As with prior years, California continues to enact legislation aiming to increase the use of electric vehicles (EVs) as well as hydrogen fueled vehicles (HFVs). In 2024, California passed legislation focusing on making EV and HFV charging stations more reliable and accessible. Foreseeing the use of autonomous vehicles in the near future, California passed legislation relating to liability for accidents caused by autonomous vehicles and legislation aimed at assisting the police in investigating accidents involving autonomous vehicles. In addition, based on intense lobbying efforts by certain auto manufacturers, particularly General Motors, California enacted legislation aimed at streamlining and expecting claims made under the Song Beverly Act, California’s Lemon Law.

AB 2536 — Vehicles

What the law currently requires

Existing law authorizes a county, upon the adoption of a resolution by its board of supervisors, to impose a specified fee, in addition to other fees imposed for the registration of a vehicle, to be expended in part to fund programs to deter, investigate, and prosecute vehicle theft crimes.

How the bill changes the law

This bill, for purposes of this requirement, defines “vehicle theft crimes” to include the theft of vehicle parts or components.

AB 1774 — Vehicles

What the law currently requires

Existing law defines an “electric bicycle” (often referred to as “E-bikes”) as a bicycle equipped with fully operable pedals and an electric motor of less than 750 watts, and requires electric bicycles to comply with specified equipment and manufacturing requirements.

Existing law prohibits a person from tampering with or modifying an electric bicycle so as to change the speed capability of the bicycle, unless they appropriately replace the label indicating the classification required. A violation of the Vehicle Code is a crime.

How the bill changes the law

This bill clarifies that the exception to the “tampering” prohibition only applies if the bicycle continues to meet the definition of an electric bicycle. This bill also prohibits a person from selling a product or device that can modify the speed capability of an electric bicycle such that it no longer meets the definition of an electric bicycle.

AB 2111 — License plates

What the law currently requires

Existing law prohibits a person from erasing the reflective coating of, painting over the reflective coating of, or altering a license plate to avoid visual or electronic capture of the license plate or its characters by state or local law enforcement. A violation of this provision is an infraction.

How the bill changes the law

This bill prohibits these acts to avoid visual or electronic capture of the license plate or its characters generally without regard to their capture by state or local law enforcement. The bill also prohibits a person or business from selling a product or device that obscures, or is intended to obscure, the reading or recognition of a license plate by visual means, or by an electronic device.

AB 1849 — Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act

What the law currently requires

The Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act (also known as the Lemon Law) requires every manufacturer of consumer goods sold in the state for which the manufacturer has made an express warranty to maintain sufficient service and repair facilities to carry out the terms of the warranties. Another part of the Lemon law, the Tanner Consumer Protection Act, applies specifically to motor vehicles.

Existing law requires a manufacturer or its representative who fails to service or repair goods pursuant to an express warranty, after a reasonable number of attempts, to replace those goods or to reimburse the buyer.

How the bill changes the law

Even before AB 1849, Song-Beverly already covered “mobilehomes” and “travel trailers.” Now, the portion of the law addressing travel trailers has been amended to include “motor homes” as they are defined in the Tanner Consumer Protection Act, i.e., “a vehicular unit built on, or permanently attached to, a self-propelled motor vehicle chassis, chassis cab, or van, which becomes an integral part of the completed vehicle, designed for human habitation for recreational or emergency occupancy.” This definition would include a recreational vehicle (RV).

Song-Beverly includes a special provision for travel trailers, explicitly stating that the buyer is free to choose reimbursement instead of replacement, “and in no event shall the buyer be required by the manufacturer to accept a replacement travel trailer.” AB 1849 amends that section of the law by adding “motor homes” to this provision alongside travel trailers. Importantly, the amendment also includes the “portion of a motor home designed, used, or maintained for human habitation” to the repair requirement.

This amendment brings the entire motor home under the purview of the Lemon Law. Previously, only the motorized portion of a motor home, i.e., the chassis, was covered. For defects affecting the livable portion of the motor home, consumers had to look instead to the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, which is a federal lemon law that gives consumers similar rights to California lemon law, although the federal law is less specific and less powerful than California’s law, and claims would have to be pursued in federal court rather than state court.

