SECTIONS 5381-5390 - California Statutes

PUBLIC UTILITIES CODE

SECTION 5381-5390

5381. To the extent that such is not inconsistent with the
provisions of this chapter, the commission may supervise and regulate
every charter-party carrier of passengers in the State and may do
all things, whether specifically designated in this part, or in
addition thereto, which are necessary and convenient in the exercise
of such power and jurisdiction.

5381.5. The commission shall, by rule or other appropriate
procedure, ensure that every charter-party carrier of passengers
operates on a prearranged basis within the state, consistent with
Section 5360.5. The commission shall require every charter-party
carrier of passengers to include on a waybill or trip report at least
all of the following:
(a) The name of at least one passenger in the traveling party, or
identifying information of the traveling party's affiliation, along
with the point of origin and destination of the passenger or
traveling party.
(b) Information as to whether the transportation was arranged by
telephone or written contract.

5382. To the extent that such are not inconsistent with the
provisions of this chapter, all general orders, rules and
regulations, applicable to the operations of carriers of passengers
under authority of certificates of public convenience and necessity
issued pursuant to the provisions of Article 2 (commencing at Section
1031), Chapter 5, Part 1, Division 1 of this code, unless otherwise
ordered by the commission shall apply to charter-party carriers of
passengers.

5383. The commission shall create the following classifications or
types of certificates for charter-party carriers of passengers:
Class A: from any point or points within the state to other points
in or out of this state, including, but not limited to, the
conduction of round-trip sightseeing tour service.
Class B: from any point within the territory of origin specified
in the certificate to any points in the state, or territory of
origin.
Class C: services provided incidental to commercial balloon
operations, commercial river rafting, or skiing where no additional
compensation is provided for the transportation.

5384. The commission shall issue permits to persons, who are
otherwise qualified, whose passenger carrier operations fall into the
following categories:
(a) Specialized carriers, who do not hold themselves out to serve
the general public, but only provide service under contract with
industrial and business firms, governmental agencies, and private
schools or who only transport agricultural workers to and from farms
for compensation or who only conduct transportation services, which
are incidental to another business. This permit shall be designated
as a "Z" permit.
(b) Carriers using only vehicles under 15-passenger seating
capacity. This permit shall be designated as a "P" permit.
(c) Carriers conducting round-trip sightseeing tour service. This
permit shall be designated as an "S" permit.

5384.1. (a) The driver of any limousine for hire operated by a
charter-party carrier of passengers under a valid certificate or
permit shall do all of the following:
(1) The driver shall ascertain whether any passenger is under the
age of 21 years.
(2) If any passenger is under the age of 21 years, the driver
shall read to the passenger a statement that the consumption of any
alcoholic beverage in the vehicle is unlawful, that no alcoholic
beverage may be transported in the passenger compartment of the
vehicle, that all alcoholic beverages are required to be carried in
the vehicle trunk or other locked compartment, and that, if during
the course of the ride any minor is found to be, or to have been,
consuming any alcoholic beverage, the contract will be terminated and
the customer will be brought back to the point of origin of the
ride.
(3) After reading the statement described in paragraph (2) to
every passenger under the age of 21 years, the driver shall require
every passenger under the age of 21 years to sign the statement. The
limousine operator shall retain the signed statement for the period
required by the commission.
(4) If any minor passenger, after signing a statement pursuant to
paragraph (3), is found to be, or to have been, consuming any
alcoholic beverage during the course of any ride subject to this
section, the driver shall immediately terminate the contract of hire
and shall return the passengers to the point of origin of the ride.
(b) Any failure of a driver to comply with subdivision (a) that
results in the conviction of the driver of a violation of Section
23225 of the Vehicle Code, shall be subject to the penalties
prescribed in Section 5384.5.
(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, this section does
not apply to the driver of any bus, taxicab, or van, and it does not
prohibit a parent or legal guardian from consuming alcoholic
beverages in a limousine for hire while accompanied by his or her
minor children.

5384.2. A school, school district, or the state is not liable for
transportation services provided by an operator of a charter-party
carrier operating a motor vehicle as specified in subdivision (k) of
Section 545 of the Vehicle Code for which the school or school
district has not contracted, arranged, or otherwise provided.

