Compare Versions


Bill PDF |Add To My Favorites | print page

SB-545 Vehicles: 24/7 Sobriety program.(2017-2018)



Current Version: 03/20/17 - Amended Senate

Compare Versions information image


SB545:v98#DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Senate  March 20, 2017

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill
No. 545

Introduced by Senator Beall

February 16, 2017

An act to add Section 23581 to the Vehicle Code, relating to vehicles.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 545, as amended, Beall. Vehicles: size, weight, and load. Vehicles: 24/7 Sobriety program.
Existing law prohibits a person who has 0.08% or more, by weight, of alcohol in his or her blood from driving a vehicle. Existing law also prohibits a person while having 0.08% or more, by weight, of alcohol in his or her blood from driving a vehicle and concurrently doing any act forbidden by law, or neglecting any duty imposed by law in driving the vehicle, when the act or neglect proximately causes bodily injury to a person other than the driver. A violation of either of these prohibitions is a crime. Existing law authorizes a court, in addition to imposing penalties and sanctions for those violations, to require the person to enroll and participate in, and successfully complete, a driving-under-the-influence program, which may include, among other things, education, group counseling, and individual interview sessions.
This bill would authorize the court to order a person convicted of a crime described above to enroll and participate in, and successfully complete, a qualified “24/7 Sobriety program,” as defined, as a condition of probation, if the program is available and deemed appropriate, and the person committed the crime within 10 years of one or more separate crimes described above that resulted in a conviction. The bill would define a “24/7 Sobriety program,” in part, as requiring a person in the program to abstain from alcohol and unauthorized controlled substances and be subject to frequent testing for alcohol and controlled substances, as specified. The bill would require a person participating in the program to pay the program costs, commensurate with the person’s ability to pay, as specified. The bill would require the Department of Motor Vehicles to establish statewide uniform collection and reporting of specified data about the 24/7 Sobriety program. The bill would authorize a county to establish a 24/7 Sobriety program.

Existing law generally regulates the size and weight of, and loads upon, vehicles when operated upon the highways. Existing law exempts authorized emergency vehicles owned or operated by a governmental agency when used under specified circumstances from those size, weight, and load limitations.

This bill would express the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation relating to regulating the weight of vehicles.

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

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


SECTION 1.

 Section 23581 is added to the Vehicle Code, to read:

23581.
 (a) The court may order a person convicted of a violation of Section 23152 or 23153 to enroll and participate in, and successfully complete, a qualified 24/7 Sobriety program, as described in subdivision (b), as a condition of probation, parole, sentence, or work permit if the program is available and deemed appropriate, and the person committed the current violation within 10 years of one or more separate violations of Section 23152 or 23153 that resulted in a conviction.
(b) For purposes of this section, a “24/7 Sobriety program” requires a participant to abstain from alcohol or controlled substance use for a designated period of time and be subject to at least twice-per-day breath testing for alcohol or periodic testing for controlled substances at a testing location. In the event of a hardship, testing for alcohol may be accomplished by a continuous transdermal monitoring device or by an alternative method approved by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Methodologies that provide immediate, in-person positive reinforcement for compliant behavior and the most immediate sanctions for noncompliant events are preferred testing methodologies under this program. However, a participant’s ability to maintain employment, schooling, or family life, usually due to lack of proximity to a testing location, may be considered a hardship for the purposes of this subdivision. The 24/7 Sobriety program methodology shall be evidence-based.
(c) A person ordered into a 24/7 Sobriety program may also be required to participate in any other driving-under-the-influence program required under California law, including, but not limited to, programs provided in Section 11836 of the Health and Safety Code.
(d) In order to enable all required defendants to participate, each person shall pay the program costs commensurate with the person’s ability to pay as determined pursuant to Section 11837.4 of the Health and Safety Code.
(e) The department shall establish statewide uniform collection and reporting of all of the following data:
(1) Participant demographic information.
(2) Participant case history information.
(3) Testing information, including testing duration, test results, testing attendance, and testing compliance.
(4) Fees and fee payments.
(f) A county may establish a 24/7 Sobriety program as defined in subdivision (b), but this section does not require a county to establish a 24/7 Sobriety program.

SECTION 1.

It is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation relating to regulating the weight of vehicles.