AB 1755 — Civil actions

What the law currently requires

Existing law, the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act (“Song-Beverly”), provides that if a manufacturer of a new motor vehicle, or the manufacturer’s in-state representative, is unable to service or repair the vehicle to conform to the applicable express warranties after a reasonable number of attempts, the manufacturer must either repurchase or replace the vehicle. Existing law, the Tanner Consumer Protection Act, creates the presumption that a reasonable number of attempts have been made to conform a new motor vehicle to the applicable express warranties if specified conditions are met.

Under existing law, the buyer of a new motor vehicle may not assert this presumption until after the buyer has initially resorted to a qualified third-party dispute resolution process, if that process exists and certain additional conditions are met. Existing law provides that if, among other things, a qualified third-party dispute resolution process does not exist, the buyer of a new motor vehicle may assert the above presumption in an action to enforce the buyer’s rights under Song-Beverly.

Existing law provides that the buyer of a new motor vehicle who is damaged by a manufacturer’s failure to comply with specified requirements of Song-Beverly or the Tanner Consumer Protection Act may bring an action for the recovery of damages and other equitable and legal relief.

Existing law provides that if the buyer establishes that the manufacturer’s failure to comply was willful, the judgment may also include a civil penalty which shall not exceed two times the amount of actual damages.

How the bill changes the law

The intent of this legislation is twofold. First, to allow consumers to obtain relief faster under the Lemon Laws, whether through restitution or a replacement vehicle, and to get back on the road faster and secondly, to reduce the burden on the California judicial system. The bill seeks to accomplish these dual aims by the following:

• Creating a pre-dispute notice requirement, which ensures the consumer notifies the correct contacts at the manufacturer via the pre-dispute notice. Oftentimes, the consumer’s problem can be solved just by talking to the right person.
• Incentivizing consumers and manufacturers to more quickly resolve claims by permitting consumers to obtain civil penalties if they comply with this requirement, while penalizing manufacturers with the possibility of civil penalties if they do not comply with this requirement.
• Creating an early mandatory mediation process that puts the manufacturer and consumer together earlier on in the process in the hopes that more contact that the consumer has with the right contact at the manufacturer, the more likely a resolution can be reached. Early mandatory mediation also allows for cases to be settled earlier, which reduces the burden on a judge’s docket.
• Streamlining document production for both sides to hopefully reduce the number and cost of discovery battles.
• Streamlining the civil procedural process of consumer warranty claims, which is currently rather drawn out, thus reducing the burden on the judicial system.

Changes to DMV Regulations Regarding Physical Retention of Deal Records

What the law currently requires

DMV regulations require dealers to retain “all business records relating to vehicle transactions” (sales and lease contracts, precontract disclosure statements, etc.) for three years, and the DMV may inspect such records. (13 CCR § 272.02.)

However, the Automobile Sales and Finance Act separately requires dealers to retain documents related to vehicle sales for at least seven years, or the duration of the contract, whichever is greater. (Civil Code section 2984.5.)

So, any dealership retention policy for documents pertaining to the purchase and sale of motor vehicle should have a retention period of at least seven years (and not the three-year period required by the DMV).

If the documents were originally on paper, the DMV requires dealers to physically retain all original business records related to sale, lease, and rental transactions for 90 days. After the initial 90-day period, a dealer may store documents electronically or off-site. If the documents are stored off-site, they must be retrievable upon three business days’ notice

How the new regulation changes the law

In 2024, DMV regulations were updated to allow dealers to avoid the 90-day physical retention requirement if the original documents were executed electronically. (13 CCR § 272.02.) The DMV states that if the documents are stored electronically, the electronic copies must comply with various requirements that are designed to maintain the integrity of the record.

AB 2741 — Rental car companies

What the law currently requires

Existing law generally governs the transactions between a rental company, also referred to as a “rental car company,” and its customers. Existing law prohibits a rental company from using, accessing, or obtaining any information relating to the renter’s use of the rental vehicle that was obtained using electronic surveillance technology, except under specified circumstances.

Existing law, until January 1, 2028, authorizes a rental company to activate electronic surveillance technology if the rental vehicle has not been returned following 72 hours after the contracted return date or by 72 hours following the end of an extension of that return date.

