Cottie Petrie-Norris

Under existing law, the Department of the California Highway Patrol is responsible for enforcement of all laws regulating the operation of vehicles and use of the highways, as specified. Existing law gives the Commissioner of the California Highway Patrol full responsibility and primary jurisdiction for the administration and enforcement of the laws, and for the investigation of traffic accidents, on all toll highways and state highways constructed as freeways, except as specified. Existing law requires the department to provide to, among others, police departments, coroners, and sheriffs, forms for accident reports that include sufficient detail regarding the cause of the traffic accident, the conditions at the time of the accident, and the persons and vehicles involved in the accident. Existing law requires the driver of a vehicle, except a driver of a common carrier vehicle, to report an accident resulting in injuries or death to a person to the department or the local police department within 24 hours after the accident. Existing law requires a coroner or medical examiner to report a death of a person that was the result of a traffic accident by the 10th day of the calendar month following the accident. Existing law requires each police department, if they received a report and were responsible for investigating the accident, to forward a copy of the report to the department by the 5th day of the month that follows the month that they received the report.

This bill would repeal the requirement that the department provide the above-described forms and would instead require the department, by January 1, 2030, to develop minimum requirements for electronic submission of crash investigation reports, as specified. The bill would require a coroner or medical examiner to submit the above-described report electronically. The bill would also eliminate the requirement that a law enforcement agency forward reports in compliance with the above-described timeline and would instead require the agency to electronically submit the reports to the department, as specified. The bill would make an electronic copy of a crash investigation report available to the requestor at no cost. By increasing the duties on local law enforcement, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

This bill would make other conforming changes.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.