimates that they would be minor as county treasurers
currently administer the distribution of numerous fines and
penalties to various state and local entities. Adding this one
new duty would not be burdensome and it is not likely that a
county would seek reimbursement from the state.
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