BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �



                                                                  AB 1665
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   May 7, 2014

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                  Mike Gatto, Chair

                    AB 1665 (Jones) - As Amended:  April 24, 2014 

          Policy Committee:                              Business and  
          Professions  Vote:                            14 - 0

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

           SUMMARY  

          This bill authorizes the Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR) to  
          regulate businesses that change and repair tires as an  
          automotive repair dealer (ARD), and requires ARDs, if a vehicle  
          is manufactured with a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS),  
          to be capable of diagnosing and servicing the TPMS.   
          Specifically, this bill:  

          1)Deletes tire changing and tire repair from the list of  
            services excluded from the definitions of the "repair of motor  
            vehicles" and "automotive technician" and that are exempt from  
            BAR regulation, thereby making tire changing and tire repair  
            subject to BAR's authority.

          2)Defines "TPMS" as the automotive safety device that warns the  
            driver by using a lighted icon on the onboard diagnostic (OBD)  
            system that one or more of the tires are underinflated, and  
            requires, if a vehicle is manufactured with TPMS, an ARD to be  
            capable of diagnosing and servicing the TPMS when necessary in  
            accordance with industry standards. 

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          Registering and overseeing 2,800 new tire facilities (an 8%  
          workload increase for BAR) as ARDs could result in on-going  
          costs in the range of a several hundred thousand dollars.  Those  
          costs should be fully offset by increased licensing revenue  
          (Vehicle Inspection and Repair Fund).

           COMMENTS  









                                                                  AB 1665
                                                                  Page  2

           1)Purpose  . The author contends AB 1665 would increase consumer  
            protection by requiring individuals that service vehicles with  
            TPMS to be capable of activating and calibrating the TPMS  
            system. This will improve automotive safety through properly  
            inflated tires, and will improve fuel economy with an  
            estimated annual savings in the hundreds of millions of  
            gallons of gas in California alone. Further, the bill will  
            ensure that tire shops are under BAR's jurisdiction, so that  
            BAR could investigate complaints and take enforcement action  
            against these businesses if necessary.

           2)Previous legislation  . 

          a)SB 202 (Galgiani) of 2013 would have deleted tire repair and  
            changing from the list of services exempt from licensure as an  
            ARD under BAR, as specified.  This bill was held on this  
            committee's Suspense File. 

          b)AB 2065 (Galgiani) of 2012 was nearly identical to SB 202 and  
            also would have deleted tire repair and changing from the list  
            of services exempt from licensure as an ARD under BAR.  This  
            bill was held on this committee's Suspense File.


           Analysis Prepared by  :    Jennifer Swenson / APPR. / (916)  
          319-2081