Several state bills dealing with Inland highways and roads cleared their houses of origin this week, beating a Friday deadline.
AB 1954 — The bill by Assemblyman Kevin Jeffries, R-Lake Elsinore, would let the Riverside County Transportation Commission build high-occupancy toll lanes on Interstate 15.
Yesterday Assemblyman Jeffries’ AB 1954 unanimously passed out of the Assembly Floor (73-0) with bi-partisan support. If approved by Senate and signed by the Governor, AB 1954 will authorize the Riverside County Transportation Commission (RCTC) to develop and administer a system of toll lanes in the medians of Interstate 15 between the San Bernardino County line and San Diego County line.
Measure A transportation tax dollars will be used to build one mixed flow (free and open to all) lane in each direction along the I-15 corridor, as promised when voters approved the measure in 1988.
Meanwhile, RCTC will build 2 new High Occupancy Toll (HOT) Lanes in each direction of the I-15 to relieve the traffic congestion generated by the growth of our region. RCTC would likely not have the financial capacity to build these lanes for another generation without the passage of AB 1954. .
The four HOT Lanes, which were not included in Measure A funding, will be paid for with future toll revenues, not taxes or another bond measure. Any extra money that comes from the toll fees must be spent on other transportation improvements solely within the I-15 corridor, which will continue to benefit the general public.
The HOT Lanes will benefit both toll lane users and non toll lane drivers alike. Each HOT Lane will offer an alternative to those drivers willing to pay the fee and will provide an incentive for carpooling by offering a free or a steeply discounted rate. Every paying customer and every carpool vehicle that rides on the HOT Lanes will remove a vehicle from the free lanes, easing congesting for everyone.
“I am pleased that the Assembly recognized the need for traffic congestion relief on I-15. This project won’t cost the state a penny. This is critical when California undergoes such a big budget deficit this year,” Jeffries said. “I also applaud the Riverside County Transportation Commission for their vision and dedication to improving traffic in the region, and their willingness to consider different approaches to increasing capacity on our roads, highways and freeways.”
AB 1954 now moves on to the Senate for further action.
Bills to Improve Transportation and Punish Arsonists Move to Assembly Floor
On Thursday, Assemblyman Kevin Jeffries (R-Lake Elsinore) succeeded in having three out of four of his bills be moved off the “Suspense File” and pass out of the Assembly Appropriations Committee. The Appropriations Committee is charged with examining the potential fiscal impact of proposed legislation.
Recognizing that California faces a massive budget deficit, Assemblyman Jeffries chose to author bills that represented little to no cost to the state. “I could not in good conscience increase spending when we are asking so many in the state to cut back”, said Assemblyman Jeffries. “In fact, several of our bills are tailor-made for tough state budget times, allowing local agencies to take over or accelerate projects that the state is no longer capable of managing.”
The following bills will move on to the Assembly Floor:
AB 1954- Establishes the authority for Riverside County Transportation Commission to build four new High Occupancy Toll lanes along I-15, in addition to two planned mixed use or “free” lanes adjacent to the toll facilities.
AB 1915- Requested by the City of Lake Elsinore and the City of Perris, this bill would allow the California Transportation Commission (CTC) to transfer ownership of the portions of Route 74 located within their borders from the state to the cities, so they can more easily maintain and manage the highway.
AB 1995- Extends the sunset on aggravated arson penalties, preserving an important law enforcement tool and penal provision.
One of Jeffries’ bills was held in Assembly Appropriations Committee and will not proceed further. AB 2490 would have established the California Public Safety Agency, by combining various public safety agencies throughout the state into one umbrella organization. “Reorganizing our state’s scattered safety agencies into a unified Public Safety Agency would go a long ways towards improving coordination, communications and training all of our state’s emergency first responders. Perhaps next year our budget crisis won’t be quite as severe and the entire legislature can begin to focus on government’s first priority – Public Safety.”
On Thursday, May 8th, AB 1852 by Assemblyman Kevin Jeffries (R-Lake Elsinore) passed the Assembly with overwhelming bipartisan support. This measure will decriminalize participation in sports betting pools, which under current law is a misdemeanor or felony offense, punishable by up to a $5000 fine and up to a year in prison. “Whether it’s Super Bowl Sunday, March Madness or the NBA Playoffs, countless Californians will take part in harmless pools at their office or amongst their friends.” Points out Jeffries, “And it just seems crazy to me that we would elevate this activity to such a high level of criminal prosecution.”
This legislation was prompted by an incident that occurred a little over a year ago in the city of Lake Elsinore. Margaret Hamblin 73, and Cari Gardner, 39, both of Wildomar were charged with operating a $50 football pool at the Lake Elsinore Elks Lodge. Hamblin and Gardner both plead not guilty. “The state spent thousands of taxpayer dollars to prosecute these two over a $50 football pool?” Jeffries asks. “I am sure that there are more issues that law enforcement and our courts can be addressing.”
AB 1852 would lesson this charge to an infraction punishable by a fine that is not to exceed $500. Jeffries believes that making this an infraction instead of a misdemeanor crime places this activity in a more appropriate category. “While our goal is not to legalize this sort of activity outright, we believe that it is important for the punishment to fit the crime”, stated Jeffries.
AB 1852 now goes over to the State Senate, where it will join other bills sponsored by Assemblyman Jeffries that would assist volunteer and tribal fire departments, help charitable organizations, and aid a local water district. Several bills still await action in the Assembly Appropriations Committee or on the Assembly Floor, including bills to consolidate the state’s public safety agencies, to allow Riverside County Transportation Commission to construct new High Occupancy Toll Lanes on I-15, to turn portions of HWY 74 over to the Cities of Lake Elsinore and Perris, and to protect property owners from false land deed scams.
“I’m very proud of the well-rounded legislative package we have submitted this year, and I’m hopeful that most of these will make their way all the way through the process and into law,” commented Jeffries.
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