Senate Standing Committee on Transportation

Senate Transportation Committee will come to order. Good afternoon. Welcome. We have one measure on today's agenda. As far as, our ordinary housekeeping items, we will be allowing for two primary witnesses each for support and opposition.

Those witnesses will have up to two minutes each and any additional witnesses will ask to limit yourselves to name affiliation and position on the bill. We will entertain a motion on the bill at the appropriate time. Once the quorum is established, it looks like we'll be working on that. So we're not gonna be able to establish that at the moment, but we are going to hear SB 741. So we'll go ahead and have the author present the bill whenever she is ready.

Thank you. Thank you. I am. Thank you to the Chair and committee staff. And thank you to the member who's here for working on this bill.

SB 741 streamlines the administration of the state's low carbon transit operations program. This is known as LC TOP. LC TOP has improved transit services by funding local programs like discounted transit passes for youth and students. SB 741 removes LC TOP's costly modeling requirements intended to show what we already know, investments in transit, clean our air, and improve our quality of life. By streamlining these requirements, SB 741 leverages limited state funding to address transit challenges like service delays and low ridership.

With me today in support, I have Michael Pimentel on behalf of the California Transit Association and Shane Guzman on behalf of the coalition or or sorry, on behalf of the California Conference Board of the Amalgamated Transit Union. A mouthful of a of a title.

Okay. Witnesses may proceed when ready.

Yeah. Mister Chair and and members, Michael Vimentel here on behalf of the California Transit Association. Given the late hour, I'll be very brief and just note a vote for this bill is a vote for improving government efficiency, maximizing investment in our projects and services in the public transit space, and creating funding flexibility for transit agencies. We encourage your eye vote. Thank you.

Alright. Your brevity got my vote. Mister Chair,

member Shane Gussman on behalf of the ATU in strong support of this bill. Our our members provide transit services up and down the state. The transits critical to achieving our climate goals, getting people back and forth, providing them transportation options and reducing congestion. We're at a time when we need to get all the funding we can and flexibility and streamlining we can to adequately fund transit. And so we strongly support this bill because that's what it does.

Alright. Thank you for your testimony. Is there anyone else here in the committee room who would like to come up and indicate name affiliation support?

Mister Chair, Brennan orBicky on behalf of the Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District, the San Mateo County Transit District, and Caltrain in support.

Thank you. Anyone else? Alright. Seeing none. Do we have opposition testimony?

I see no one come forward. Any opposition witnesses at all? No me twos. Alright. We will come back to the committee itself.

Sure. Yes, sir. Yeah.

My interest in trans transportation, of course, the rail system is so very vital to Southern California. I know, Senator, you've been so involved. And I know this bill looks at the the low carbon, but it also looks at transit ridership. Tell me how you're coming together with this bill and how it's important for your constituents primarily and of course everyone up and down the state.

If you don't mind, I'll ask my sponsors to answer that.

Sure thing, Senator. I think what I would highlight with this bill is one of the chief things it does is create the flexibility for transit agencies to use the money from low carbon trans operations program to maintain service in addition to expand service. And so as you likely have seen many agencies in a period of retreat given the very difficult financial landscape that they're facing. Metrolink for example, in your neck of the woods on the precipice of a fiscal cliff.

What we'd be doing in this bill is giving them the flexibility to take the money that they're already receiving to preserve critical service.

And so that is in service of increasing ridership or maintaining ridership in some cases. And so with this bill, our hope is that we can provide the agencies with the flexibility they need to address any number of situations they may be facing.

And with that, Mister Chair, I'll move it at appropriate time. Okay.

Before we do that or hear anyone else from the committee, we're gonna accept this call.

Sir, Cortesi?

Here.

Cortesi here. Strickland? Here. Blake's here. Dally?

Here. Dally here. Gonzales, Grayson, Manjeevar? Here. Manjeevar here.

Richardson, Cierto? Yeah. Cierto here. Valadares, Weiner? Here.

Weiner here.

Great. We do have a quorum. Anybody else from the committee wish to comment or ask any questions at this time? I'm seeing none. I do want to acknowledge the author and and also the committee staff of these.

We're moving a little quickly today. We have one item. We had a session going on today but a lot of work has been done here. And I know that as the Chair of the committee and I think most of our members know that as well. So just wanted to to make sure to acknowledge the sort of brief hearing that we're having today has is not a reflection on on the bill itself.

It has a lot of gravitas to it. So with that, I'm certainly prepared to support it. Senator Archuleta has offered a motion so that we take it up on roll call. But before we do that, let me let me let the author have the last word.

I respectfully ask for your aye vote. It's a good last word.

It's a good last word.

The motion is that the Assembly amendments be concurred in senators Cortesi.

Aye.

Cortesi, aye Strickland.

Aye. Strickland. Aye.

Archuleta. Aye. Archuleta. Aye. Aragin.

Blake Spear.

Aye.

Blake Spear. Aye. Aye. Dally. Aye.

Gonzales, Grayson, Menjivar. Aye. Menjivar, Aye. Richardson, Sayerto. Aye.

Sayerto, Aye. Valadares, Weiner.

Aye.

Weiner, Aye. Public safety and wings.

Alright. We are at eight zero. We'll leave the role open for absent members. I am going to, go over to public safety to vote and I'm wondering if vice vice Chair is able to Thank you. Preside.

Okay. Good.

Sure. Thank you.

I seem like Well, I'm

just going over the vote.

Thank you. Alright. You're best of luck too. Thank you, sir.

SB 741 by Senator Blake's for the motion that the assemblyman's who concurred in, the current vote is eight to zero. Senator's Adegin? Aye. Aye. Aye.

Gonzales. Grayson Richardson Valdez.

Alright. We're at nine zero and the roll stays open. Thank you. And, turn the gavel over to the vice Chair strictly. Thank you very much for that.

Thank you. Matt Madam Secretary, please call the roll not the roll, the the vote again. Five zero one SB 741 by Blake Spear.

The motion is that the Assembly amendments be concurred in. The current vote is nine to zero with the Chair and vice Chair voting aye. Senators Gonzales? Aye. Gonzales, aye.

Grayson Richardson?

Aye.

Richardson, aye. Valadares?

Valadares, aye.

Aye.

Yeah. We can. Okay.

That bill has twelve twelve zero? So that bill has twelve zero and the bill is out. We are now adjourned and the

Are you good to go?

We're adjourned.