Each new year brings changes in our laws. Don’t be caught unaware! A new set of laws went into effect on New Year’s Day.

In all, 1,187 bills were passed and 772 were signed into law—including over 80 changes to the Vehicle Code during the 2008 legislative year. Some of the other changes include fee increases to improve air quality, DUI penalties, and a new special interest license plate.
Among the new laws is SB 28, which coincides with the cell phone law of 2007 and prohibits text messaging with a cell phone or other textbased communications while driving a vehicle. This new law  makes it an infraction for a driver to write, send, or read text-based communication on an electronic  wireless communication device, such as a cell phone.

AB 2241, limits the issuance of temporary operating permits to those individuals whose vehicles have yet to pass a smog check. The law calls for a $50 fee for one 60-day temporary operating permit only if the vehicle has been tested at a smog station and failed. In the past, owners were able to secure a temporary operating permit for 60 days or more if, after paying their renewal fees on time, they were unable to get a smog certificate for any reason.

The continued operation of vehicles that have not met California’s smog test requirements is estimated to be emitting one to two tons per day of hydrocarbons and oxides of nitrogen. The "Counterfeit Clean Air Stickers" Bill (SB 1720) will make it a crime to forge, counterfeit, or falsify a Clean Air Sticker. These stickers are currently issued by DMV to certain low emission vehicles and permit vehicles with these stickers to be driven in the HOV lane.

AB 2042 allows law enforcement officers to impound vehicles that are being sold by unlicensed dealers. A change in the driving under the influence (DUI) Traffic Safety, Consumer Protection Top New Laws.

The law creates a new authority for DMV to administratively suspend the driver’s license for one year under a zero tolerance standard, under AB 1165. The new law authorizes law enforcement to issue a notice of suspension, and impound the vehicle of a person who is driving with a blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.01 percent or greater while on court-ordered post-DUI probation. The *San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District Fee" Bill (AB) imposes a $6 air quality fee on vehicle owners who register their vehicles in San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Merced, Madera, Fresno, Kings, and Tulare Counties and Valley portions of Kern County.

The fee will be assessed to help fund programs to reduce vehicle emissions. SB 1455 introduces a new "Gold Star Family" special interest license, available to family members of individuals killed in the line of duty while serving in the Armed Forces during wartime or military operations.

A new law (AB 2272) changes the definition of a motorcycle, deleting the existing weight limitation of 1500 pounds. It also removes a separate definition for electrically-powered vehicles. This change in law will also allow drivers of fully-enclosed 3- wheeled motor vehicles to use the High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes.

To easily access the California Vehicle Code for further information, log on to the DMV website at www.dmv.ca.gov and click on the "Publications" button in the upper left-hand corner of the home page. The DMV driver handbook is also on the web at the same location.

The 2009 version of the handbook will be published for distribution to all 169 DMV field officers shortly
after the first of the year.