BILL NUMBER: AB 254	CHAPTERED
	BILL TEXT

	CHAPTER  425
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE  OCTOBER 11, 2009
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR  OCTOBER 11, 2009
	PASSED THE SENATE  AUGUST 27, 2009
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 31, 2009
	AMENDED IN SENATE  JUNE 26, 2009
	AMENDED IN SENATE  JUNE 16, 2009
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 21, 2009
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 16, 2009
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 13, 2009

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Jeffries
   (Coauthor: Assembly Member Bill Berryhill)
   (Coauthors: Senators Cox and Runner)

                        FEBRUARY 11, 2009

   An act to amend Section 23301 of, and to add Section 23301.5 to,
the Vehicle Code, relating to vehicles.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 254, Jeffries. Emergency vehicles: payment of tolls:
exemptions.
   (1) Under existing law, a vehicle that enters into or upon a
vehicular crossing immediately becomes liable for tolls and other
charges prescribed by the California Transportation Commission.
   Under existing law, it is unlawful to refuse to pay, or to evade
or attempt to evade the payment of, tolls or other charges on any
vehicular crossing, as defined, or toll highway. A violation of those
provisions is a crime.
   This bill would, except as specified, exempt authorized emergency
vehicles, as defined, from payment of a toll or charge on a vehicular
crossing, toll highway, or high-occupancy toll (HOT) lane and any
related fines, under specified conditions, including, but not limited
to, when the vehicle is being driven while responding to or
returning from an urgent or emergency call, engaged in an urgent or
emergency response, or engaging in a fire station coverage assignment
directly related to an emergency response.
   The bill would require, upon information and belief of the toll
operator that an authorized emergency vehicle is not in compliance
with these provisions, the fire chief, police chief, county sheriff,
head of the public agency, or his or her designee, upon the written
request of the owner or operator of the toll facility, to provide or
otherwise make accessible to the toll operator the dispatch records
or log books relevant to the time period when the vehicle was in use
on the toll highway or vehicular crossing. By imposing new duties on
local entities, this bill would impose a state-mandated local
program.
   (2) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse
local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
   This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no
reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
   With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that,
if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains
costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall
be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.



THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 23301 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read:
   23301.  Except as provided in Section 23301.5, each vehicle that
enters into or upon a vehicular crossing immediately becomes liable
for those tolls and other charges as may from time to time be
prescribed by the California Transportation Commission.
  SEC. 2.  Section 23301.5 is added to the Vehicle Code, to read:
   23301.5.  (a) An authorized emergency vehicle is exempt from any
requirement to pay a toll or other charge on a vehicular crossing,
toll highway, or high-occupancy toll (HOT) lane, including the
requirements of Section 23301, if all of the following conditions are
satisfied:
   (1) The authorized emergency vehicle is properly displaying an
exempt California license plate, and is properly identified or marked
as an authorized emergency vehicle, including, but not limited to,
displaying an external surface-mounted red warning light, blue
warning light, or both, and displaying public agency identification,
including, but not limited to, "Fire Department," "Sheriff," or
"Police."
   (2) (A) The vehicle is being driven while responding to or
returning from an urgent or emergency call, engaged in an urgent or
emergency response, or engaging in a fire station coverage assignment
directly related to an emergency response.
   (B) For purposes of this paragraph, an "urgent" response or call
means an incident or circumstance that requires an immediate response
to a public safety-related incident, but does not warrant the use of
emergency warning lights. "Urgent" does not include any personal
use, commuting, training, or administrative uses.
   (C) Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), an authorized emergency
vehicle, when returning from an urgent or emergency call, or from
being engaged in an urgent or emergency response, or from engaging in
a fire station coverage assignment directly related to an emergency
response, shall not be exempt from any requirement to pay a toll or
other charge imposed while traveling on a high-occupancy toll (HOT)
lane.
   (3) The driver of the vehicle determines that the use of the toll
facility shall likely improve the availability or response and
arrival time of the authorized emergency vehicle and its delivery of
essential public safety services.
   (b) If the operator of a toll facility elects to send a bill or
invoice to the public agency for the use of the toll facility by an
authorized emergency vehicle, exempt pursuant to subdivision (a), the
fire chief, police chief, county sheriff, head of the public agency,
or his or her designee, is authorized to certify in writing that the
authorized emergency vehicle was responding to or returning from an
emergency call or response and is exempt from the payment of the toll
or other charge in accordance with this section. The letter shall be
accepted by the toll operator in lieu of payment and is a public
document.
   (c) An authorized emergency vehicle that does not comply with this
section is not exempt from the requirement to pay a toll or other
charge on a toll highway, vehicular crossing, or high-occupancy toll
(HOT) lane. Upon information and belief of the toll operator that an
authorized emergency vehicle is not in compliance with this section,
the fire chief, police chief, county sheriff, head of the public
agency, or his or her designee, upon the written request of the owner
or operator of the toll facility, shall provide or otherwise make
accessible to the toll operator the dispatch records or log books
relevant to the time period when the vehicle was in use on the toll
highway, vehicular crossing, or high-occupancy toll (HOT) lane.
   (d) Nothing in this section shall prohibit or amend an agreement
entered into between the owner or operator of a toll facility and a
local emergency service provider that establishes mutually agreed
upon terms for the use of the toll facility by the emergency service
provider. This section shall not prohibit the owner or operator of a
toll facility from having a policy that meets or exceeds this
section. If at any time an emergency service provider or the owner or
operator of a toll facility opts to terminate an agreement regarding
the payment and processing of tolls or other charges, this section
shall apply to the emergency service provider and the toll facility.
An agreement between an emergency service provider and the owner or
operator of a toll facility does not exempt other emergency service
providers not named in the original agreement and the toll facility
from the requirements of this section when those other emergency
service providers use a toll facility in the jurisdiction of the
owner or operator of the toll facility.
   (e) Sections 23302 and 23302.5 do not apply to authorized
emergency vehicles exempt pursuant to this section.
    (f) As used in this section, "toll facility" includes a toll
road, high-occupancy toll (HOT) lane, toll bridge, toll highway, a
vehicular crossing for which payment of a toll or charge is required,
or any other toll facility.
  SEC. 3.  No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution for
certain costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district because, in that regard, this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.
   However, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that this
act contains other costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of
Title 2 of the Government Code.