5384.5. If the driver of any limousine for hire operating under a
valid certificate or permit, or any officer, director, agent, or
employee of a charter-party carrier of passengers operating
limousines for hire under such a certificate or permit, is convicted
of a violation of Section 23225 of the Vehicle Code, the commission,
after a hearing, shall do the following:
(a) For a first offense, the commission may impose a civil penalty
of not more than two thousand dollars ($2,000) upon the carrier, as
determined appropriate by the commission.
(b) For a second offense, the commission may impose a civil
penalty of not more than two thousand dollars ($2,000) upon the
carrier or suspend the carrier's permit for not more than 30 days, or
both, as determined appropriate by the commission.
(c) For a third offense, the commission shall revoke the carrier's
permit.

5385. A charter-party carrier of passengers, except those engaged
in the provision of a hired driver service when a rented motor
vehicle is being operated by the hired driver, shall not operate any
motor vehicle on any public highway unless there is displayed on the
vehicle a distinctive identifying symbol in the form prescribed by
the commission, showing the classification to which the carrier
belongs. Such an identifying symbol shall not be displayed on any
vehicle until a permit or certificate of public convenience and
necessity under this chapter has been issued to the carrier. The
identifying symbol displayed by charter-party carriers subject to the
Interstate Commerce Commission shall serve in lieu of the display
requirements of this section.

5385.5. For motor vehicles designed to carry not more than eight
passengers, including the driver, the commission shall issue a
suitable decal for purposes of Section 5385, for each vehicle
registered with the commission and operated by a charter-party
carrier of passengers holding a valid permit or certificate of public
convenience and necessity. The decal with an identifying symbol
shall be a minimum size of two and one-half inches by six inches, and
shall be affixed to the lower right hand corner of the rear bumper
of the vehicle.

5385.6. (a) No charter-party carrier shall operate a limousine as
defined by Section 5371.4 unless the limousine is equipped with the
special license plates issued and distributed by the Department of
Motor Vehicles pursuant to Section 5011.5 of the Vehicle Code.
(b) The commission shall issue to each charter-party carrier
operating limousines a permit or certificate for the number of
vehicles verified by the carrier as employed in providing limousine
service. The permit or certificate shall be submitted to the
Department of Motor Vehicles, which will issue to each verified
vehicle a set of unique, identifying license plates. The department
shall maintain a record of each set of plates it issues and provide a
copy of each record to the commission.
(c) The commission shall recover from any carrier whose permit or
certificate is cancelled, suspended, or revoked any and all plates
issued pursuant to this section.
(d) The special license plate shall be in lieu of the decal
required to be issued and displayed pursuant to Section 5385.5.
(e) This section shall become operative on July 1, 1995.

5386. (a) Every charter-party carrier of passengers, including a
charter-party carrier that operates a limousine, shall include the
number of its permit or certificate in every written or oral
advertisement of the services it offers.
(b) For the purposes of this subdivision, "advertisement"
includes, but is not limited to, the issuance of any card, sign, or
device to any person, the causing, permitting, or allowing the
placement of any sign or marking on or in any building or structure,
or in any media form, including newspaper, magazine, radiowave,
satellite signal, or any electronic transmission, or in any directory
soliciting charter-party transportation services subject to this
chapter.

5386.5. No charter-party carrier of passengers shall advertise its
services, or in any manner represent its services, as being a taxicab
or taxi service. For the purposes of this section, "advertise"
includes any business card, stationery, brochure, flyer, circular,
newsletter, fax form, printed or published paid advertisement in any
media form, or telephone book listing.

