CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 2086

Introduced by Assembly Member Schiavo

February 05, 2024

An act to add Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 14470) to Part 5 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, relating to transportation.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 2086, as introduced, Schiavo. Department of Transportation funding: report and public dashboard.
Existing law creates the Department of Transportation within the Transportation Agency and makes the department responsible for, among other things, the improvement and maintenance of the state highway system. Existing law requires the department to prepare and submit a proposed budget to the Governor that includes the portion to be funded from the State Highway Account. Existing law establishes the priorities for use of funds in that account, with operation, maintenance, and rehabilitation of the state highway system as the highest priority.
Existing law also creates the California Transportation Commission within the Transportation Agency and vests the commission with various powers and duties relative to the programming of transportation capital projects and the allocation of funds to those projects, pursuant to the state transportation improvement program and various other transportation funding programs.
This bill would require the commission, on or before January 1, 2026, to adopt guidelines for the department to use to determine whether the use of the funding made available to the department is advancing the Core Four priorities of safety, equity, climate action, and economic prosperity established by the Transportation Agency. In developing the guidelines, the bill would require the commission to conduct a public engagement process, hold a public comment period, and allow the interagency equity advisory committee established by these 3 agencies an opportunity to review, provide recommendations on, and evaluate potential changes to, the proposed guidelines.
The bill would require the department, on or before January 1, 2026, to submit a report to the Legislature on how it advanced the Core Four priorities with the funding that was made available to it in the preceding 5 fiscal years. On January 1, 2027, and each year thereafter, the bill would require the department, using the guidelines adopted by the commission, to prepare and submit a report to the Legislature demonstrating how the department advanced the Core Four priorities with the moneys that were made available to it in the preceding fiscal year.
On or before January 1, 2027, the bill would require the department to create a public online dashboard, or enhance an existing public online dashboard, to display annual project investments using the guidelines adopted by the commission, and require the displayed annual project investments to be broken down by geography, the district of the department, and program area.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) The Transportation Agency set goals encompassing its Core Four priorities of safety, equity, climate action, and economic prosperity.
(b) The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (Division 25.5 (commencing with Section 38500) of the Health and Safety Code) requires the State Air Resources Board to ensure that statewide greenhouse gas emissions are reduced to at least 40% below the 1990 level by 2030.
(c) Executive Order No. N-16-22 requires all state agencies to analyze practices to advance equity and respond to disparities in their mission, goals, data, tools, policies, programs, and operations.
(d) Executive Order No. N-19-19 requires every aspect of state government to redouble its efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate the impacts of climate change while building a sustainable, inclusive economy.
(e) While there have been piecemeal efforts towards transparency and accountability of the roughly $19 billion that flows through the Department of Transportation, these efforts do not paint a complete or clear picture for the public.

SEC. 2.

 Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 14470) is added to Part 5 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, to read:
CHAPTER  6. Funding Transparency and Accountability

14470.
 For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply:
(a) “Core Four priorities” means the safety, equity, climate action, and economic prosperity priorities established by the Transportation Agency.
(b) “Interagency equity advisory committee” means the interagency equity advisory committee formed by the commission, the department, and the Transportation Agency.

14471.
 (a) On or before January 1, 2026, the commission shall adopt guidelines for the department to use to determine whether the use of the funding made available to the department is advancing the Core Four priorities.
(b) The guidelines shall do both of the following:
(1) Include quantitative metrics for the department to use to track progress toward advancing the Core Four priorities including, but not limited to, all of the following metrics:
(A) For the safety priority, the following metrics:
(i) A reduction in traffic fatalities and serious injuries.
(ii) Increasing safety for vulnerable road users.
(B) For the equity priority, the following metrics:
(i) The percentage and total dollars invested in priority populations who are identified using the California Communities Environmental Health Screening Tool, also known as CalEnviroScreen, or the department’s Transportation Equity Index, or both.
(ii) A description of the meaningful benefits to priority populations who are identified in the manner described in clause (i).
(C) For the climate action priority, the following metrics:
(i) A quantification of an increase or decrease in greenhouse gas emissions associated with the lane miles added to the state highway system.
(ii) A quantification of an increase or decrease in vehicle miles traveled on the state highway system associated with the lane miles added to the state highway system.
(D) For the economic prosperity metric, the following priorities:
(i) Employment per dollar.
(ii) Labor income and value added.
(iii) Education attainment needed for all jobs supported.
(2) Establish a process for the commission to set quantitative targets at three-year intervals that show a clear pathway for the department to advance the Core Four priorities.
(c) In developing the guidelines, the commission shall do all of the following:
(1) Conduct a public engagement process and include the public engagement process on the agenda of at least one public meeting of the interagency equity advisory committee. The commission shall provide public notice on its internet website of the public meeting not less than 14 days before the meeting.
(2) Hold a public comment period of at least 30 days that enables the public and stakeholders to provide input and feedback on the proposed guidelines.
(3) Before adopting the final guidelines, allow the interagency equity advisory committee an opportunity to review, provide recommendations on, and evaluate potential changes to, the proposed guidelines.

14472.
 (a) On or before January 1, 2026, the department shall submit a report to the Legislature on how the department advanced the Core Four priorities with the funding that was made available to it in the preceding five fiscal years. The information in the report shall be broken down by program and by each district of the department.
(b) (1) Notwithstanding Section 10231.5, on January 1, 2027, and each year thereafter, the department shall, using the guidelines adopted pursuant to Section 14471, prepare and submit a report to the Legislature demonstrating how the department advanced the Core Four priorities with the moneys that were made available to it in the preceding fiscal year. In preparing the report, the department shall prioritize using data available from existing processes including, but not limited to, data made available pursuant to Sections 235, 236, and 2032.5 of the Streets and Highways Code, and the Climate Action Plan for Transportation Infrastructure adopted by the Transportation Agency.
(2) The report required by this subdivision shall also include all of the following information:
(A) An update on the department’s expenditures in the preceding fiscal year by program and district compared to its planned expenditures in the current fiscal year.
(B) The progress that the department’s expenditures in the preceding fiscal year made towards meeting the targets established by the commission pursuant to Section 14471.
(C) How the department’s planned expenditures for the current fiscal year are responsive to performance history and how it aligns with the commission’s targets and other long-range goals.
(D) If the department is not on track to meet the targets and goals specified in subparagraph (C), what actions can be taken to get on track to meet those targets and goals.
(c) The reports to be submitted to the Legislature pursuant to subdivisions (a) and (b) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795.

14473.
 On or before January 1, 2027, the department shall create a public online dashboard, or enhance an existing public online dashboard, to display annual project investments using the guidelines adopted pursuant to Section 14471. The annual project investments shall be broken down by geography, the district of the department, and program area. The department shall present the data on the dashboard in a consistent, transparent, and digestible manner, and shall periodically update the dashboard.