Existing law requires the rental company to provide notice of activation of the electronic surveillance technology (by telephone and electronically) 24 hours prior to activation. Existing law, except as specified, requires the rental or lease agreement to advise the renter that electronic surveillance technology may be activated if the rental vehicle has not been returned within 72 hours of the return date. Existing law requires the advisement to also be made orally to the renter at the time of executing the rental or lease agreement.

How the bill changes the law

This bill deletes the January 1, 2028 “Sunset Date” thereby extending those provisions, as further revised by the bill, indefinitely. The bill decreases the time that a rental company must wait after the contracted or extended return date before activating electronic surveillance technology from 72 hours to 24 hours. The bill also specifies that the oral advisement shall be made if the transaction is completed in person or by telephone.

AB 2863 — Automatic renewal and continuous service offers

What the law currently requires

Existing law regulates automatic renewal offers and continuous service offers that businesses make to California consumers. Existing law defines “automatic renewal” for these purposes to mean a plan or arrangement in which a paid subscription or purchasing agreement is automatically renewed at the end of a definite term for a subsequent term. Existing law also defines “continuous service” to mean a plan or arrangement in which a subscription or purchasing agreement continues until the consumer cancels the service.

Existing law makes it unlawful for a business that makes an automatic renewal offer or continuous service offer to a consumer in this state to take or fail to take certain actions relating to the communication of, and consent to, the terms of the offer. In this regard, existing law requires, among other things, the business to present the terms in a clear and conspicuous manner before the subscription or purchasing agreement is fulfilled and in visual or temporal proximity to the request for consent to the offer, as specified. Existing law also requires the business to provide an acknowledgment that includes the automatic renewal offer terms or continuous service offer terms, cancellation policy, and information regarding how to cancel in a specified manner.

Existing law requires a business that makes an automatic renewal offer or continuous service offer to provide various methods for cancellation or termination, including by toll-free telephone number, email address, a postal address, another cost-effective, timely, and easy-to-use mechanism for cancellation, or online if specified requirements are met.

Existing law requires, in the case of a material change in the terms of the automatic renewal or continuous service that has been accepted by a consumer in this state, the business to provide the consumer with a clear and conspicuous notice of the material change and information regarding how to cancel in a specified manner.

Existing law requires a business that made an automatic renewal or continuous service offer that includes a free gift or trial, a promotional or discounted price, or an initial term of one year or longer, as specified, to provide the consumer with a certain notice a certain number of days before the promotional period expires or the offer automatically renews, as prescribed. Existing law requires the notice to clearly and conspicuously state specified information, including that the service will automatically renew unless the consumer cancels and the method by which the consumer can cancel the service.

How the bill changes the law

AB 2863, commencing July 1, 2025, requires that consumers be able to cancel an automatically renewed subscription in the same manner the consumer used to subscribe to the continuous service in the first place, specifically, it requires businesses to provide cancellation options in the same medium in which the consumer is accustomed to interacting with the business.

The bill provides if a consumer requests to cancel by telephone, the business may present the consumer with a discounted offer, retention benefit, or information regarding the effect of cancellation, provided that the business first clearly and conspicuously informs the consumer they may complete the cancellation process at any time by stating that they want to “cancel” or words to that effect. Additionally, if a consumer conveys a request to cancel by an online system, the business may display a discounted offer, retention benefit, or information regarding the effects of cancellation, provided that the business simultaneously displays a prominently located and continuously and proximately displayed direct link or button entitled “click to cancel,” or words to that effect.

AB 1901 — Vehicles: total loss claim

What the law currently requires

1. Existing law requires, if an insurance company makes a total loss settlement on a total loss salvage vehicle or a nonrepairable vehicle, the insurance company, an occupational licensee of the Department of Motor Vehicles (“DMV”) authorized by the insurance company, or a salvage pool authorized by the insurance company to, within 10 days from the settlement of the loss or after receipt of title, forward the properly endorsed certificate of ownership or other evidence of ownership acceptable to the DMV, the license plates, and a fee, to the DMV, and requires the DMV, upon receipt of those required items, to issue a salvage certificate or a nonrepairable vehicle certificate for the vehicle. A violation of the Vehicle Code is an infraction.
2. Existing law requires, whenever a salvage pool acquires a total loss salvage vehicle, a nonrepairable vehicle, or a recovered stolen vehicle and the vehicle license plates have not been removed pursuant to specified statutes, the salvage pool, prior to disposing of that vehicle, to remove and submit the license plates to the DMV.

