text:
From and after the adoption of a resolution by the commission declaring any section of a state highway to be a freeway, the highway described in such resolution shall have the status of a freeway for all purposes of Section 100.2.

Such declaration shall not affect private property rights of access, and any such rights taken or damaged within the meaning of Section 19 of Article I of the California Constitution for such freeway shall be acquired in a manner provided by law.

No state highway shall be converted into a freeway except with the consent of the owners of abutting lands or the purchase or condemnation of their right of access thereto.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 1980, Ch. 777, Sec. 14.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


kind: section

code: SHC

text: Whenever the location of a State highway is such that a ferry must be used to completely traverse said highway, and there is no existing ferry furnishing service to traffic on said highway, the department may construct, maintain and operate such a ferry, or may, by cooperative agreement, delegate the construction, maintenance or operation thereof to a county, or if the termini of a ferry are within one or more cities, to the cities concerned. Whenever a highway between the termini of which a publicly owned ferry is used, is declared to be a State highway, the title to the ferry and all appurtenances thereto vests in the State. The department is authorized to promulgate reasonable rules and regulations governing the hours of operation of such ferries. The department may impose a charge of not to exceed one dollar per vehicle for the use of such ferries between the hours of 11 p.m. and 5 a.m.; provided, that in no event shall any charge be imposed on any ferry formerly operated by a county where the county maintained free ferry service for twenty-four hours per day at the time the ferry is or was taken over by the department. It is unlawful to operate on any such ferries or the approaches thereto, a vehicle of a size or weight or at a speed, greater than that which any such ferry or its approaches, with safety to itself and to the traveling public, will permit. The department shall determine the maximum size, weight and speed of vehicles which with safety can be permitted on such ferries and shall by appropriate signs notify the public of its determination. It is prima facie evidence of violation of this section to exceed the limit specified by the department upon such signs. The department is authorized to recover by civil action any damages done to such ferries or the approaches thereof by reason of a failure to comply with the provisions of this section and a violation of the limits specified on the signs erected by the department is prima facie evidence of such violation.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 1937, Ch. 931.)

division: 1. STATE HIGHWAYS

chapter: 1. Administration

article: 3. The Department of Transportation

path: 1. STATE HIGHWAYS > 1. Administration > 3. The Department of Transportation


text: The department may, on behalf of the State of California, enter into agreements with any adjoining state, or any proper agency of such state, for the construction, reconstruction, operation and maintenance, by any party to such agreement, in the manner and by such means as may be provided in the agreement, of bridges over interstate waters and may enter into like agreements with respect to construction, reconstruction, operation and maintenance of highways within this State or such adjoining state, when such highways are at or near the common boundary of the states. Payment for work done pursuant to such agreements may be made from any fund available to the department for highway purposes.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 1951, Ch. 1124.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
The department may, for the protection of the State of California, insure any bridge on the State Highway System acquired or constructed under provisions of the California Toll Bridge Authority Act against all risks in any amount up to the full insurable value thereof. In case of damage or destruction, the proceeds of such insurance shall be applied to the restoration of such bridge. Any such bridge may be so insured irrespective of the retirement of all indebtedness incurred for its acquisition or construction, and the cost of such insurance shall be paid from any funds available to the department for highway purposes.

Any such bridge, other than bridges over the San Francisco Bay, shall, after retirement of all indebtedness incurred for its acquisition or construction, be maintained and operated as a free bridge and the cost thereof charged to funds available for maintenance of state highways.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 1953, Ch. 1056.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: When any state highway is relocated in such a manner as to bypass a city or business district, the department shall erect and maintain appropriate directional signs, at the junction of the bypass and the road leading into such city or business district, and at a reasonable distance in advance of such junction, for the guidance of traffic desiring to enter the city or business district. Upon relinquishment of the bypassed highway to the county or city concerned, the signs, other than those designating the state or federal route number of such highway, previously erected on such highway shall be left in place by the department and thereafter shall be maintained by such county or city. When relinquishing any such bypassed highway, the department shall direct the attention of the county or city concerned to the provisions of this section regarding continued maintenance of such signs by the county or city.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 1965, Ch. 551.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: Before the commission approves a capacity-increasing project or a major street or highway lane realignment project, the department or a regional transportation planning agency submitting the project for approval shall demonstrate that reversible lanes were considered for the project.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2016, Ch. 525, Sec. 1. (AB 2542) Effective January 1, 2017.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) Whenever a street or highway closing agreement is required by Section 100.2, the department shall not acquire, except by gift, and except in hardship or protective cases as determined by the department or the commission, any real property for a freeway through a city until an agreement is first executed with the city council, or for a freeway through unincorporated territory in a county until an agreement is first executed with the board of supervisors. The department shall give notice to the city council or the board of supervisors, as the case may be, of any acquisition of real property prior to the execution of an agreement.

(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), a city council, or a county board of supervisors may, by resolution, authorize the purchase of rights-of-way prior to approval of an agreement if the purchase is limited to the mainline corridor of the proposed freeway and the alignment of the freeway is not at issue.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 2004, Ch. 615, Sec. 14. Effective January 1, 2005.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: The city council or board of supervisors shall, prior to entering into the agreement contemplated by Section 100.2, conduct a public hearing on the subject.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 1969, Ch. 515.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: In addition to the other matters that may be covered by the agreements authorized under Section 100.2, provisions for improvements, revisions or extensions of city streets or county highways leading to or from a freeway, deemed by the department to be necessary in accommodating the freeway traffic in making proper connections between the existing system of city streets or county roads and the freeway, may be included in such agreements and the department may perform such work as a part of the freeway construction.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 1957, Ch. 1217.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: When the department constructs a freeway on the route selected pursuant to Section 100.4 the department shall meet and confer with affected counties and cities with respect to the design of the portion of the freeway to be constructed within the jurisdiction of the affected county or city.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 1990, Ch. 1240, Sec. 2. Effective September 24, 1990.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: Notwithstanding any provision of Section 100.5, whenever any bridge or highway crossing over a navigable waterway in this state, including, but not limited to, toll bridges or other toll highway crossings built or acquired under the provisions of the California Toll Bridge Authority Act, is closed to traffic because of accident thereto or repair thereof or is for any reason unable fully to accommodate traffic, the department may operate a vehicular or passenger ferry as a substitute therefor. In the operation of such vehicular or passenger ferry, the department may impose a toll for passage. For the purpose of imposing such toll, the department may employ any reasonable classification of vehicles, including, but not limited to, classification by weight, length, or number of axles.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 1971, Ch. 997.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


citation: SHC § 101

text:
(a) The department shall keep in repair all objects or markers adjacent to a state highway which have been erected to mark registered historical places and shall keep such markers free from vegetation which may obscure them from view.

(b) When the Legislature, by concurrent resolution, has designated names for certain districts and state highway bridges, and requested the placing of name plaques at the boundaries of the districts or on the bridges, the department is authorized to expend reasonable sums for such plaques.

(c) Any major bridge not previously named by the Legislature may be named by the Legislature, by concurrent resolution, for a serviceman killed in action who was a resident of the county in which the bridge is located. The name shall be selected from names submitted to the department by veterans’ associations as defined by Section 1260 of the Military and Veterans Code.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 1970, Ch. 1346.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) The department may place the state’s 9-1-1 emergency telephone number on road signs on all state highways at state entry points and county, city, and town limit entry points. The department shall place and maintain, or cause to be placed and maintained, on all state highways at the city limit of each incorporated city and at the limits of each unincorporated town, as determined by the department, a uniform road sign which sets forth the name of the city or town, its population, and its altitude, as determined by the department. Where the limits of a county, city, or town intersect a state highway at more than two points, the department, in its discretion, need erect the signs only at each of the two outermost points on the state highway where the intersection occurs.

