(a) Pursuant to subdivision (e) of Section 640 of the Penal Code, a public transportation agency may enact and enforce an ordinance to impose and enforce an administrative penalty for any of the acts described in subdivision (b).
(b) (1) Evasion of the payment of a fare of the system.
(2) Misuse of a transfer, pass, ticket, or token with the intent to evade the payment of a fare.
(3) Playing unreasonably loud sound equipment on or in a system facility or vehicle, or failing to comply with the warning of a transit official related to disturbing another person by loud or unreasonable noise.
(4) Smoking a tobacco product, eating, or drinking in or on a system facility or vehicle in those areas where those activities are prohibited by that system.
(5) Expectorating upon a system facility or vehicle.
(6) Willfully disturbing others on or in a system facility or vehicle by engaging in boisterous or unruly behavior.
(7) Carrying an explosive or acid, flammable liquid, or toxic or hazardous material in a system facility or vehicle.
(8) Urinating or defecating in a system facility or vehicle, except in a lavatory. However, this paragraph shall not apply to a person who cannot comply with this paragraph as a result of a disability, age, or a medical condition.
(9) (A) Willfully blocking the free movement of another person in a system facility or vehicle.
(B) This paragraph shall not be interpreted to affect any lawful activities permitted or First Amendment rights protected under the laws of this state or applicable federal law, including, but not limited to, laws related to collective bargaining, labor relations, or labor disputes.
(10) Skateboarding, roller skating, bicycle riding, or roller blading in a system facility, including a parking structure, or in a system vehicle. This paragraph does not apply to an activity that is necessary for utilization of a system facility by a bicyclist, including, but not limited to, an activity that is necessary for parking a bicycle or transporting a bicycle aboard a system vehicle, if that activity is conducted with the permission of the agency of the system in a manner that does not interfere with the safety of the bicyclist or other patrons of the system facility.
(11) (A) Unauthorized use of a discount ticket or failure to present, upon request from a system representative, acceptable proof of eligibility to use a discount ticket, in accordance with Section 99155, and posted system identification policies when entering or exiting a system station or vehicle. Acceptable proof of eligibility must be clearly defined in the posting.
(B) If an eligible discount ticket user is not in possession of acceptable proof at the time of request, an issued notice of fare evasion or passenger conduct violation shall be held for a period of 72 hours to allow the user to produce acceptable proof. If the proof is provided, that notice shall be voided. If the proof is not produced within that time period, that notice shall be processed.
(12) Selling or peddling any goods, merchandise, property, or services of any kind whatsoever on the facilities, vehicles, or property of the public transportation system without the express written consent of the public transportation system or its duly authorized representatives.
(13) Failing to yield seating reserved for an elderly or disabled person.
(c) (1) The public transportation agency may contract with a private vendor or governmental agency for the processing of notices of fare evasion or passenger conduct violation, and notices of delinquent fare evasion or passenger conduct violation pursuant to Section 99581.
(2) For the purpose of this chapter, “processing agency” means either of the following:
(A) The agency issuing the notice of fare evasion or passenger conduct violation and the notice of delinquent fare evasion or passenger conduct violation.
(B) The party responsible for processing the notice of fare evasion or passenger conduct violation and the notice of delinquent violation, if a contract is entered into pursuant to paragraph (1).
(3) For the purpose of this chapter, “fare evasion or passenger conduct violation penalty” includes, but is not limited to, a late payment penalty, administrative fee, fine, assessment, and costs of collection as provided for in the ordinance.
(4) For the purpose of this chapter, “public transportation agency” shall mean a public agency that provides public transportation as defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (f) of Section 1 of Article XIX A of the California Constitution.
(5) All fare evasion and passenger conduct violation penalties collected pursuant to this chapter shall be deposited with the public transportation agency that issued the citation.