How the bill changes the law

1. This bill, if an insurance company requests a salvage pool or an occupational licensee to take possession of a vehicle that is the subject of a total loss claim, and, subsequently, the insurance company does not take ownership of the vehicle, authorizes the insurance company to direct the salvage pool or occupational licensee to release the vehicle to the registered and legal owner or lienholder of the vehicle after notice from the insurance company authorizing the release.

   The bill requires the salvage pool or occupational licensee to send two notices to the registered and legal owner and any lienholder of the vehicle informing them that they have 30 days from the date of mailing of the first notice and 14 days from the date of mailing of the 2nd notice, and that they have the right to contact the salvage pool or occupational licensee of the department regarding their intent to pick up the vehicle in order to receive an additional 30 days from the date of contact, to pick up the vehicle from the salvage pool or occupational licensee before the vehicle is deemed abandoned. If the registered and legal owner or any lienholder of the vehicle does not pick up the vehicle in those timelines, the bill requires the vehicle to be deemed abandoned and requires the vehicle’s certificate of title to be deemed to be assigned to the salvage pool or occupational licensee of the department.

   The bill authorizes the salvage pool or occupational licensee to request on a form signed under penalty of perjury that the DMV issue a salvage certificate or nonrepairable vehicle certificate for the vehicle, as specified, and would require the DMV to issue the certificate.

2. This bill also requires a salvage pool to remove and submit a vehicle’s license plates to the DMV for a vehicle the salvage pool acquires through the provisions above and the license plates have not been removed.

AB 2453 — Weights and measures

What the law currently provides

Existing law provides that the Department of Food and Agriculture has general supervision of the weights and measures and weighing and measuring devices sold or used in the state, including devices used to measure electricity sold as a motor vehicle fuel. Existing law regulates the use and repair of weighing or measuring devices. Existing law authorizes a device to be placed in service only by a sealer or a service agency.

How the bill changes the law

This bill would prohibit, until January 1, 2028, requiring electric vehicle supply equipment (“EVSE”) to be retested or placed in service by a service agency or sealer, if the EVSE has previously been placed in service by a service agency or sealer, before the EVSE is used after receiving maintenance, as specified.

AB 2678 — Vehicles

What the law currently requires

Existing state law authorizes the Department of Transportation to designate certain lanes for the exclusive use of high-occupancy vehicles (“HOVs”).

Existing federal law authorizes, until September 30, 2025, a state to allow specified alternate fuel and plug-in electric or hybrid vehicles to use lanes designated for HOVs.

Existing state law authorizes the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue decals or other identifiers to qualified vehicles, as specified. Existing state law allows a vehicle displaying a valid decal or identifier issued pursuant to these provisions to be operated in a lane designated for the exclusive use of HOVs regardless of the occupancy of the vehicle.

These existing state laws, by operation of their provisions, become inoperative on the date the federal authorization expires. Existing state law also repeals these provisions on September 30, 2025.

How the bill changes the law

This bill extends the repeal date of these provisions until January 1, 2027.

AB 2743 — Insurance

What the law currently requires

Existing law generally regulates classes of insurance, including automobile liability insurance. Existing law prohibits classifying a private passenger motor vehicle as a commercial vehicle, for-hire vehicle, permissive use vehicle, or livery solely because its owner allows it to be shared, if specified criteria are met, including if the annual revenue received by the vehicle’s owner generated by the personal vehicle sharing of the vehicle does not exceed the annual expenses of owning and operating the vehicle.

Existing law requires a personal vehicle sharing program, for each vehicle that it facilitates the use of, among other things, to provide insurance coverages for the vehicle and operator of the vehicle that are equal to or greater than the insurance coverages maintained by the vehicle owner, but no less than three times the minimum coverage amounts for private passenger vehicles.