(b) The department shall adopt specifications to provide for uniform signs of permanent character setting forth the information required in subdivision (a). The emergency telephone numbers shall be added to the road signs in subdivision (a) only when the signs are changed for other purposes.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 1985, Ch. 683, Sec. 2.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: The department may, when it deems it necessary, replace or cause to be replaced any city limit road sign.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 1947, Ch. 1273.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: The department shall submit all plans and specifications for any bridge or other structure across any river or other drainage channel or basin subject to the jurisdiction of the Reclamation Board for approval in accordance with the provisions of the Reclamation Board Act, and shall not construct any such bridge or structure without the approval of the said board. Whenever a bridge or other structure has been constructed according to plans and specifications which have been approved by the Reclamation Board, no change in or replacement or relocation of such bridge or structure shall be required by said board from funds appropriated for highway purposes without the consent of the department.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 1939, Ch. 315.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
The department shall replace or cause to be replaced any city limit road sign if all the following conditions exist:

(a) If the legislative body of a city requests the replacement.

(b) If the request is based upon a substantial change of population evidenced by a special or general federal census.

(c) If no previous request has been made by the city within a period of five years.

history: (History: Added by renumbering Section 101.3 by Stats. 1961, Ch. 57.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
The department may file for record with the State Lands Commission such maps as are necessary to furnish an accurate description of any ungranted swamp, overflow, tide, or submerged lands, the bed of any navigable channel, stream, river, creek, lake, bay, or inlet, or other sovereign lands of the State of California which, in the opinion of the department, are needed as a right-of-way for, and for the protection of, any state highway or as a source of materials for the construction, maintenance, or improvement of any state highway. Upon the approval of such map by the State Lands Commission, the lands described therein shall be reserved for such use by the department and the department is thereupon authorized to enter upon, occupy, and use such lands for such purpose or purposes. Any subsequent grant or permission to use such lands shall be subordinate to such reservation. Any such reservation may be released by the written certificate of the director filed with the State Lands Commission. This section shall not apply to state school lands.

The department shall determine the reasonable value of such right-of-way or materials and shall deposit such amount in the State Parks and Recreation Fund. The amount so deposited shall be considered as part of the cost of construction of the state highways.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 1980, Ch. 777, Sec. 15.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: The department shall design, place and maintain or cause to be placed and maintained at appropriate places along state highways signs which indicate the maximum penalty which may be prescribed for throwing or discharging any litter or any flammable or glowing substance from any vehicle outside of a business or residence district. County road commissioners shall place such signs along roads for which they are responsible.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 1963, Ch. 2038.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) The department shall adopt rules and regulations that allow the placement, near exits on freeways located in rural areas, of information signs identifying specific roadside businesses offering fuel, food, lodging, electric vehicle charging facilities, camping services, approved 24-hour pharmacy services, or approved attractions, and that prescribe the standards for those signs.

(b) The department shall provide equal access to all business applicants.

(c) (1) (A) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the department shall not approve the placement of a sign within an urban area designated by the United States Bureau of the Census as having a population of 5,000 or more.

(B) The department may not remove an information sign that was placed before January 1, 2003, due solely to population growth in an urban area that results in a population of 5,000 or more but less than 10,000.

(2) (A) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the department, until January 1, 2021, shall allow the placement of information signs along State Highway Route 65 within, or at exits leading to, the City of Lincoln and along Interstate 80 within, or at exits leading to, the City of Truckee.

(B) The authorization in this paragraph with respect to information signs along Interstate 80 within, or at exits leading to, the City of Truckee, shall apply only to incorporated areas with a population density of less than one person per acre surrounded entirely by land of the Tahoe National Forest.

(C) On or before January 1, 2020, the department shall report to the transportation committees of the Senate and Assembly on the implementation of this paragraph. The report shall describe the implementation and any benefits of, or concerns regarding, that implementation, and shall include recommendations as to whether or not the period of this program should be extended and whether or not the authorization for information signs under this section should be expanded to urban areas having a population of 5,000 or more.

(d) The information signs authorized in this section may be placed near the freeway exits in addition to, or in lieu of, other highway signs of the department, but not in lieu of on-premises or off-premises highway oriented business signs and directional signs.

(e) The department shall establish and charge a fee to place and maintain information signs in an amount not less than 25 percent above its estimated cost in placing and maintaining the information signs. The department shall annually review the amount of that fee and revise it as necessary. Funds derived from the imposition of the fee, after deduction of the cost to the department for the placement and maintenance of the information signs, shall be available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for safety roadside rest purposes.

(f) The department shall incorporate the use of an “RV-friendly” symbol on an information sign placed pursuant to this section for a specific roadside business that meets criteria of the department regarding sufficiency for recreational vehicles with respect to the parking spaces and surfaces, vertical clearance, turning radius, and entrances and exits of the facility. A specific roadside business otherwise qualified for a sign pursuant to this section may qualify for and request an “RV-friendly” symbol for that sign. The department shall adopt rules and regulations for an “RV-friendly” symbol consistent with this section as well as the Federal Highway Administration’s Interim Approval for Addition of RV-friendly Symbol to Specific Service Signs. The rules and regulations adopted by the department shall include a provision for the roadside business to acknowledge that overnight occupancy is not permitted unless the roadside business is licensed as a special occupancy park as defined in Section 18862.43 of the Health and Safety Code. The department shall establish and charge an additional fee pursuant to subdivision (e) to place and maintain the symbol.

(g) The department shall develop rules and regulations governing signs for approved attractions, which shall include amusement parks, botanical and zoological facilities, business districts and main street communities, education centers, golf courses, historical sites, museums, religious sites, resorts, ski areas, marinas, “u-pick” farms and orchards, farmers’ markets, and wineries, viticulture areas, and vineyards.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 2017, Ch. 158, Sec. 1. (AB 1633) Effective January 1, 2018.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) The department may design, place, and maintain, or cause to be designed, placed, and maintained, along state highways, signs to inform motorists of rail transportation services which receive public funding, in whole or in part, unless the sign would result in incurring the penalty specified in subsection (b) of Section 131 of Title 23 of the United States Code.

(b) These signs may only be placed within the right-of-way of state highways that are parallel or adjacent to publicly funded passenger rail routes.

(c) The signs are information structures or information signs as those terms are used in Sections 5203 and 5221 of the Business and Professions Code.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 1993, Ch. 272, Sec. 9. Effective August 2, 1993.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) The department shall adopt rules and regulations to allow, in rural areas, the placement, on interstate and primary highways near public exits, of guide signs indicating the existence, within one-half mile of that exit, of a fire station which is open 24 hours each day of the year.

(b) Upon the request of the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection or a city or county, the department may place and maintain the signs in accordance with the adopted rules and regulations. The department shall bear the costs of placing and maintaining the signs.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 1988, Ch. 151, Sec. 1. Effective June 10, 1988.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) (1) The department shall design, construct, place, and maintain, or cause to be designed, constructed, placed, and maintained, along state highways, signs that read as follows: “Please Don’t Drink and Drive,” followed by: “In Memory of (victim’s name).” These signs shall be placed upon the state highways in accordance with this section, placement guidelines adopted by the department, and any applicable federal limitations or conditions on highway signage, including location and spacing. Signs may memorialize more than one victim. “Victim” for purposes of this section means a person who was killed in a vehicular accident, but does not include a party described in paragraph (2) of subdivision (c).

