An act to amend Section 2416 of the Vehicle Code, relating to vehicles.
Summary
AB 438 amends Section 2416 of the Vehicle Code, which governs which vehicles may receive an authorized emergency vehicle permit from the Commissioner of the California Highway Patrol. The bill adds a new category of eligible vehicle: a vehicle owned by a county, city, or city and county office of emergency services, but only when it is being used by a public employee of that office while responding to a disaster. The bill specifies that this includes disasters such as fires, floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, and hazardous materials spills.
By expanding the list of vehicles eligible for emergency permits, the bill allows local offices of emergency services to more readily use permit-authorized vehicles during disaster response. The permit status can affect how those vehicles operate in traffic and under emergency conditions, and the bill leaves in place the CHP commissioner’s authority to issue permits and adopt regulations for implementation. It also preserves the existing misdemeanor penalty for violating regulations adopted under the section.
Impact
The bill makes a targeted change to California Vehicle Code Section 2416 by adding local office of emergency services vehicles to the statutory list of vehicles that may qualify for authorized emergency vehicle permits. The change applies only when those vehicles are used by a public employee of the office in responding to a disaster, so it does not create a blanket emergency designation for all OES vehicles. The bill therefore affects county, city, and city and county offices of emergency services, as well as the CHP commissioner’s permitting authority and related regulatory enforcement.
Sentiment
The overall sentiment around AB 438 appears strongly favorable and noncontroversial. The bill advanced with unanimous votes at multiple stages, including committee votes and floor votes in both houses, and it was ultimately chaptered without recorded opposition. The consent-calendar treatment and repeated 0-nay votes suggest broad agreement that the change was a practical, limited update to disaster-response vehicle authority.
Contention
There is little evidence of substantive contention in the available record. The main policy question is whether local offices of emergency services should be added to the existing emergency-vehicle permit categories, but the bill narrows that authority to disaster response and to vehicles operated by public employees of the office. Because the measure is limited in scope and does not expand eligibility to private parties or general-purpose local vehicles, it appears to have drawn no notable opposition from committees or floor votes.
An act to add Section 13519.16 to the Penal Code, and to add the heading of Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 38750) to, and to add Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 38800) to, Division 16.6 of the Vehicle Code, relating to vehicles.