Existing law requires an owner or operator of a motor vehicle, or an owner of a vehicle used to transport passengers for hire not regulated by the Public Utilities Commission, to maintain liability insurance coverage for the named insured and any other person using the vehicle with permission in the amount of $15,000 for the bodily injury or death of any one person, $30,000 for the bodily injury or death of all persons, and $5,000 for damage to the property of others resulting from any one accident. Existing law increases these minimum amounts to $30,000, $60,000, and $15,000, respectively, on January 1, 2025.

How the bill changes the law

This bill requires a personal vehicle sharing program to provide, instead, insurance coverages for the vehicle and operator at a minimum of $45,000 for bodily injury or death for one person, $90,000 for bodily injury or death for all persons, and $15,000 for property damage, and, on and after January 1, 2031, to provide liability coverage at least three times the minimum insurance requirements for private passenger vehicles.

The bill requires a personal vehicle sharing program to disclose to a vehicle owner and any person that operates the vehicle specified information, including the minimum mandatory coverage and limits that the personal vehicle sharing program is required to provide and the coverages and limits provided.

The bill requires a personal vehicle sharing program to disclose in writing specified information to the vehicle owner, including that the vehicle owner’s personal automobile insurance may expressly exclude coverage for the vehicle while it is being operated pursuant to a personal vehicle sharing program. A violation of these requirements would make a person liable for a specified civil penalty.

AB 1777 — Autonomous vehicles

What the law currently provides

Existing law authorizes the operation of an autonomous vehicle on public roads for testing purposes by a driver who possesses the proper class of license for the type of vehicle operated if specified requirements are satisfied.

Existing law prohibits the operation of an autonomous vehicle on public roads until the manufacturer submits an application to the Department of Motor Vehicles, and that application is approved. Existing law requires the department to adopt regulations setting forth requirements for the submission and approval of an application, including, among other things, any testing, equipment, and performance standards the department concludes are necessary to ensure the safe operation of autonomous vehicles on public roads, as specified.

How the bill changes the law

Commencing July 1, 2026, the bill requires manufacturers of autonomous vehicles that operate without a human operator physically present in the vehicle to comply with certain requirements, including, among other things, to maintain a dedicated emergency response telephone line that is available for emergency response officials, and to equip each autonomous vehicle with a 2-way voice communication device that enables emergency response officials that are near the vehicle to communicate effectively with a remote human operator.

Commencing July 1, 2026, the bill authorizes an emergency response official to issue an emergency “geofencing message” to a manufacturer and would require a manufacturer to direct its fleet to leave or avoid the area identified within two minutes of receiving an emergency geofencing message.

The bill authorizes peace officers to issue of notices of autonomous vehicle noncompliance upon observing an alleged violation of the Vehicle Code or upon observing an alleged violation of a local traffic ordinance adopted pursuant to the Vehicle Code by an autonomous vehicle while the autonomous technology is engaged. The bill requires the notice to identify, at minimum, the alleged violation, as specified, the date, time, and location of the alleged violation, and the license plate number of the vehicle.

The bill requires a manufacturer of an autonomous vehicle to provide the DMV with any issued notice of autonomous vehicle noncompliance within 72 hours of issuance, or within a timeframe otherwise determined by the DMV.

The bill requires the DMV to adopt regulations setting forth requirements for the processes related to notices of autonomous vehicle noncompliance and prohibits the above-described provisions from becoming operative until the regulations are adopted.

AB 2037 — Weights and measures

What the law currently requires

Existing law regulates advertising that indicates the price of motor vehicle fuel, including electricity sold as a motor vehicle fuel. Existing law requires a county sealer to enforce the advertising requirements. Existing law makes a violation of these provisions a crime.

Existing law defines “correct,” for purposes of testing and verifying the accuracy of a weighing or measuring device, as a weight or measure or a weighing, measuring, or counting instrument that meets certain tolerance and specification requirements.

How the bill changes the law

This bill, beginning January 1, 2026, authorizes a county sealer to test and verify as correct any electric vehicle charger operated by a public agency that is located in the county in which the sealer has jurisdiction. The bill requires a county sealer, upon testing and finding that an electric vehicle charger operated by a public agency is incorrect, to cause it to be marked with the words “out of order” and require the charger to be repaired or corrected.

