BILL NUMBER: AB 338	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 19, 2015

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Roger Hernández

                        FEBRUARY 13, 2015

   An act to  amend   add  Section 
130001 of   130350.7 to,  the Public Utilities
Code, relating to transportation.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 338, as amended, Roger Hernández.  County
transportation commissions: Los Angeles County.   Los
Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority: transactions
and use tax.  
   Existing law authorizes the Los Angeles County Metropolitan
Transportation Authority (MTA) to impose, in addition to any other
tax that it is authorized to impose, a transactions and use tax at a
rate of 0.5% for the funding of specified transportation-related
projects and programs, subject to various requirements, including the
adoption of an expenditure plan and voter approval. Existing law
authorizes the MTA to seek voter approval to extend the transactions
and use tax pursuant to an amended ordinance, subject to various
requirements, including adoption of an amended expenditure plan that,
among other things, updates certain cost estimates and identifies
expected completion dates for projects and programs under the
previous expenditure plan, and also requires the amended expenditure
plan to be included in an updated long range transportation plan, as
specified.  
   This bill would authorize the MTA to impose an additional
transportation transactions and use tax at a rate of 0.5%, for a
period not to exceed 30 years, subject to various requirements,
including the adoption of an expenditure plan and voter approval.
 
   The Transactions and Use Tax Law limits to 2% the combined rate of
all transactions and use taxes imposed in any county, with certain
exceptions.  
   This bill would exempt the transactions and use tax authorized by
the bill from this limitation.  
   The County Transportation Commissions Act provides for the
creation of county transportation commissions with specified powers
and duties in the southern California region, including Los Angeles
County. The act makes various legislative findings regarding the
transportation needs of the region.  
   The bill would make an additional legislative finding that
transportation resources should be equitably distributed within Los
Angeles County. 
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  no
  yes  . State-mandated local program: no.


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

   SECTION 1.    The Legislature finds and declares all
of the following:  
   (a) Various economic studies have shown that the biggest burden on
family incomes is the cost of housing and transportation. These two
variables greatly affect the quality of life for Californians. 

   (b) Los Angeles County voters have recognized the importance of
investing in a transportation network that is responsive to the needs
of commuters and transit users and that facilitates the movement of
goods in the region. Los Angeles County has three existing
voter-approved sales tax measures for transportation projects
administered by Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation
Authority (MTA).  
   (c) In 1980, voters in Los Angeles County approved Proposition A,
a sales tax of one-half of 1 percent on most retail sales in Los
Angeles County. The MTA returns 25 percent of Proposition A proceeds
to the cities in Los Angeles County for transportation purposes.
Thirty-five percent of Proposition A proceeds is required to be used
for rail development while the remaining 40 percent is for
discretionary purposes. Almost all of the discretionary portion is
used to fund bus service provided by the MTA and 16 other municipal
bus operators within Los Angeles County. The collection of the sales
tax is ongoing.  
   (d) In 1990, voters in Los Angeles County approved Proposition C,
an additional sales tax of one-half of 1 percent on retail sales in
Los Angeles County. The MTA returns 20 percent of Proposition C
proceeds to the cities in Los Angeles County for transportation
purposes. Forty percent of the Proposition C proceeds is required to
be used for construction and operation of the bus transit and rail
system, 5 percent to expand rail and bus security, 10 percent for
commuter rail, and construction of transit centers, park and ride
lots, and freeway bus stops, and 25 percent for transit-related
improvements to freeways and state highways. The collection of the
sales tax is ongoing.  
   (e) Most recently, voters in Los Angeles County approved Measure R
in 2008. Measure R is an ordinance authorizing an additional sales
tax of one-half of 1 percent to fund traffic relief and rail
expansion according to an expenditure plan contained in the
ordinance. Measure R became effective July 1, 2009, and will remain
in effect for 30 years.  
   (f) MTA has been entrusted with the responsibility and has the
voters' confidence that it will protect and use the sales tax funding
responsibly and according to the rules approved by the voters.
   SEC. 2.    Section 130350.7 is added to the 
 Public Utilities Code   , to read:  
   130350.7.  (a) The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation
Authority (MTA), in addition to any other tax it is authorized to
impose or has imposed, may impose a transactions and use tax at the
rate of 0.5 percent, for a period not to exceed 30 years, that is
applicable in the incorporated and unincorporated areas of the County
of Los Angeles.
   (b) The ordinance imposing the tax shall contain all of the
following:
   (1) An expenditure plan that lists the transportation projects and
programs to be funded from net revenues from the tax. The
expenditure plan shall appear in the ordinance as an exhibit. The
expenditure plan shall include measures that ensure net revenues are
shared equitably between regions of the county.
   (2) Provisions conforming to the Transactions and Use Tax Law
(Part 1.6 (commencing with Section 7251) of Division 2 of the Revenue
and Taxation Code), except as otherwise provided in subdivision (f).