(2) The department shall adopt program guidelines for the application for and placement of signs authorized by this section, including, but not limited to, the sign application and qualification process, the procedure for the dedication of signs, and procedures for the replacement or restoration of any signs that are damaged or stolen.

(b) If the placement at the location of a vehicular accident is safe and practical and the conditions of subdivisions (c) and (d) are met, the department shall place a sign described in subdivision (a) in close proximity to the location where the vehicular accident occurred.

(c) (1) A party to that accident was convicted of any of the following:

(A) Murder of the second degree under Section 187, and the violation was a direct result of driving a vehicle while in violation of Section 23152 or 23153 of the Vehicle Code.

(B) Gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated under subdivision (a) of Section 191.5 of the Penal Code.

(C) Vehicular manslaughter under subdivision (b) of Section 191.5 of the Penal Code.

(2) A party to that accident operated a vehicle involved in the vehicular accident in violation of Section 23152 or 23153 of the Vehicle Code, but died in the accident or was not prosecuted because he or she is found mentally incompetent pursuant to Section 1367 of the Penal Code.

(d) (1) Upon the request of an immediate family member of the deceased victim involved in an accident occurring on and after January 1, 1991, and described in subdivision (b), the department shall place a sign in accordance with this section. A person who is not a member of the immediate family may also submit a request to have a sign placed under this section if that person also submits the written consent of an immediate family member. The department shall charge the requesting party a fee to cover the department’s cost in designing, constructing, placing, and maintaining that sign, and the department’s costs in administering this section. The sign shall be posted for seven years from the date of initial placement, or until the date the department determines that the condition of the sign has deteriorated to the point that it is no longer serviceable, whichever date is first.

(2) “Immediate family” means spouse, child, stepchild, brother, stepbrother, sister, stepsister, mother, stepmother, father, or stepfather.

(3) If there is any opposition to the placement of the memorial sign by a member of the immediate family, no sign shall be placed pursuant to this section.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 2007, Ch. 747, Sec. 11. Effective January 1, 2008.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) The Department of Transportation shall, through the erection of highway signs and appropriate markers, provide recognition of the historical importance of the Byzantine-Latino Quarter in the City of Los Angeles. In order to implement this subdivision, the department shall determine the cost of signs and other appropriate markers, consistent with the signing requirements for the state highway system, showing this special designation, and, upon receiving donations from nonstate sources sufficient to cover the cost, shall erect those signs and other appropriate markers at the appropriate locations on Interstate Highway 10.

(b) Local designation efforts and other similar actions may complement this project.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2002, Ch. 100, Sec. 2. Effective July 1, 2002.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
The department may place and maintain, or cause to be placed and maintained, signs on state highways directing motorists to communities within the geographical boundaries of a city, county, or city and county if all of the following conditions are satisfied:

(a) The name of the community is culturally unique and historically significant.

(b) The name of the community has resulted from the influence of a culture over a significant period of time.

(c) The general public and media commonly recognize the name of the community.

(d) The community is located within a city, county, or city and county.

(e) Signs are consistent with the signing requirements for the state highway system.

(f) The geographical boundary of the community is within three miles of the state highway exit.

(g) Trailblazing signs are installed on the appropriate streets or roads prior to installation of signs on the state highway.

(h) The city, county, or city and county provides funds from nonstate sources that cover all costs for the Department of Transportation to place and maintain, or cause to be placed and maintained, appropriate signs on state highways.

(i) The governing body of the city, county, or city and county in which the community is located adopts a resolution that does the following:

(A) Designates the name of the community that is to be used on directional signs.

(B) Defines the geographical boundaries of the community.

(C) Requests the department to post signs on state highways.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2004, Ch. 238, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 2005.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
The department shall erect, at appropriate locations on highways in the state highway system, generic directional signs to each Veterans’ Home of California authorized pursuant to Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 1010) or Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 1100) of Division 5 of the Military and Veterans Code, upon receiving funds from nonstate sources sufficient to cover the cost.

Placement of the signs shall be consistent with criteria for signing to federal or state hospitals as set forth in the California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, adopted pursuant to Section 21400 of the Vehicle Code.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2014, Ch. 654, Sec. 1. (SB 842) Effective January 1, 2015.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) Prior to June 30, 2016, and subject to federal approval as provided in subdivision (d), the department shall update its internal policies to allow displays of the following types of messages on changeable message signs:

(1) Safety messages.

(2) Transportation-related messages.

(3) Reminders to register to vote, as requested by the Secretary of State, not more than two days prior to, and on the last day to, register to vote in a particular statewide general election, statewide primary election, or statewide special election conducted pursuant to the Elections Code.

(4) Reminders to vote, as requested by the Secretary of State, as elections approach, not more than two days prior to, and on election day of, a particular statewide general election, statewide primary election, or statewide special election conducted pursuant to the Elections Code.

(b) For purposes of this section, “changeable message sign” means any electronic sign on a roadway with a changeable message typically used to alert motorists of traffic conditions, unusual weather conditions, emergencies, or other events.

(c) Nothing in this section shall be construed to alter the requirements of the Emergency Alert System, the Amber Plan under Section 8594 of the Government Code, or the Blue Alert System under Section 8594.5 of the Government Code. The department may give priority to other messages, including, but not limited to, the display of emergency alerts, Amber Alerts, Blue Alerts, safety messages, and transportation-related messages, over the messages authorized pursuant to paragraph (3) or (4) of subdivision (a).

(d) The department shall not display any information on a changeable message sign authorized pursuant to paragraph (3) or (4) of subdivision (a) unless the United States Department of Transportation, or any of its agencies, has expressly approved the display of that information. If the department is advised by the United States Department of Transportation, or any of its agencies, that the display of information otherwise authorized by paragraph (3) or (4) of subdivision (a) will result in the reduction of federal aid highway funds to the state pursuant to Section 131 of Title 23 of the United States Code, that display of information shall not be made.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2015, Ch. 693, Sec. 1. (AB 400) Effective January 1, 2016.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: Roundabouts shall be included in the list of highway facility types that may be used for memorial or dedication signing as designated in the California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, adopted pursuant to Section 21400 of the Vehicle Code.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2019, Ch. 95, Sec. 1. (AB 634) Effective January 1, 2020.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) The department shall amend the California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices to allow supplemental destination signs for museums that meet all the following:

(1) Have a minimum annual attendance of 50,000 persons, regardless if the museum is in a major metropolitan area, urbanized area, or rural area.

(2) Is within five miles of the highway, regardless if the museum is in a major metropolitan area, urbanized area, or rural area.

(b) The department shall make the amendments required by subdivision (a) in its next edition or revision to the California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2023, Ch. 127, Sec. 1. (AB 1320) Effective January 1, 2024.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) The Department of Transportation shall work with the Native American Heritage Commission, the California Advisory Committee on Geographic Names, the Counties of Los Angeles and San Bernardino, and California tribes local to, or historically located along, Route 210, to identify appropriate locations for signs to recognize tribal lands along Route 210 and to name Route 210.

(b) The Department of Transportation shall, through the erection of highway signs and appropriate markers, provide recognition of the historical and cultural importance of the California tribes local to, or historically located in, the Counties of Los Angeles and San Bernardino. The department shall erect those signs and other appropriate markers at the appropriate locations on Route 210, as part of the department’s regularly scheduled replacement, modification, and maintenance of highway signs.