The bill authorizes a county board of supervisors to charge an annual registration fee for the cost of inspecting and testing an electric vehicle charger operated by a public agency. The bill authorizes a county sealer to levy a civil penalty against a public agency, or a vendor or entity contracted by the public agency to provide and maintain electric vehicle charger services on behalf of the public agency, that removes or obliterates a tag or device placed on an electric vehicle charger operated by a public agency.

The bill exempts an electric vehicle charger from testing and verification by a county sealer if it is owned by a local publicly owned electric utility, and if certain requirements are met.

SB 1418 — Hydrogen-fueling stations

What the law currently requires

Existing law, the Planning and Zoning Law, requires every city, county, and city and county to administratively approve an application to install electric vehicle charging stations and hydrogen-fueling stations through the issuance of a building permit or similar nondiscretionary permit.

Existing law, the Planning and Zoning Law, requires each city, county, and city and county to adopt an ordinance that creates an expedited, streamlined permitting process for electric vehicle charging stations. Existing law authorizes a city, county, or city and county developing an ordinance to refer to the recommendations contained in the most current version of the “Plug-In Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Permitting Checklist,” as specified. Existing law requires a city, county, and city and county, in developing the expedited permitting process, to adopt a checklist of all requirements with which electric vehicle charging stations must comply to be eligible for expedited review.

For these purposes, existing law defines “hydrogen-fueling station” to mean the equipment used to store and dispense hydrogen fuel to vehicles according to industry codes and standards that is open to the public. Existing law requires a hydrogen-fueling station to meet certain requirements, including any rules established by the State Air Resources Board, Energy Commission, or Department of Food and Agriculture regarding safety, reliability, weights, and measures.

How the bill changes the law

This bill streamlines the permitting process of constructing a hydrogen fueling station and, with certain exceptions, requires cities and counties to administratively approve an application to install EV charging stations by issuing a building permit or similar nondiscretionary permit, and limiting review to only whether a station meets the health and safety requirements of local, state, and federal law.

Similarly, SB 1418 will require cities and/or counties with a population of 250,000 or more residents to create an expedited, streamlined permitting process for hydrogen-fueling stations meeting the requirements set forth in the statute before September 30, 2025. Cities and/or counties with a population of less than 250,000 have until September 30, 2028, to create their process. The bill also limits permit denials due to health and safety only where the city and/or county can document a specific, adverse impact to the public health or safety, setting the bar high for denial of an expedited permit.

Additionally, the bill modifies the definition of “hydrogen-fueling station” to include the equipment and structures necessary for safety, including canopies, high pressure storage, and equipment, encompassing the entirety of a hydrogen station project for purposes of streamlining the permitting process further.

SB 1420 — Hydrogen production facilities

What the law currently requires

Existing law provides streamlining benefits related to the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) to Governor-certified “energy infrastructure projects,” expressly excluding any project using hydrogen as a fuel from the definition of “energy infrastructure projects.”

How the bill changes the law

This bill includes in the definition of “energy infrastructure projects”, hydrogen production facilities and associated onsite storage processing facilities that do not derive hydrogen from a fossil fuel feeds and that receive funding from specified state and federal programs.

AB 2427 — Electric vehicle charging stations

What the law currently requires

Existing law creates the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, known as “GO-Biz,” and requires GO-Biz to serve the Governor as the lead entity for economic strategy and the marketing of California on issues relating to business development, private sector investment, and economic growth. Existing law continues into existence the zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) division within GO-Biz as the Zero-Emission Vehicle Market Development Office. Existing law references GO-Biz’s Electric Vehicle Charging Station Permitting Guidebook, which recommends best practices for electric vehicle supply equipment permitting.

Existing law, the Planning and Zoning Law, authorizes the legislative body of any county or city to adopt prescribed zoning ordinances within its jurisdiction. Existing law declares that it is the policy of the state to promote and encourage the use of electric vehicle charging stations and to limit obstacles to their use. Existing law prescribes various requirements on the review and approval of applications to install electric vehicle charging stations. Existing law requires every city, county, and city and county to administratively approve an application to install electric vehicle charging stations and hydrogen-fueling stations through the issuance of a building permit or similar nondiscretionary permit and requires the review of an application to install an electric vehicle charging station or a hydrogen-fueling station to be limited to the building official’s review of whether it meets all health and safety requirements of local, state, and federal law. Existing law defines “electric vehicle charging station” or “charging station” for these purposes.