(d) (1) If a fare evasion or passenger conduct violation is observed by a person authorized to enforce the ordinance, a notice of fare evasion or passenger conduct violation shall be issued. The notice shall set forth the violation, including reference to the ordinance setting forth the administrative penalty, the date of the violation, the approximate time, and the location where the violation occurred. The notice shall include a printed statement indicating the date payment is required to be made, and the procedure for contesting the notice. The notice shall be served by personal service upon the violator. The notice, or copy of the notice, shall be considered a record kept in the ordinary course of business of the issuing agency and the processing agency, and shall be prima facie evidence of the facts contained in the notice establishing a rebuttable presumption affecting the burden of producing evidence.
(2) When a notice of fare evasion or passenger conduct violation has been served, the person issuing the notice shall file the notice with the processing agency.
(3) If, after a notice of fare evasion or passenger conduct violation is issued pursuant to this section, the issuing officer determines that there is incorrect data on the notice, including, but not limited to, the date or time, the issuing officer may indicate in writing on a form attached to the original notice the necessary correction to allow for the timely entry of the corrected notice on the processing agency’s data system. A copy of the correction shall be mailed to the address provided by the person cited at the time the original notice of fare evasion or passenger conduct violation was served.
(4) If a person contests a notice of fare evasion or passenger conduct violation, the issuing agency shall proceed in accordance with Section 99581.
(e) In setting the amounts of administrative penalties for the violations listed in subdivision (b), the public transportation agency shall not establish penalty amounts that exceed one hundred twenty-five dollars ($125) upon a first or second violation and two hundred dollars ($200) upon a third or subsequent violation.
(f) The issuing agency shall allow payment of the fare evasion or passenger conduct penalty or penalties in installments or deferred payment if the total amount of the fines is two hundred dollars ($200) or more and the person provides satisfactory evidence of an inability to pay the penalty or penalties in full.
(g) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the issuing agency shall permit the performance of community service in lieu of payment of the fare evasion or passenger conduct penalty if the person is under 18 years of age or if the person provides satisfactory evidence of an inability to pay the fare evasion or passenger conduct penalty in full. The issuing agency may require the performance of community service at transit facilities, as defined in subdivision (f) of Section 640 of the Penal Code.
(2) The issuing agency is not required to permit the performance of community service in lieu of payment for a fare evasion or passenger conduct penalty if the person has had more than three fare evasion or passenger conduct penalties for which he or she was permitted to perform community service pursuant to paragraph (1), and did not complete any community service, provided that the person was offered a community service placement and was given adequate time to comply with the community service requirement.
(h) A person who receives a notice of fare evasion or passenger conduct violation pursuant to this section shall not be subject to citation for a violation of Section 640 of the Penal Code.
(i) If an entity enacts an ordinance pursuant to this section it shall, both two years and five years after enactment of the ordinance, report all of the following information to the Senate Committee on Transportation and Housing and the Assembly Committee on Transportation:
(1) A description of the ordinance, including the circumstances under which an alleged violator is afforded the opportunity to complete the administrative process.
(2) The amount of the administrative penalties.
(3) The number and types of citations administered pursuant to the ordinance.
(4) To the extent available, a comparison of the number and types of citations administered pursuant to the ordinance with the number and types of citations issued for similar offenses and administered through the courts both in the two years prior to the ordinance and, if any, since enactment of the ordinance.
(5) A discussion of the effect of the ordinance on passenger behavior.
(6) A discussion of the effect of the ordinance on revenues to the entity described in subdivision (a) and, in consultation with the superior courts, the cost savings to the county courts. The superior courts are encouraged to collaborate on and provide data for this report.
(j) For purposes of this section, “smoking” has the same meaning as in subdivision (c) of Section 22950.5 of the Business and Professions Code.
(k) For purposes of this section, “tobacco product” means a product or device as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 22950.5 of the Business and Professions Code.
(Amended by Stats. 2017, Ch. 219, Sec. 2. (SB 614) Effective January 1, 2018.)
Last modified: October 25, 2018