(c) The Legislature encourages the Counties of Los Angeles and San Bernardino to adopt resolutions to ensure that all people learn about the approved highway signs.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2023, Ch. 543, Sec. 2. (AB 776) Effective January 1, 2024.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: The department shall, in the next revision of the California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, allow supplemental destination signs for a state special school that is located within five miles of the highway, regardless of whether the state special school is located in a major metropolitan area, urbanized area, or rural area.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2024, Ch. 152, Sec. 1. (AB 2367) Effective January 1, 2025.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


citation: SHC § 102

text:
(a) In the name of the people of the State of California, the department may acquire by eminent domain any property necessary for state highway purposes.

(b) For any property that the department is acquiring by, or under threat of, eminent domain, the department shall, in a timely manner, provide a copy of all appraisals it performed or obtained for the property to the property owner. If any appraisals that are performed or paid for by the department are first provided to the property owner, the appraiser shall provide a copy of those appraisals to the department.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 2007, Ch. 411, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 2008.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


citation: SHC § 103

text:
(a) As used in this section, the following terms have the following meanings:

(1) “Multimodal” means transportation options within a transportation corridor, including, but not limited to, highways, rail lines, pedestrian walkways and bike lanes, and commuter transit services.

(2) “North coast corridor project” means a 27-mile long series of projects within the coastal zone that includes improvements to a segment of State Highway Route 5 and the portion of the Los Angeles-San Diego-San Luis Obispo rail corridor between the City of Oceanside and the City of San Diego in San Diego County.

(3) “8+4 Buffer Alternative” means the addition of a multimodal managed lane facility consisting of two lanes on either side of State Highway Route 5 within the north coast corridor, separated from general purpose lanes by striping or other approved traffic control devices, and which, to the maximum extent feasible, is built within existing rights-of-way owned by the department. The managed lanes would give priority to high-occupancy vehicles, vanpools, and one or more bus rapid transit routes. Value pricing techniques would allow single-occupant vehicles to use the facility by paying a toll, as long as single-occupant vehicle use does not negatively impact the transit uses of the managed lanes.

(4) “Public works plan” means a plan as described in Section 30605 of the Public Resources Code. A public works plan allows for an integrated regulatory review by the California Coastal Commission rather than a project-by-project approval approach, but does not change or abridge any of the California Coastal Commission’s existing authorities, including, but not limited to, federal consistency review authorities under the federal Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. Sec. 1451 et seq.). The public works plan allows for an expedited process that describes, evaluates, and provides mitigation measures for coastal access, highway, transit, multimodal and community enhancement, and environmental mitigation projects within the north coast corridor.

(b) A public works plan approved for the north coast corridor project within the coastal zone shall include all of the elements of the north coast corridor project to be carried out by the department or the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), including coastal access, highway, transit, multimodal, community enhancement, and environmental restoration, and mitigation projects. Once the public works plan for the north coast corridor has been approved and certified by the California Coastal Commission, subsequent review by the California Coastal Commission of a notice of intent to develop for a specific project in the public works plan shall be limited to imposing conditions to ensure consistency of the project with the public works plan. The public works plan shall satisfy all of the following:

(1) Identify the California Coastal Commission’s area of original jurisdiction and provide a process for obtaining coastal development permits from the California Coastal Commission directly in those areas.

(2) Contain, but not be limited to, the following elements: the type, size, intensity, and location of all development included in the north coast corridor project; the maximum and minimum size of facilities proposed to be constructed; the standards to which the projects should conform; the thresholds for when amendments to the public works plan may be required; and a proposed timetable and phasing program for all projects.

(3) Establish the mitigation measures that the department and SANDAG will be required to undertake prior to construction of each phase. The mitigation measures shall be described with sufficient detail to allow the department and SANDAG to accurately estimate the cost and effort associated with each particular measure and avoid the need for an amendment to the public works plan unless a project is inconsistent with the project description in the approved public works plan.

(4) Establish the process by which project design and mitigation measures included in the public works plan, and the California Coastal Commission’s findings regarding those measures, may be applied to subsequent coastal development permit approvals and other approvals or determinations for subsequent phases of the project.

(c) For all elements of the north coast corridor project that are located, entirely or in part, in the coastal zone, as defined by Sections 30103 and 66610 of the Public Resources Code, the department and SANDAG shall comply with all of the following requirements:

(1) Collaborate with all stakeholders, including local agencies through which the proposed project traverses, the California Coastal Commission, and other affected local, state, and federal agencies to ensure that multimodal transportation options are evaluated and included in the public works plan and, where appropriate, in the project design.

(2) SANDAG shall establish a safe routes to transit program that integrates the adopted regional bike plan with transit services.

(3) SANDAG shall recommend that the department select an alternative no larger than the 8+4 Buffer Alternative as the preferred alternative for the State Highway Route 5 north coast corridor after it makes a finding that it is consistent with TransNet as approved by voters in 2004. The determination of the preferred alternative shall be made by the department and the Federal Highway Administration in their environmental impact report or environmental impact statement, and SANDAG shall include the preferred alternative in its next update to the regional transportation plan.

(4) In order to reduce environmental impacts to the coastal lagoons, both rail and highway bridges crossing each lagoon shall be planned and constructed concurrently, unless construction in phases will result in an environmentally superior alternative to concurrent construction. SANDAG and the department shall ensure that bridges are constructed to their ultimate width and length so that construction impacts to each lagoon are minimized.

(5) The public works plan shall evaluate the traffic impacts of the proposed capacity-increasing highway project on city and county streets and roads within the coastal zone, and the department shall consult with the affected local jurisdictions regarding those impacts and include the results of the consultations within the public works plan.

(6) Environmental consequences of the proposed north coast corridor project shall be monitored to ensure that the benefits from mitigation, as described in the permits issued for the individual projects, are being achieved.

(7) Construction of all or a portion of the capacity-increasing project on State Highway Route 5 shall move forward concurrently with multimodal projects and environmental mitigation and enhancement projects within each phase, as specified in the public works plan. The phasing plan shall include criteria specified by the California Coastal Commission within the public works plan that shall be met before the next phase of development can occur, and each phase shall include a balance of transit and highway improvements. Although the department and SANDAG shall endeavor to maintain a balance of transit, rail, highway, and environmental improvements in each phase, nothing in this section is intended to limit the ability of the department or SANDAG to seek a public works plan amendment from the California Coastal Commission in order to accelerate a project from a later phase in the public works plan if additional funding is identified to carry out the project at an earlier stage than originally intended.

(8) Prior to a public works plan being submitted to the California Coastal Commission by the department and SANDAG, the department and SANDAG shall provide at least two public hearings on the public works plan for the north coast corridor project.

(9) SANDAG has agreed that it will be responsible for constructing improvements in the Los Angeles-San Diego-San Luis Obispo rail corridor and funding portions of the improvements to that corridor and State Highway Route 5 within the north coast corridor using funding from a San Diego County voter-approved transaction and use tax ordinance known as TransNet. Pursuant to that agreement, SANDAG shall commit to dedicate a portion of the TransNet Regional Habitat Conservation Fund for regional habitat acquisition, management, and monitoring activities necessary to implement habitat conservation plans based on the estimated economic benefits derived from permitting and approval efficiencies on the north coast corridor project as a result of the procedures of this section, with that funding to be released by SANDAG in phases based upon the proportion of project work that has been issued permits, consistency reviews, or other applicable approvals, and in accordance with any other criteria as deemed appropriate by SANDAG taking into account the purpose and intent of TransNet.