How the bill changes the law

This bill requires GO-Biz to develop a model permitting checklist, model zoning ordinances, and best practices for permit costs and permit review timelines to help local governments permit curbside charging stations as part of the office’s development of the Electric Vehicle Charging Station Permitting Guidebook or any subsequent updates. The bill also requires GO-Biz to consult with local governments, electric vehicle service providers, and utilities while developing the above-described materials.

This bill requires local agencies to, among other things, develop a checklist that includes all of the information required for a complete application for a permit or other authorization to install an electric vehicle charging station within the public right-of-way, as defined. As part of that process, this bill requires local agencies to consider the Electric Vehicle Charging Station Permitting Guidebook from the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development. The bill requires local agencies with populations of 250,000 or more to comply with these provisions by January 1, 2027, and local agencies with populations of fewer than 250,000 residents to comply with these provisions by January 1, 2029.

AB 2697 — Transportation electrification

What the law currently requires

Existing law prohibits persons desiring to use an electric vehicle charging station that requires payment of a fee from being required to pay a subscription fee to use the station and from being required to obtain membership in any club, association, or organization as a condition of using the station.

Existing law requires the total actual charges for the use of an electric vehicle charging station, including any additional network roaming charges for nonmembers, to be disclosed to the public at the point of sale.

Existing law authorizes the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (“Commission”) to adopt interoperability billing standards for network roaming payment methods for electric vehicle charging stations if no interoperability billing standards have been adopted by a national standards organization by January 1, 2015.

How the bill changes the law

This bill requires the Commission to apply any network roaming standards it adopts only to “major electric vehicle charging network providers” defined as “an electric vehicle charging network provider that manages at least 100 publicly available electric vehicle charging stations in the state.” The bill would require that those network roaming standards require major electric vehicle charging network providers to accept payment for charging made by users from multiple other major electric vehicle charging network providers and automakers.

AB 3138 — License plates & registration cards

What the law currently requires

Existing law requires a vehicle to display a license plate, issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles (“DMV”), with tabs that indicate the month and year the vehicle registration expires. Existing law requires the DMV to issue a registration card upon registering a vehicle that includes, among other information, the name of the owner and the vehicle registration number.

Existing law authorizes the DMV to establish a program allowing an entity to issue devices as alternatives to the conventional license plates, stickers, tabs, and registration cards, subject to specific requirements that include limitations on how vehicle location technology is used with an alternative device and how an alternative device may display certain specialized license plates.

Existing law imposes requirements and restrictions on electronic information generated by an alternative device.

How the bill changes the law

This bill authorizes any vehicle, beginning on January 1, 2027, to be offered an alternative device to a license plate or registration card that includes vehicle location technology. The bill specifies requirements for how vehicle location technology is disabled or enabled and prohibits an alternative device from recording or transmitting personal identifiable information. The bill requires the DMV to delete data from an alternative device or the provider of an alternative device that the department is not authorized to receive. Finally, the bill expands the types of specialized license plates that may be replicated on an alternative device.

SB 1394 — Access to connected vehicle service

What the law currently requires

Existing law generally regulates the safety of motor vehicles and the use of certain types of equipment installed in a motor vehicle, and generally makes a violation of these requirements a crime. Existing law provides various protections to persons who are escaping from actual or threatened domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, human trafficking, and other abuse, including providing for a means to keep the names and addresses of abuse survivors confidential in public records.

How the bill changes the law

This bill requires, beginning on January 1, 2028, a vehicle with connected vehicle service to clearly indicate to a person who is inside the vehicle when a person who is outside the vehicle has accessed either connected vehicle service or connected vehicle location access, as those terms would be defined.

The bill, beginning on July 1, 2025, for vehicles with connected vehicle service, further requires a covered provider to provide a process for a driver to terminate a person’s access to connected vehicle service, as specified.