   (3) A provision limiting the MTA's costs of administering the
ordinance and the net revenues from the tax to 1.5 percent of the
total tax revenues.
   (4) A requirement that the net revenues from the tax, defined to
mean the total tax revenues less any refunds, costs of administration
by the State Board of Equalization, and the MTA's administration
costs, shall be used by the MTA to fund transportation projects and
programs identified in the expenditure plan.
   (5) A requirement that the MTA, during the period that the
ordinance is operative, allocate ____ percent of all net revenues
derived from the tax for bus operations. These revenues shall be
allocated to all eligible and included municipal transit operators in
the County of Los Angeles and to the MTA, in accordance with Section
99285. However, the allocations to the MTA and eligible and included
municipal operators shall be made solely from revenues derived from
a tax imposed pursuant to this section, and not from local
discretionary sources. Funds allocated by MTA to itself pursuant to
this section shall be used for transit operations and shall not
supplant funds from any other source allocated by MTA to itself for
public transit operations. Funds allocated by MTA to the eligible and
included municipal operators pursuant to this section shall be used
for transit operations and shall not supplant any funds authorized by
other provisions of law and allocated by MTA to the eligible and
included municipal operators for public transit. In addition to this
amount, the MTA shall allocate ____ percent of all net revenues
derived from the tax for rail operations.
   (c) The MTA shall notify the Legislature prior to the adoption of
amendments to the adopted expenditure plan.
   (d) The ordinance shall be adopted by the MTA board, which shall
also adopt a resolution that submits the ordinance to the voters.
   (e) The ordinance shall become operative pursuant to Section
130352 if approved by two-thirds of the voters voting on the measure,
pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 2 of Article XIII C of the
California Constitution.
   (f) The MTA may incur bonded indebtedness payable from the net
revenues of the tax pursuant to the bond issuance provisions of this
chapter and any successor act.
   (g) The tax authorized by this section shall be imposed pursuant
to the Transactions and Use Tax Law (Part 1.6 (commencing with
Section 7251) of Division 2 of the Revenue and Taxation Code),
notwithstanding the combined rate limitation in Section 7251.1 of the
Revenue and Taxation Code.  
  SECTION 1.    Section 130001 of the Public
Utilities Code is amended to read:
   130001.  The Legislature hereby finds and declares that:
   (a) Public demand for an efficient public transportation system in
the southern California region resulting from population sprawl, the
concentration of many transit dependent citizens in the large urban
areas, and increasing mobility requirements indicates a need for
improved, as well as more innovative, policy and decisionmaking
institutions to resolve these problems.
   (b) A basic purpose of transportation policy within the region
should be to avoid undesirable duplication of transportation
services, achieve the operation of a coordinated and integrated
transportation system which will reduce automobile usage and
dependency, reduce the consumption of scarce and expensive energy
fuels, and reduce the levels of automobile-related air pollution.
   (c) Recognizing the scarcity of resources available for all
transportation development, the commissions shall give priority to
low-cost highway and transit improvements, and shall work toward
maximizing the effectiveness of existing resources available to the
commissions.
   (d) Recognizing the importance of the state highway system in the
Los Angeles metropolitan area to bus, automobile, and freight
transportation, it is necessary to maintain this highway system at
least at its present operating standards and to increase the
person-moving capability of this system by such methods as
carpooling, improved traffic operations, exclusive busways, and
fringe parking facilities.
   (e) Recognizing the geographic diversity and transportation needs
in Los Angeles County, transportation resources should be equitably
distributed within the county.
   (f) The transportation system should offer adequate public
transportation to all citizens, including those immobilized by
poverty, age, physical handicaps, or other reasons.
   (g) The cities and local communities acting singly or jointly
should be given more responsibilities for designing and providing
local transit services to improve the responsiveness of public
transit to public needs.
   (h) The transportation decisionmaking process should be responsive
to public values, and provide for the continuing involvement of the
public in the preparation, revision, and discussion of transportation
plans and services.
   (i) Transportation planning should recognize that transportation
systems have significant effect on the physical and socioeconomic
characteristics of the areas served, and emphasis should be given to
the protection and enhancement of the environment and the restoration
of blighted neighborhoods near community centers. Los Angeles
County, in particular, is a multicentered area with diverse
socioeconomic levels and travel patterns, and a majority of the trips
in the county are four miles or less.