(d) The California Coastal Commission, the department, and SANDAG shall work cooperatively toward completing all design approvals, reviews, determinations, and permitting for the north coast corridor project on an expedited basis. To meet the goals in this section, the following provisions shall apply:

(1) The Legislature finds that it is the California Coastal Commission’s role to apply a regional or statewide perspective to land use debates where the use in question is of greater than local significance. To that end, the California Coastal Commission is authorized to utilize Section 30515 of the Public Resources Code for the north coast corridor project and the process referenced in that section may be streamlined pursuant to agreement between the California Coastal Commission and those jurisdictions with an approved local coastal program.

(2) The department and SANDAG shall perform work and complete development consistent with the phasing program adopted in the public works plan pursuant to subdivision (b) unless changes are reviewed and approved by the California Coastal Commission.

(3) A public works plan prepared for the north coast corridor project by the department and SANDAG shall be treated as a long-range development plan to which the provisions in Sections 21080.5 and 21080.9 of the Public Resources Code shall apply.

(4) A permitting agency’s decision to review and approve a public works plan, a plan amendment, or related notice of impending development, make a consistency determination, or issue a permit for the north coast corridor project shall be reviewed under the substantial evidence standard.

(5) The Legislature finds that the California Coastal Commission, the department, and SANDAG have agreed that, following approval of the public works plan, the California Coastal Commission shall limit its subsequent regulatory review of the rail aspects of the north coast corridor project to federal consistency.

(e) A notice of determination issued pursuant to Section 21108 or 21152 of the Public Resources Code after January 1, 2011, but prior to January 1, 2012, for a project subject to this section shall be suspended by the department until it is determined that the project’s environmental documents are consistent with the provisions of this section.

(f) (1) Nothing in this section shall be construed to supersede, or in any way alter or lessen the effect or application of, the California Coastal Act of 1976 (Division 20 (commencing with Section 30000) of the Public Resources Code).

(2) Nothing in this section shall be construed to narrow the authority of the California Coastal Commission, at any stage of the approval or review process, to resolve policy conflicts pursuant to Section 30200 of the Public Resources Code.

(3) Nothing in this section is intended to apply to any program, project, or other activity that is not related to the north coast corridor project.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2011, Ch. 535, Sec. 2. (SB 468) Effective January 1, 2012.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: Subject to Sections 1240.670, 1240.680, and 1240.690 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the real property which the department may acquire by eminent domain, or otherwise, includes any property dedicated to park purposes, however it may have been dedicated, when the commission has determined by resolution that such property is necessary for state highway purposes.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 1975, Ch. 1239.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) It is the intent of the Legislature that the department should have a reasonable opportunity to acquire properties needed for transportation projects.

(b) Whenever the department determines that a specific parcel of private property will or may be required for the right-of-way of a state highway transportation corridor within seven years, or is located within a corridor which is the subject of a special study, the department shall so notify the planning department of the city or county in which the parcel is located. When reviewing proposals for the development of a parcel so identified, the city or county shall review with the department the status of the proposed transportation project involving that parcel.

(c) As used in this section, “special study” means a highway study approved by the commission or the department on or before July 1, 1989, or a study approved after that date conducted pursuant to Section 14530.5 of the Government Code.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 1989, Ch. 744, Sec. 1.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


citation: SHC § 104

text:
The department may acquire, either in fee or in any lesser estate or interest, any real property that it considers necessary for state highway purposes. Real property for these purposes includes, but is not limited to, real property considered necessary for any of the following purposes:

(a) For rights-of-way, including those necessary for state highways within cities.

(b) For purposes of exchanging the same for other real property to be used for rights-of-way.

(c) For rock quarries, gravel pits, or sand or earth borrow pits.

(d) For offices, shops, or storage yards.

(e) For parks adjoining or near a state highway.

(f) For the culture and support of trees that benefit a state highway by aiding in the maintenance and preservation of the roadbed, or that aid in the maintenance of the attractiveness of the scenic beauties of a state highway.

(g) For drainage in connection with a state highway.

(h) For the maintenance of an unobstructed view of any portion of a state highway so as to promote the safety of the traveling public.

(i) For the construction and maintenance of stock trails.

(j) For the construction and maintenance of nonmotorized transportation facilities, as defined in Section 887.

(k) (1) (A) For environmental mitigation property, which the department may transfer to, purchase for transfer to, or purchase in the name of a, governmental entity, special district, nonprofit organization, for-profit entity, person, or other entity in accordance with Chapter 4.6 (commencing with Section 65965) of Division 1 of Title 7 of the Government Code, as applicable.

(B) Where feasible, a governmental entity holding property pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall have the principal responsibility for natural resource protection or conservation. A governmental entity holding property pursuant to this section shall be approved through the due diligence process set forth in Section 65967 of the Government Code.

(2) For purposes of this section, “environmental mitigation property” means property that is required by state or federal law, or by permit conditions imposed by a state or federal agency, to be preserved or restored and maintained as natural habitat to offset the environmental impacts caused by the construction and operation of a state highway improvement project or for advance mitigation purposes as provided in Section 800.6.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 2023, Ch. 57, Sec. 2. (SB 145) Effective July 10, 2023.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) (1) For purposes of environmental mitigation pursuant to subdivision (k) of Section 104, the department may create an endowment or enter one or more agreements with the transferee of an environmental mitigation property or another party or parties to provide funding for the establishment, preservation, restoration, and maintenance of the property consistent with any permit conditions, mitigation requirements imposed by state or federal law, conditions imposed by a state or federal agency, or advance mitigation requirements. This authority includes, but is not limited to, the requirements of Chapter 4.6 (commencing with Section 65965) of Division 1 of Title 7 of the Government Code, as applicable.

(2) Where feasible, a governmental entity holding property pursuant to paragraph (1) shall have the principal responsibility for natural resource protection or conservation. A governmental entity holding property pursuant to this section shall be approved through the due diligence process set forth in Section 65967 of the Government Code. For federally imposed mitigation requirements, the department is subject to Chapter 4.6 (commencing with Section 65965) of Division 1 of Title 7 of the Government Code, as applicable, to the extent not in conflict with federal law or regulation.

(b) (1) This section shall remain in effect only until December 31, 2033, and as of that date is repealed.

(2) Endowments or agreements entered into pursuant to this section before December 31, 2033, shall remain in effect beyond that date.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2023, Ch. 57, Sec. 3. (SB 145) Effective July 10, 2023. Repealed as of December 31, 2033, by its own provisions.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: If property is provided through donation or at less than fair market value to the department for state highway purposes, or purchased with funds provided by a local agency, the donor or seller may reserve the right to develop the property, but any development of the property shall be subject to the approval of the department and any reservations, restrictions, or conditions that it determines necessary for highway safety.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 1989, Ch. 1081, Sec. 1.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:

(1) “Federal Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program” means the Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program established pursuant to Section 11509 of the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58).

(2) “Joint powers authority” means a joint exercise of powers authority established pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 6500) of Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code.

(3) “Program” means the Reconnecting Communities: Highways to Boulevards Pilot Program established pursuant to subdivision (b).

(b) The Reconnecting Communities: Highways to Boulevards Pilot Program is hereby established, to be administered by the department, with guidance from the Transportation Agency, and in consultation with the commission, the Department of Housing and Community Development, the Strategic Growth Council, and the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research, to provide funding, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for the purpose of awarding competitive grants to eligible entities, in partnership with the department, for planning or implementing the conversion or transformation of underutilized state highways into multimodal corridors that serve residents of underserved communities.

