BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 486
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SENATE THIRD READING
SB 486 (DeSaulnier)
As Amended August 4, 2014
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE :Vote not relevant
TRANSPORTATION 14-0 APPROPRIATIONS 12-0
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|Ayes:|Lowenthal, Linder, |Ayes:|Gatto, Bocanegra, |
| |Achadjian, Ammiano, | |Bradford, |
| |Bloom, Bonta, Buchanan, | |Ian Calderon, Campos, |
| |Daly, Frazier, Gatto, | |Eggman, Gomez, Holden, |
| |Nazarian, Patterson, | |Pan, Quirk, |
| |Quirk-Silva, Waldron | |Ridley-Thomas, Weber |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Modifies processes for developing and adopting the
California Department of Transportation's (Caltrans') long-range
transportation planning and programming documents.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Makes legislative findings and declarations regarding:
a) A recent external assessment of Caltrans that called for
reforms to update the department's mission, strengthen its
performance, and align its work with broad state policy
goals; and,
b) The need to develop a long-term, inclusive planning
process for Caltrans, similar to the already-established
regional transportation planning process.
2)Authorizes the California Transportation Commission (CTC), in
consultation with Caltrans, to develop and adopt specific
goals for the department and directs CTC to develop
performance measures for each of the adopted goals.
3)Authorizes CTC to establish guidelines for Caltrans to follow
in developing the California Transportation Plan (CTP),
commencing with the 2020 update of the plan.
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4)Directs Caltrans, by October 15, 2015, to submit to CTC an
interregional transportation strategic plan (ITSP) directed at
achieving a high-functioning and balanced interregional
transportation system; requires the ITSP to be consistent with
the CTP.
5)Requires projects included in the interregional transportation
improvement program (ITIP) to be consistent with the ITSP.
6)Requires CTC, when approving the final ITIP, to evaluate the
extent to which the program is consistent with statutorily
established funding priorities.
7)Requires CTC to develop guidelines for Caltrans to follow in
developing the State Highway Operation and Protection Program
(SHOPP) and authorizes CTC to decline to adopt the SHOPP if it
determines that the program is not sufficiently consistent
with the guidelines developed and adopted by the commission.
8)Requires CTC to include in its annual report a discussion and
analyses of Caltrans' support costs and expenditures.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
1)The CTC will need two senior staff positions, at an ongoing
special fund cost of $400,000 to develop performance measures
and goals for Caltrans, establish CTP and SHOPP guidelines,
review and approve the ITSP, conduct hearings on the ITIP,
increase oversight of SHOPP program review and approval, and
track and analyze Caltrans project costs for annual reporting
purposes. Presumably this additional oversight will lead to
more efficient use of state transportation resources.
2)Caltrans will incur one-time costs of around $100,000 to
update guidelines and standards in its Project Development
Procedures Manual for project initiation documents and for
SHOPP development. The department may also incur information
technology costs to update the database and software used to
manage the SHOPP.
COMMENTS : The genesis of this bill is, at least in part, a
recently released report issued by the State Smart
Transportation Initiative (SSTI). SSTI was commissioned
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California State Transportation Agency to assess Caltrans'
performance and to make recommendations for improvements. In
short, the SSTI report found that Caltrans is "significantly out
of step" with best practices in the transportation field and
with many of the state's policy expectations. SSTI asserts that
California would be better served by a stronger state
transportation department that is better aligned with
California's overarching policy goals, particularly those
related to sustainability.
This bill intends to do just that - better align state
priorities with Caltrans' planning processes and to use this
pairing to ensure the department's investments reflect these
priorities. Within this context, this bill seeks to remedy
three specific perceived problems:
1)Caltrans lacks a strong performance management approach;
2)Caltrans' programming documents, namely the ITIP and the
SHOPP, are not sufficiently in line with the state's
overarching goals or the department's long-term planning
efforts; and,
3)Caltrans's ITIP and SHOPP are developed in an insular
environment and therefore fall short of reflecting broader
goals.
Please see the policy committee analysis for a full discussion
of this bill.
Related legislation: SB 151 (DeSaulnier) of the current
legislative session, requires SHOPP projects to have capital and
support costs allocated by CTC. SB 151 is in Assembly
Appropriations Committee.
Analysis Prepared by : Janet Dawson / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093
FN: 0004732
SB 486
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