Bill Text: CA AB408 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Vehicles: disabled veterans.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Passed) 2020-09-09 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 42, Statutes of 2020. [AB408 Detail]

Download: California-2019-AB408-Introduced.html

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CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 408

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Introduced by Assembly Member Frazier

February 07, 2019

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An act to amend Sections 295.7 and 5007 of the Vehicle Code, relating to vehicles.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 408, as introduced, Frazier. Vehicles: disabled veterans.

Existing law authorizes the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue special license plates or distinguishing placards to disabled veterans for purposes of certain parking privileges. In issuing a special license plate to a disabled veteran, existing law requires the Department of Motor Vehicles to accept as proof of disability a certificate from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs certifying that the applicant is a disabled veteran. Existing law includes in the definition of disabled veteran a person who has a disability rated at 100% by the Department of Veterans Affairs or the military service from which the veteran was discharged that was a result of injury or disease suffered while on active service with the Armed Forces of the United States.

This bill would instead require the Department of Motor Vehicles to accept a certificate from a county veterans service officer or the Department of Veterans Affairs that certifies that the applicant for a special license plate is a disabled veteran. The bill would change the definition of “disabled veteran” to instead refer to a veteran who has combined service-connected disabilities with a 100% schedular or 100% total disability individual unemployability rating by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs or the military service from which the veteran was discharged.

Digest Key

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

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Bill Text

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

 Section 295.7 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read:

295.7.

 A “disabled veteran” is any person who, as a result of injury or disease suffered while on active service with the armed forces of the United States, a veteran who suffers any of the following:

(a) Has a disability which has been rated at combined service-connected disabilities with a 100 percent schedular rating or a 100 percent total disability individual unemployability rating by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs or the military service from which the veteran was discharged, due to a diagnosed disease or disorder which discharged that substantially impairs or interferes impair or interfere with mobility.

(b) Is so severely disabled as to be unable to move without the aid of an assistant assistive device.

(c) Has lost, or has lost use of, one or more limbs.

(d) Has suffered permanent blindness, as defined in Section 19153 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

SEC. 2.

 Section 5007 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read:

5007.

 (a) The department shall, upon application and without additional fees, issue a special license plate or plates pursuant to procedures adopted by the department to all of the following:

(1) A disabled person.

(2) A disabled veteran.

(3) An organization or agency involved in the transportation of disabled persons or disabled veterans if the motor vehicle that will have the special license plate is used solely for the purpose of transporting those persons.

(b) The special license plates issued under subdivision (a) shall run in a regular numerical series that shall include one or more unique two-letter codes reserved for disabled person license plates or disabled veteran license plates. The International Symbol of Access adopted pursuant to Section 3 of Public Law 100-641, commonly known as the “wheelchair symbol” shall be depicted on each plate.

(c) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (3), prior to before issuing a special license plate to a disabled person or disabled veteran, the department shall require the submission of a certificate, in accordance with paragraph (2), signed by the physician and surgeon, or to the extent that it does not cause a reduction in the receipt of federal aid highway funds, by a nurse practitioner, certified nurse midwife, or physician assistant, substantiating the disability, unless the applicant’s disability is readily observable and uncontested. The disability of a person who has lost, or has lost the use of, one or more lower extremities or one hand, for a disabled veteran, or both hands for a disabled person, or who has significant limitation in the use of lower extremities, may also be certified by a licensed chiropractor. The disability of a person related to the foot or ankle may be certified by a licensed podiatrist. The blindness of an applicant shall be certified by a licensed physician and surgeon who specializes in diseases of the eye or a licensed optometrist. The physician and surgeon, nurse practitioner, certified nurse midwife, physician assistant, chiropractor, or optometrist certifying the qualifying disability shall provide a full description of the illness or disability on the form submitted to the department.

(2) The physician and surgeon, nurse practitioner, certified nurse midwife, physician assistant, chiropractor, podiatrist, or optometrist who signs a certificate submitted under this subdivision shall retain information sufficient to substantiate that certificate and, upon request of the department, shall make that information available for inspection by the Medical Board of California or the appropriate regulatory board.

(3) For a disabled veteran, the department shall accept, in lieu of the certificate described in paragraph (1), a certificate from the United States a county veterans service officer or the Department of Veterans Affairs that certifies that the applicant is a disabled veteran as described in Section 295.7.

(d) A disabled person or disabled veteran who is issued a license plate or plates under this section shall, upon request, present to a peace officer, or person authorized to enforce parking laws, ordinances, or regulations, a certification form that substantiates the eligibility of the disabled person or veteran to possess the plate or plates. The certification shall be on a form prescribed by the department and contain the name of the disabled person or disabled veteran to whom the plate or plates were issued, and the name, address, and telephone number of the medical professional described in subdivision (c) who certified the eligibility of the person or veteran for the plate or plates.

(e) The certification requirements of subdivisions (c) and (d) do not apply to an organization or agency that is issued a special license plate or plates under paragraph (3) of subdivision (a).

(f) The special license plate shall, upon the death of the disabled person or disabled veteran, be returned to the department within 60 days or upon the expiration of the vehicle registration, whichever occurs first.

(g) When a motor vehicle subject to paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) is sold or transferred, the special license plate or plates issued to an organization or agency under paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) for that motor vehicle shall be immediately returned to the department.

(h) The department shall require a person who applies for a special license plate pursuant to this section to provide proof of his or her the applicant’s true full name and date of birth that shall be established by submitting one of the following to the department:

(1) A copy or facsimile of the applicant’s state issued driver’s license or identification card.

(2) A copy or facsimile of the document required for an applicant for a driver’s license or identification card to establish the applicant’s true full name.

(3) An applicant unable to establish legal presence in the United States may fulfill the true full name and date of birth requirement by providing the department a copy or facsimile of the documents used to establish identity pursuant to Section 12801.9.