(c) The purpose of the program is to achieve the following goals:

(1) Restore community connectivity through the removal, retrofit, mitigation, or replacement of eligible transportation infrastructure facilities that create barriers to mobility, access, or economic development.

(2) Provide matching funding for potential federal grant funds.

(3) Advance health and equity outcomes for underserved communities by removing health, safety, and access barriers associated with transportation infrastructure within communities.

(4) Improve access to opportunity by improving travel options and reducing combined household transportation and housing costs for underserved communities.

(5) Create opportunities for implementation of affordable housing and affirmatively furthering fair housing.

(6) Avoid or minimize direct and indirect displacement effects from project implementation.

(7) Advance community-based or community-driven transportation planning.

(d) The program shall set aside up to 25 percent of available funding for planning and the remainder for implementation.

(e) Eligible applicants under the program may include, but are not limited to, any of the following:

(1) For planning grants, a nonprofit organization, a community-based organization, a faith-based organization, a coalition or association of nonprofit organizations, a local agency, a regional agency, a joint powers authority, a tribal government, or a transit agency.

(2) For implementation grants, a local, regional, or state transportation agency, a joint powers authority, or a tribal government.

(f) Eligible project types under the program for implementation grants include, but are not limited to, any of the following:

(1) Conversion or capping of an access-controlled state-operated transportation route to increase access for bicycles, pedestrians, and transit.

(2) Conversion of a state highway serving as a main street into a multimodal surface street that allows for bicycle, pedestrian, and transit access.

(3) A project that significantly enhances multimodal connectivity along or across a state highway without conversion or capping.

(4) Implementation of early action implementation plans developed under subdivision (g).

(5) Other implementation activities authorized for funding under the federal Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program.

(g) Eligible project types under the program for planning grants include, but are not limited to, the following activities leading to any of the eligible implementation project types:

(1) Community engagement, consultation, and leadership activities.

(2) Planning studies, needs assessments, feasibility studies, scenario planning, conceptual designs, and other planning products.

(3) Project plans and design documents needed to deliver implementation projects.

(4) Environmental review, consultation, or other efforts required under any state and federal environmental laws relating to the review or approval of an eligible project.

(5) Early action implementation plans for interim design solutions that demonstrate proof of concept for projects.

(6) Establishment of a community land trust for the development and use of excess or surplus land created by the removal, retrofit, or transformation of an underutilized highway.

(7) Other transportation and community-based transportation planning activities required to advance a specific project.

(8) Other planning activities authorized for funding under the federal Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program.

(h) (1) Within one year of June 30, 2022, the department shall develop guidelines, including project selection criteria, program evaluation metrics, and targeted technical assistance strategies to implement the program. The guidelines shall be exempt from the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code).

(2) In developing guidelines pursuant to this section, the department shall solicit input from local communities.

(3) The guidelines shall include, but shall not be limited to, all of the following:

(A) (i) A requirement that 100 percent of the program funds are awarded to projects that benefit underserved communities. For purposes of the program, the department shall establish a data-driven definition for underserved communities that may include, but need not be limited to, disadvantaged communities, as identified pursuant to Section 39711 of the Health and Safety Code, and low-income communities, as defined in paragraph (2) of subdivision (d) of Section 39713 of the Health and Safety Code.

(ii) A project eligible under the program shall clearly demonstrate a direct and meaningful benefit to an underserved community, and be adjacent to, or directly located in, an underserved community.

(iii) A project eligible under the program shall require that the applicant demonstrate that the project is developed in partnership with the department and that it would be consistent with the requirements of the federal Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program, regardless of the availability of funding from the federal program.

(B) Project selection criteria that includes, but is not limited to, all of the following:

(i) The ability of the project to successfully compete for federal grant funding.

(ii) The demonstrated need of the applicant to address the goals of the program as described in subdivision (c).

(iii) The demonstrated leadership and involvement from local community members and organizations in the creation of the project, or the anticipated leadership or involvement from local community members and organizations in the planning process for which funds are being requested.

(iv) The demonstrated commitment of local, regional, or federal funds as leveraged match to state grants.

(v) In awarding planning grants, the prioritization of applications that demonstrate multistakeholder partnerships with local and regional agencies, community-based organizations, and other stakeholders, as appropriate.

(C) Development of performance metrics to measure project outcomes in order to inform future implementation of the program.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 2024, Ch. 53, Sec. 12. (AB 173) Effective July 2, 2024.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: Whenever the right of occupancy of any person upon national forest or national park lands is terminated because of the proposed construction of a state highway across such lands, the department shall, in connection with the construction of the highway, acquire, by purchase or condemnation, any buildings or improvements constructed upon such lands by the person.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 1961, Ch. 2173.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
The director may execute all deeds or conveyances necessary to convey any real property or interest therein to be sold or exchanged under the provisions of this code. He may insert in any such deed or conveyance such conditions, covenants, exceptions and reservations as in his opinion are in the public interest or may convey in fee simple absolute. All statutes relating to State lands or to reservations of minerals therein or to reservations of rights to prospect for or mine or remove such minerals are inapplicable to lands heretofore or hereafter acquired by the State or conveyed by the State pursuant to the provisions of this code or pursuant to the provisions of previously existing statutes codified in this code, and no such statute in respect to State lands hereafter enacted shall be applicable thereto unless the Legislature expressly so declares.

It shall be conclusively presumed in favor of any purchaser for value and without notice of any real property or interest therein conveyed pursuant to the provisions of this code that the department acted within its lawful authority in acquiring the property, and that the director acted within his lawful authority in executing any deed or conveyance or lease authorized by this code.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 1939, Ch. 686.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
The authority conferred by this code to acquire real property for state highway purposes includes authority to acquire for future needs. Structures maintained or allowed to remain on property which has been acquired, or is acquired in the future, for future highway needs shall be maintained in conformance with standards established in the building and safety ordinances of the city or county having jurisdiction. The standards to which such structure shall be made to conform are those standards, except for such variances as may be applicable to the structure when acquired, of the city or county having jurisdiction which are in effect at the time of acquisition by the department.

The department is authorized to lease any lands which are held for state highway purposes and are not presently needed therefor on such terms and conditions as the director may fix and to maintain and care for such property in order to secure rent therefrom. Except for any rent required under the California Toll Bridge Authority Act (Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 30000) of Division 17), or any bond indenture executed under that act, to be deposited in some other fund, all such rent shall be deposited to the credit of the State Highway Account in the State Transportation Fund. Twenty-four percent of such rent in the State Highway Account shall be allocated pursuant to Section 104.10.

Whenever it is determined by the department that any rental revenue collected under this section represents overpayment or payment in duplicate, the department may make refund of such overpayment or payment in duplicate from the State Highway Account.

Any reference in any law or regulation to the Highway Properties Rental Fund or to the Highway Properties Rental Account in the Transportation Tax Fund shall be deemed to refer to the State Highway Account.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 1978, Ch. 389.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) Unless otherwise provided by statute, when requested by a city, county, or special district, the department shall provide information regarding, and shall lease, unoccupied, unimproved property that is held for future highway purposes to the city, county, or special district within which the property is located. The city, county, or special district may use the leased property first for agricultural and community garden purposes, and second for recreational purposes, on terms and conditions not unreasonably inhibiting the use of the property, including, but not limited to, assumption of liability and installation and removal of improvements. The lease shall be for one dollar ($1) per year for not less than one year and shall be renewable.

