BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1010
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ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 1010 (Oropeza)
As Amended April 6, 2005
Majority vote
TRANSPORTATION 12-0 APPROPRIATIONS 13-5
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|Ayes:|Oropeza, Huff, Bogh, |Ayes:|Chu, Bass, Berg, |
| |Chan, | |Calderon, Mullin, |
| |Shirley Horton, Karnette, | |Karnette, Klehs, Leno, |
| |Mountjoy, Niello, Pavley, | |Nation, Oropeza, |
| |Ridley-Thomas, Salinas, | |Ridley-Thomas, Saldana, |
| |Torrico | |Yee |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
| | |Nays:|Sharon Runner, Emmerson, |
| | | |Haynes, Nakanishi, |
| | | |Walters |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Shifts responsibility for oversight of specified
at-grade rail crossings from the Public Utilities Commission (PUC)
to the Department of Transportation (Caltrans).
EXISTING LAW provides that any public transit guideway (tracks)
planned, acquired, or constructed after January 1, 1979, is
subject to the regulations of PUC relative to safety appliances
and procedures.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee
analysis, this bill would result in moderate one-time relocation
costs, in the range of $350,000, to Caltrans to transfer PUC staff
to its Rail Crossings Safety and Track Inspection Branch. (State
Highway Account, Public Transportation Account or eligible federal
funds.) There would also be a moderate cost shift, about $700,000
in the 2006-07 fiscal year and $1.4 million annually thereafter,
from PUC to Caltrans.
COMMENTS : The federal government has designated the
responsibility for rail public transit safety to state
governments. In California, these functions, including those
related to at-grade light rail lines, and rail crossing
applications rest with PUC. A quasi-judicial regulatory process
is utilized to carry out these review functions.
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The agency has responsibility to review all public and private
highway-rail crossings as well as the power to establish funding
priorities for construction of new, at-grade highway-rail
crossings (where roads and tracks intersect at the same level) and
construction of grade separations (underpasses or overheads where
train tracks are above or below the roadway). PUC staff reviews
proposals for crossings, investigates deficiencies of warning
devices or other safety features at existing at-grade crossings,
and recommends engineering improvements to prevent accidents.
According to a report from the Governor's California Performance
Review (CPR) Commission, there are 50 railroad corporations
operating within California, and there are about 11,000 public
grade crossings located within 52 counties and 400 cities.
Caltrans has a division known as the Rail Crossing Safety & Track
Branch (Branch) which reviews the list of eligible projects. This
Branch authorizes the local agencies to begin project development
and obtain required funding. If all requirements are met,
Caltrans enters into contracts with the railroads and local
agencies to improve the crossings.
According to representatives of the Federal Railroad
Administration (FRA), in most states the department of
transportation assumes responsibility for the rail crossing
program as well as the rail safety program. Apparently, only a
few states (California, Ohio, and Illinois) require that a
regulatory agency review and prioritize rail crossing improvement
projects.
The involvement of two agencies can result in duplication of
effort and can add uncertainty or confusion for local agencies as
well as extra time to complete the project.
Little Hoover Commission:
In 1996, the Little Hoover Commission (LHC) recommended that the
Governor and the Legislature transfer PUC's rail planning and
safety functions to the Business, Transportation and Housing
(BT&H) Agency. In its discussion on rail safety, LHC indicated
that multi-purpose regulation of the railroads is no longer a
critical function of the PUC. It stated that the dual-agency
coordination, review and prioritization of projects can slow the
process.
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In its report, LHC refers to a 1996 U.S. Department of
Transportation (U.S. DOT) report entitled "Accidents That
Shouldn't Happen," that identified a need to coordinate warning
signal inspections, track and highway maintenance, and a need for
better coordination in setting standards and designing
highway-rail crossings.
According to a representative of the Los Angeles Economic
Development Corporation (LAEDC), the rail crossing safety review
process has been a source of significant problems over the past
few years. Application approvals for new crossings have been
taking six to eight months for uncontested matters and up to two
years on crossings that are contested.
According to PUC's description of the Rail Crossings Engineering
Section 13, staff are responsible for the functions referred to in
this proposal; eight are located in Los Angeles, two are located
in San Francisco, and three are located in Sacramento.
The CPR Report estimates that the relocation expenses for these
employees are estimated to be a one-time cost of $250,000 during
the 2005-2006 fiscal year. In addition, there will be $53,000 in
costs associated with moving the office operations to Sacramento.
Shifting this responsibility to Caltrans would result in the
integration of rail planning and oversight responsibilities within
Caltrans. With the exception of charter party carriers and
household goods carriers, PUC has few other transportation-related
functions.
The PUC has historically held jurisdiction over whether or not a
public transportation rail crossing meets the letter of the law as
it relates to the appropriate public safety notices and devices.
In late 2004, a court held the opinion that in the case of "Santa
Clara Valley Transportation Authority vs. California Public
Utilities' Commission", that PUC did not have the authority to
review these types of projects, so long as all the appropriate
safety precautions, spelled-out in statute, were followed.
Analysis Prepared by : Andrew Antwih / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093
FN: 0010717
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