BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �






           SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE       BILL NO: SB 1368
          SENATOR MARK DESAULNIER, CHAIRMAN              AUTHOR:  Wolk
                                                         VERSION: 2/21/14
          Analysis by:  Nathan Phillips                  FISCAL:  yes
          Hearing date:  April 29, 2014


          SUBJECT:

          State highways:  relinquishment

          DESCRIPTION:

          This bill adds a "joint powers authority formed for the purposes  
          of providing transportation services" to the list of public  
          agencies to which the California Transportation Commission may  
          relinquish park-and-ride lots.

          ANALYSIS:

          Existing law gives the Department of Transportation (Caltrans)  
          full possession and control of all state highways.  Existing law  
          provides for the relinquishment of state highways or portions of  
          state highways to any county or city by the CTC in accordance  
          with specified criteria and procedures.  Existing law, in  
          addition, authorizes the commission to relinquish to a county  
          transportation commission or regional transportation planning  
          agency a park-and-ride lot within their respective  
          jurisdictions, if Caltrans enters into an agreement with the  
          county transportation commission or regional transportation  
          planning agency ensuring that an equal or greater number of  
          parking spaces will be maintained.

           This bill  includes joint powers authorities formed for the  
          purposes of providing transportation services to the list of  
          agencies to which the CTC may relinquish park-and-ride lots.
          
          COMMENTS:

           1.Purpose  .  The Solano County Transit (SolTrans) Joint Powers  
            Authority, within the author's district, seeks ownership of a  
            park-and-ride facility known as the Curtola Park and Ride Hub,  
            through relinquishment from Caltrans.  According to the  
            author, this would allow SolTrans to increase parking supply,  
            improve transit operations, facilitate carpools, modernize  
            on-site amenities, and serve as a transit hub to nearby  




          SB 1368 (WOLK)                                         Page 2

                                                                       


            facilities including the Vallejo Transit Center and the  
            Vallejo Ferry Terminal.  The bill takes a statewide approach  
            in recognition that other joint power authorities may desire  
            similar arrangements in the future.

           2.SolTrans  .  SolTrans is a joint powers authority that provides  
            public transportation to the southern Solano County cities of  
            Vallejo and Benicia.  The City of Benicia, City of Vallejo,  
            and the Solano Transportation Authority came together in 2010  
            to create SolTrans for the purpose of unifying public transit  
            systems in southern Solano County.  In 2011, SolTrans  
            officially took over the public transit programs from the  
            cities of Vallejo and Benicia.

           3.Statutory legitimacy and permanence of Joint Powers  
            Authorities  .  SolTrans reports that Caltrans has expressed  
            informal concerns about this bill related to the statutory  
            legitimacy and permanence of joint powers authorities.  This  
            stems from the multi-entity nature and shared governance of  
            joint powers authorities, which could make uncertain the  
            ultimate entity responsibility for management and liability of  
            relinquished property, especially if the joint powers  
            authority were to dissolve.  Although this is a reasonable  
            concern, it is one that Caltrans already manages because  
            existing law allows the CTC to relinquish property to regional  
            transportation planning agencies, which are also multi-agency  
            entities, composed of local public agencies like joint powers  
            authorities.  Moreover, existing law gives the CTC the ability  
            to negotiate relinquishments "on terms and conditions that the  
            commission finds to be within the best interests of the  
            state."  These terms and conditions could include  
            contingencies that specify transfer of ownership and liability  
            of properties in the event of dissolution of a joint powers  
            authority.  Although existing law thus provides broad  
            authority to the CTC to negotiate terms and conditions of  
            relinquishment, Caltrans' concerns might be alleviated by  
            additional language in the bill that more explicitly states  
            procedures for the transfer of ownership in case of  
            dissolution of a joint powers authority, and the assignment of  
            liability and indemnity in case of dissolution of the joint  
            powers authority. 

          POSITIONS:  (Communicated to the committee before noon on  
          Wednesday,                                             April 23,  
          2014.)





          SB 1368 (WOLK)                                         Page 3

                                                                       


               SUPPORT:  Solano County Transit Joint Powers Authority  
          (sponsor)
                         Solano Transportation Authority (sponsor)
                         
               OPPOSED:  None received.