The city, county, or special district may sublease the property for agricultural or recreational purposes upon prior written notification to the department, and may proceed with the sublease unless disapproved by the department within 10 working days after the notice is sent to the department. The first priority for a sublease shall be given to the owner of property contiguous to the leased land.

In a sublease of the property, the city, county, or special district may charge rental fees at least sufficient to pay its administrative costs. All money received by the city, county, or special district under a sublease, less administrative costs, shall be transmitted to the department for deposit in the State Highway Account.

(b) Unoccupied, unimproved property that has commercial, industrial, or residential use as its most feasible or best use, as determined by the department, is not subject to this section.

(c) The Legislature finds and declares that the lease of unoccupied, unimproved property pursuant to this section serves a public purpose.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 2004, Ch. 183, Sec. 336. Effective January 1, 2005.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: The department may retain in its records all deeds, conveyances, and other evidences of title to or interests in real property acquired by the department under the provisions of this code. The Secretary of State and any other State officer or department having custody of any such documents is authorized and directed to deliver custody of such instruments to the department. The department may furnish on demand to any person paying the cost of preparing the same a certified copy of any such document.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 1941, Ch. 199.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text: None of the deeds, conveyances or other evidences of title to or interests in real property acquired by the department under the provisions of this code for highway purposes, need be recorded by the Secretary of State.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 1941, Ch. 804.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
The Department of Transportation shall, not later than the first day of November following the close of any fiscal year, pay the rents computed pursuant to Section 104.6 to the county in which such real property is situated. The Department of Transportation shall certify to the Department of Finance the amount of such rentals attributable to each county and shall notify each county of the rental and location of each piece of rental property for which rents are deposited in the State Highway Account in the State Transportation Fund.

The county auditor shall distribute any payment received by the county pursuant to this section, to the county, to each revenue district for which the county assesses and collects real property taxes or assessments, and to every other taxing agency within the county in which the property is situated in the amount as determined by the board of supervisors, except that one-half of the allocation for a rental property shall be allocated to the city in which the rental property is located.

As used in this section, the terms “taxing agency” and “revenue district” have the same meanings given them in the Revenue and Taxation Code.

The money received by the respective jurisdictions under this section shall be expended only for purposes authorized by Article XIX of the California Constitution.

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) Upon a finding that the action would not adversely affect the activities of the department, the department may lease, in whole or in part, property owned by it in the block bounded by First Street, Main Street, Second Street, and Los Angeles Street in the City of Los Angeles to public agencies or private entities for any term not to exceed 99 years. Each lease shall be subject to reservations, restrictions, and conditions as the department deems appropriate. Prior to entering into a lease, the department shall determine that the proposed lease is not in conflict with local zoning ordinances. The lease may provide for joint use of the property by the department. Each lease shall be subject to prior approval by the commission.

(b) Revenues from leases shall be deposited in the State Highway Account.

(c) The department shall act as agent for the payment of its tenant’s possessory interest tax in accordance with the procedures of Section 104.13.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 1987, Ch. 1060, Sec. 1.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) The department may lease to public agencies or private entities for any term not to exceed 99 years the use of areas above or below state highways, subject to any reservations, restrictions, and conditions that it deems necessary to ensure adequate protection to the safety and the adequacy of highway facilities and to abutting or adjacent land uses. Authorized emergency vehicles, as defined in Section 165 of the Vehicle Code, which are on active duty and are not merely being stored, shall be given preference in the use of these areas, and no payment of consideration shall be required for this use of the areas by these vehicles. Prior to entering into any lease, the department shall determine that the proposed use is not in conflict with the zoning regulations of the local government concerned. The leases shall be made in accordance with procedures to be prescribed by the commission, except that, in the case of leases with private entities, the leases shall only be made after competitive bidding unless the commission finds, by unanimous vote, that in certain cases competitive bidding would not be in the best interests of the state. The possibilities of entering into the leases, and the consequent benefits to be derived therefrom, may be considered by the department in designing and constructing the highways.

Revenues from the leases shall be deposited in the State Highway Account. If leased property was provided to the department for state highway purposes through donation or at less than fair market value, the lease revenues shall be shared with the donor or seller if so provided by contract when the property was acquired. If the donor or seller was a local agency which no longer exists at the time the department enters into the lease, the local agency’s share of lease revenues shall be paid to the county or counties within which the local agency was situated.

(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), in any case where sufficient land or airspace exists within the right-of-way of any highway, constructed in whole or in part with federal-aid highway funds, to accommodate needed passenger, commuter, or high-speed rail, magnetic levitation systems, and highway and nonhighway public mass transit facilities, the department may make the land or airspace available, with or without charge, to a public entity for those purposes, subject to any reservations, restrictions, or conditions that it determines necessary to ensure adequate protection to the safety and adequacy of highway facilities and to abutting or adjacent land uses.

(c) The department shall consider future lease potential of areas above or below state highway projects when planning new state highway projects. This consideration shall be accomplished by intradepartment consultation between offices concerned with project development and airspace lease development.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 2000, Ch. 860, Sec. 6. Effective January 1, 2001.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) The department shall act as agent for the payment of possessory interest taxes due from persons to whom the department leases property of a type described in subdivision (e).

(b) The department shall annually provide a current list of all such property located in each county to the assessor of the county. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the assessor shall submit the possessory interest tax bill for each property directly to the department, and the department shall be responsible for the payment of the tax in the manner described in subdivision (c).

(c) All funds distributed to a county pursuant to Section 104.10 shall be deemed to be in full or partial payment on the total possessory interest taxes due on the property described in subdivision (e) located in the county. If the amount transferred to a county pursuant to Section 104.10 in any year is less than the total possessory interest tax due on all the property located in the county, the department shall promptly forward to the county the amount of the balance due.

(d) In lieu of the information required by Section 107.6 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, all leases of property of a type described in subdivision (e) shall contain a statement that the department will pay all possessory interest taxes arising from the lease and that the amount of rent charged reflects the cost of this added responsibility of the department.

(e) This section shall apply only to real property held for future state highway needs and to real property originally held for that purpose, which the department has determined is no longer needed for that purpose, prior to its sale or exchange by the department.

history: (History: Repealed and added by Stats. 1983, Ch. 213, Sec. 2.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
Whenever land has been acquired pursuant to former Section 104.1 or pursuant to Article 5 (commencing with Section 1240.410) of Chapter 3 of Title 7 of Part 3 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the department may, in its discretion, lease to a local agency for park purposes all or any portion of the remainder outside the boundary of the state highway or public work or improvement, but not beyond the next adjacent dedicated street, when such use will protect such highway, public work, or improvement and its environs, and will preserve its view, appearance, light, air, and usefulness. Such lease shall be made in accordance with procedures, terms, and conditions to be prescribed by the commission. Such terms and conditions shall include all of the following:

(a) Provisions requiring the local agency to develop and maintain such portion of the remainder as a park.

(b) Provisions that whenever such portion of the remainder is needed for state highway purposes, the lease shall terminate.

(c) Provisions that whenever such portion of the remainder ceases to be used for park purposes, the lease shall terminate.

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) Any airspace under a freeway, or real property acquired for highway purposes, in the City and County of San Francisco, that is not excess property, shall be offered for lease on a right of first refusal by the department to the city and county or a political subdivision of the city and county, for purposes of an emergency shelter or feeding program, or for park, recreational, or open-space purposes.

(b) (1) The lease amount for emergency shelter or feeding programs shall be for one dollar ($1) per month.

(2) For up to 10 parcels, the lease amount for park, recreational, or open-space purposes shall be 30 percent of the fair market lease value of the applicable parcel.