The bill requires, beginning on January 1, 2028, a covered provider to provide, in a vehicle manufactured on or after January 1, 2028, that has connected vehicle location access, a mechanism that meets specific requirements and can be used by a driver who is inside a vehicle to immediately disable connected vehicle location access.

The bill, beginning on July 1, 2026, applies this provision to vehicles manufactured prior to January 1, 2028, that have connected vehicle location access, and have the capability to receive software updates, as specified.

The bill defines terms for these purposes, including “covered provider,” which is defined as a vehicle manufacturer or an entity acting on behalf of the vehicle manufacturer that provides connected vehicle service.

SB 59 — Battery electric vehicles: bidirectional capability

What the law currently requires

Existing law requires the State Air Resources Board (“Board”) to adopt and implement motor vehicle emission standards, in-use performance standards, and motor vehicle fuel specifications for the control of air contaminants and sources of air pollution that the Board has found necessary, cost effective, and technologically feasible. The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 establishes the Board as the state agency responsible for monitoring and regulating sources emitting greenhouse gases and requires the Board to adopt rules and regulations to achieve the maximum technologically feasible and cost-effective greenhouse gas emission reductions from those sources.

How the bill changes the law

SB 59 authorizes the Energy Commission to require that classes of electric vehicles (“EVs”) sold in California have bidirectional charging capability, which makes it possible to use the amount of energy stored in EV batteries to shore up the power grid and back up homes and businesses as the state faces more outages from climate extremes. The bill does not provide an effective date whereby such batteries must be provided.

Rather, the bill merely authorizes the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (“Energy Commission”), in consultation with the Board and the Public Utilities Commission, to promulgate regulations requiring any weight class of battery electric vehicle to be bidirectional capable if it determines there is a sufficiently compelling beneficial bidirectional-capable use case to the battery electric vehicle operator and electrical grid.

The bill requires the Energy Commission, in its analysis, to consider vehicle readiness and duty cycles required of vehicles operated by essential service providers. The bill defines various terms for this purpose and authorizes the Board and Energy Commission to each periodically update the definitions of specified terms to ensure that the definitions align with current technologies in bidirectional charging and account for ongoing innovation.

AB 1953 — Vehicles

What the law currently requires

Existing state and federal laws set specified limits on the total gross weight imposed on the highway by a vehicle with any group of two or more consecutive axles. Existing federal law prohibits the maximum gross vehicle weight of a vehicle operated by an engine fueled primarily by natural gas or powered primarily by means of electric battery power from exceeding 82,000 pounds. Existing state law, to the extent expressly authorized by federal law, authorizes a near-zero-emission vehicle or a zero-emission vehicle, as defined, to exceed the weight limits on the power unit by up to 2,000 pounds.

How the bill changes the law

This bill clarifies that the power unit of a near-zero emission or zero-emission vehicle is authorized to exceed the allowable gross weight limits by up to 2,000 pounds, but no more than 2,000 pounds when the vehicle contains more than one power unit. This bill also clarifies that the maximum gross vehicle weight for a near-zero-emission vehicle or a zero-emission vehicle is 82,000 pounds.

SB 1313 — Vehicle equipment

What the law currently requires

Existing law regulates vehicles, including autonomous vehicles and autonomous technology in vehicles. Existing law prohibits vehicles from being equipped with certain equipment, including, among other things, theft alarm systems that emit the sound of a siren. Existing law also prohibits vehicles from being equipped with a device that is designed for, or is capable of, jamming, scrambling, neutralizing, disabling, or interfering with radar, laser, or any other electronic device used by a law enforcement agency to measure the speed of moving objects.

How the bill changes the law

This bill prohibits vehicles from being equipped with a device that is specifically designed for, marketed for, or being used for, neutralizing, disabling, or otherwise interfering with a driver monitoring system that is engaged when drivers are utilizing advanced driver assistance system features or autonomous technology.

The bill prohibits a person from using, buying, possessing, manufacturing, selling, advertising for sale, or otherwise distributing a device that is specifically designed for neutralizing, disabling, or otherwise interfering with a driver monitoring system that is engaged when drivers are utilizing advanced driver assistance system features or autonomous technology.

The bill would make a violation of the above provisions an infraction.