BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 1637
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Date of Hearing: May 14, 2014
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Mike Gatto, Chair
AB 1637 (Frazier and Bloom) - As Amended: May 1, 2014
Policy Committee:
TransportationVote:15-0
Veterans Affairs 9-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable:
SUMMARY
This bill requires the DMV, commencing November 11, 2015, to
print, upon request, the word "VETERAN" on the face of a
driver's license or identification card of an armed forces
veteran. Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires the driver's license (DL) or identification card (ID)
application for an original, duplicate or in-person renewal DL
or ID to be modified to allow an applicant to request the word
"VETERAN" be printed on the face of the DL or ID.
2)Requires an application form to be developed by the California
Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet) and the DMV to
acknowledge verification of veteran status.
3)Requires a County Veterans Service Office (CVSO) to verify the
veteran's status as a veteran, sign the form develop per (2),
and return it to the veteran, and requires the DMV to accept
the signed form as proof of veteran status.
4)Directs the department, upon payment of any required
departmental fee, to print the word "VETERAN" on the face of a
DL or ID in a location determined by the department issued to
a person who makes this request and presents the verification
to the department.
5)Authorizes the department to charge an as-yet unspecified fee
to any person who requests a DL or ID to include "VETERAN".
FISCAL EFFECT
AB 1637
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1)One-time special fund costs of $250,000 to $400,000 for
computer programming and to incorporate the required design
changes as part of the next contract for the DL and ID.
(Motor Vehicle Account (MVA).)
2)Annual additional costs of approximately $750,000 to DMV for
field office and call center operations. (MVA.)
3)DMV estimates additional revenue of around $850,000 in
2015-16, and $1.3 million in 2016-17 and 2017-18, assuming the
issuance of duplicate DLs to veterans seeking the designation
prior to the expiration of their existing license.
4)Costs to county veterans service officers to verify veteran
status and sign the application form should be absorbable.
COMMENTS
1)Background and Purpose . Active Duty and Reserve veterans have
a Military ID card to show their status. Similarly those who
have retired from service also have a similar lifetime ID.
Many veterans who are receiving services through the United
States Department of Veterans Affairs Health Administration
have an ID from that Administration. However many veterans
fall into none of the foregoing categories. For example, a
Marine who served three tours in Afghanistan and left the
service after 12 years to pursue civilian opportunities could
very likely have no ID to prove his veterans status. For
servicemembers like that, the only method of proving service
is by showing a DD 214.
The bill is drafted so that verification of veteran status
happens at the office of the County Veteran Service Officer
(CVSO). This lowers the work burden on DMW, but increases
veteran traffic to the CVSOs. CVSOs can then facilitate
connecting veterans to all federal, state, and local benefits
to which the veteran may be entitled.
In support, the California Police Chief's Association states,
"Community policing is a fact in today's law enforcement
culture, knowing when a veteran is in front of a police
officer can and does result in better outcomes and improved
community relations."
AB 1637
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Veterans groups also point out that as large numbers of
service members return from overseas deployments, they desire
an efficient means of proving their eligibility for benefits
and discounts (such as those available from Home Depot or
Jiffy Lube).
Forty states currently offer veterans designation on DL's with
several additional states considering pending legislation.
2)Prior Legislation . AB 531 (Frazier) and AB 1725 (Lowenthal),
both similar bills, were held on this committee's Suspense
file. For this year's bill, the author has relieved DMV of the
verification process. However, as discussed with regard to the
prior bills, AB 1637 complicates the work of DMV, which
exists, primarily, to register vehicles and license drivers, a
complex job given its sensitivity and the size of state's
population and economy.
In addition, this bill establishes the precedent of using DLs
and IDs as verifiers of a person's occupation, or previous
occupation. The arguments that justify such an inclusion could
apply equally, or nearly equally, to members of other
occupations, such as police officers and fire fighters, who
sometimes receive private benefits resulting from their
occupation. It seems reasonable to expect calls to expand the
insignia program to cover other occupations and groups, should
this bill become law.
Analysis Prepared by : Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081