5387. (a) It is unlawful for the owner of a charter-party carrier
of passengers to permit the operation of a vehicle upon a public
highway for compensation without (1) having obtained from the
commission a certificate or permit pursuant to this chapter, (2)
having complied with the vehicle identification requirements of
Section 5385, 5385.5, or 5385.6, and (3) having complied with the
accident liability protection requirements of Section 5391.
(b) A person who drives a bus for a charter-party carrier without
having a current and valid driver's license of the proper class, a
passenger vehicle endorsement, or the required certificate shall be
suspended from driving a bus of any kind, including, but not limited
to, a bus, schoolbus, school pupil activity bus, or transit bus, with
passengers for a period of five years pursuant to Section 13369 of
the Vehicle Code.
(c) (1) A charter-party carrier shall have its authority to
operate as a charter-party carrier permanently revoked by the
commission or be permanently barred from receiving a permit or
certificate from the commission if it commits any of the following
acts:
(A) Operates a bus without having been issued a permit or
certificate from the commission.
(B) Operates a bus with a permit that was suspended by the
commission pursuant to Section 5378.5.
(C) Commits three or more liability insurance violations within a
two-year period for which it has been cited.
(D) Operates a bus with a permit that was suspended by the
commission during a period that the charter-party carrier's liability
insurance lapsed for which it has been cited.
(E) Knowingly employs a busdriver who does not have a current and
valid driver's license of the proper class, a passenger vehicle
endorsement, or the required certificate to drive a bus.
(F) Has one or more buses improperly registered with the
Department of Motor Vehicles.
(2) The commission shall not issue a new permit or certificate to
operate as a charter-party carrier if any officer, director, or owner
of that charter-party carrier was an officer, director, or owner of
a charter-party carrier that had its authority to operate as a
charter-party carrier permanently revoked by the commission or that
was permanently barred from receiving a permit or certificate from
the commission pursuant to this subdivision.
(d) An officer of the Department of the California Highway Patrol
may impound a bus of a charter-party carrier for 30 days pursuant to
Section 14602.9 of the Vehicle Code if the officer determines that
any of the following violations occurred while the bus driver was
operating the bus of a charter-party carrier:
(1) The driver was operating the bus of a charter-party carrier
when the charter-party carrier did not have a permit or certificate
issued by the commission.
(2) The driver was operating the bus of a charter-party carrier
when the charter-party carrier was operating the bus with a suspended
permit or certificate from the commission.
(3) The driver was operating the bus of a charter-party carrier
without having a current and valid driver's license of the proper
class, a passenger vehicle endorsement, or the required certificate.

5387.3. (a) A charter-party carrier described in subdivision (c) of
Section 5387, that has received a notice of refusal or revocation of
its permit to operate, may submit to the commission, within 15 days
after the mailing of the notice, a written request for a hearing. The
charter-party carrier shall furnish a copy of the request to the
Department of the California Highway Patrol at the same time that it
makes its request for a hearing to the commission. Failure to request
a hearing, in writing, within the 15-day period is a waiver of the
right to a hearing.
(b) Upon receipt by the commission of the hearing request, the
commission shall hold a hearing within a reasonable time, not to
exceed 21 days, and may appoint a hearing officer to conduct the
hearing. At the hearing, the burden of proof is on the charter-party
carrier to prove that it was not in violation of subdivision (c) of
Section 5387.
(c) The refusal to, or revocation of, the permit to operate, may
only be rescinded by the hearing officer if the charter-party carrier
proves that it was not in violation of subdivision (c) of Section
5387, and that the basis of the refusal or revocation resulted from a
factual error.

5387.5. When the commission or an employee of the commission
determines that any person or corporation is holding itself out as a
charter-party carrier of passengers without a certificate or permit
to so operate, the carrier shall pay the commission the fee
established pursuant to Section 421 for the period during which it
operated without authority, up to a maximum of three years, which fee
shall be deposited in the Public Utilities Commission Transportation
Reimbursement Account.

5389. (a) The commission, each commissioner, and each officer and
person employed by the commission may, at any time have access to the
land, buildings, or equipment of a charter-party carrier of
passengers used in connection with the operation of its business and
may inspect the accounts, books, papers, and documents of the
carrier. Any inspection by the commission may include photocopying or
the electrostatic or photostatic reproduction of documents either at
the premises of the carrier or the offices of the commission, at the
option of the carrier. The commission shall reimburse the carrier
for any copying or reproduction expenses incurred by it at the
direction of the commission.
(b) Subdivision (a) also applies to access to property and
inspections of the accounts, books, papers, and documents of any
business which is a subsidiary or affiliate of, or a corporation
which holds a controlling interest in, a charter-party carrier of
passengers with respect to any transaction between the carrier and
the subsidiary, affiliate, or holding corporation.
(c) Subdivisions (a) and (b) also apply to any person or
corporation engaged in the transportation of persons by motor vehicle
for compensation, which the commission, or an officer or person
employed by the commission, determines is holding itself out as a
charter-party carrier of passengers.

5390. The commission shall fund the costs of administering the
special identification license plate program required by Section
5385.6 of this code and Section 5011.5 of the Vehicle Code, including
the costs of the Department of Motor Vehicles, from the Public
Utilities Commission Transportation Reimbursement Account.
The commission shall maintain a prudent level of fund balance in
the account in any future year. The commission shall consider
recovering the costs of this program from the limousine operators
when the fund balance is drawn below a prudent level of reserve.