(3) Any property leased pursuant to paragraph (2) shall be located within a priority development area.

(4) The lease amount may be paid in advance of the term covered in order to reduce the administrative costs associated with the payment of the monthly rental fee. The lease shall require the payment of an administrative fee not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500) per year, unless the department determines that a higher administrative fee is necessary, for the department’s cost of administering the lease.

(c) In the case of a lease for park, recreational, or open-space purposes, in order to offset any potential loss of revenue, the department may include parcels leased pursuant to this section in a mitigation bank to be used to advance future development projects or highway projects within the city and county.

(d) The city and county or a political subdivision of the city and county, in consultation with the department, shall follow all applicable health, environmental, safety, design, and engineering standards.

(e) Any lease shall require the lessee to fund and construct all associated infrastructure, and to accept full responsibility for liability related to those uses. The lease shall require the lessee to be responsible for all maintenance costs associated with those uses, except as otherwise provided in the lease. The lease shall authorize the lessee to subsidize its associated maintenance costs through generation of revenue under a limited revenue generation model, such as from limited parking facilities located on the leased property, if any revenues generated that exceed the associated maintenance costs are shared with the state, at a rate not less than 50 percent of those excess revenues, with that amount to be deposited in the State Highway Account.

(f) As used in this section, “priority development area” means an area identified in a sustainable communities strategy developed pursuant to Section 65080 of the Government Code.

(g) The Legislature finds and declares that the lease of real property pursuant to this section serves a public purpose.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 2017, Ch. 822, Sec. 1. (AB 857) Effective January 1, 2018.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) The department may provide information regarding, and may lease, airspace under the interchange of Route 4 and Route 5 in San Joaquin County and on the northeast corner of Route 101 and De La Vina Street in the County of Santa Barbara, to a city, county, or other political subdivision or another state agency for emergency shelter or feeding program purposes. The lease shall be for one dollar ($1) per month. The lease amount may be paid in advance of the term covered in order to reduce the administrative costs associated with the payment of the monthly rental fee.

(b) Notwithstanding Chapter 7.8 (commencing with Section 8698) of Division 1 of Title 2 of the Government Code, any structure that is constructed or modified under this section shall comply with the minimum standards provided in Appendix N of the 2016 California Building Code or Appendix X of the 2016 California Residential Code, or any future standards adopted by the Department of Housing and Community Development related to emergency housing or emergency housing facilities.

(c) A lease executed pursuant to this section shall also provide for the cost of administering the lease.

(d) The administrative fee shall not exceed five hundred dollars ($500) per year unless the department determines that a higher administrative fee is necessary.

(e) The Legislature finds and declares that the lease of real property pursuant to this section serves a public purpose.

(f) A lease executed pursuant to subdivision (a) for airspace under the interchange of Route 4 and Route 5 in San Joaquin County shall provide for the rescission of existing leases of this airspace between the department and the City of Stockton. Upon the request of the City of Stockton, the department may renew the lease executed pursuant to subdivision (a) for the airspace described in this subdivision for the period requested by the city.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 2018, Ch. 436, Sec. 1. (AB 2629) Effective January 1, 2019.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) Real property in the City of San Diego between 17th Street and the west side of Route 5 between the southbound onramp and the offramp near J Street, which was acquired for highway purposes and which is not excess property, may be leased by the department to a city, county, or other political subdivision or another state agency for emergency shelter, feeding program purposes, or for the establishment of a day care center for children.

(b) The lease shall be for one dollar ($1) per month. The lease amount may be paid in advance of the term covered in order to reduce the administrative costs associated with the payment of the monthly rental fee. The lease shall require the payment of an administrative fee not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500) per year, unless the department determines that a higher administrative fee is necessary, for the department’s cost of administering the lease.

(c) The Legislature finds and declares that the lease of real property pursuant to this section serves a public purpose.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 1999, Ch. 724, Sec. 15.5. Effective January 1, 2000.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) The excess property owned by the department described in subdivision (b) that is leased until June 30, 2005, to the Century Housing Corporation, a nonprofit corporation, and used for job training and placement purposes, shall continue to be leased to that party until June 30, 2028, at the existing rent.

(b) The excess property consists of approximately 1.3 acres, is referred to as excess parcels 6160, 6166, 6167, and 6168, and is located adjacent to Lennox Boulevard and State Highway (Interstate) Route 405 in an unincorporated area of Los Angeles County.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2003, Ch. 228, Sec. 51. Effective August 11, 2003.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) (1) The department may lease airspace under the interchange of Route 4 and Sutter Street in San Joaquin County to any city, county, or other political subdivision, or any state agency, for feeding program purposes. The department may provide information to those entities regarding the lease of that airspace for that use. Property may be leased under this section only if there is no buyer for the property. The lease shall be for one dollar ($1) per month. The lease amount may be paid in advance of the term covered in order to reduce the administrative costs associated with the payment of the monthly rental fee.

(2) Any lease executed under this section shall also provide for the cost of administering the lease. The administrative fee shall not exceed five hundred dollars ($500) per year unless the department determines that a higher administrative fee is necessary.

(b) The Legislature finds and declares that the lease of real property under this section serves a public purpose.

(c) Upon the request of the City of Stockton, the department may renew the lease for the period requested by the city, but not to exceed 10 years, and may, subsequent to that renewal, agree to not more than two additional renewals of not more than 10 years each.

(d) This section shall become operative on July 1, 1999.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 1998, Ch. 958, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 1999. Section operative July 1, 1999, by its own provisions.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, the Department of Transportation shall, consistent with Article XIX of the California Constitution, transfer to the Department of Parks and Recreation the real property in the City of San Diego between Taylor Street and Wallace Street and between Juan Street and Calhoun Street, which was acquired for highway purposes and which was previously used by the department as its District 11 administrative headquarters, and which is commonly known as 2829 Juan Street, San Diego.

(b) The real property transferred pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be incorporated into the state park system upon its transfer to the Department of Parks and Recreation.

(c) On and after the date of transfer, the Department of Transportation shall have no continuing obligation relating to the ownership, maintenance, or control of the transferred real property, and all obligations of ownership, maintenance, and control shall thereafter be borne by the Department of Parks and Recreation.

(d) The transfer of the real property required by this section shall be completed within 90 days of the effective date of the act enacting this section in the 2013–14 Regular Session of the Legislature.

(e) The transfer of the real property required by this section serves a public purpose.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2013, Ch. 356, Sec. 51. (SB 96) Effective September 26, 2013.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, the department shall declare that the Pedro Point excess property identified in Director’s Deed DD–028801–01–01, also known as the “Disney Lot,” is surplus state property acquired by the expenditure of tax revenues and located in the coastal zone, pursuant to Section 10 of Article XIX of the California Constitution. The department shall provide for the transfer of this property to the Department of Parks and Recreation for state park purposes as provided under Section 10 of Article XIX of the California Constitution.

(b) The transfer of the property required by this section serves a public purpose.

(c) For purposes of the transfer required by this section, the value of the property shall be the price paid by the department for the original acquisition of the property. The original acquisition price shall not be adjusted for inflation.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2024, Ch. 365, Sec. 3. (AB 1937) Effective January 1, 2025.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) Any airspace under a freeway, or real property acquired for highway purposes, in the City of Oakland, that is not excess property, may be offered for lease on a right of first refusal by the department to the city, or to a political subdivision of the city, for purposes of an emergency shelter or feeding program.

(b) For up to 10 parcels, the lease amount for emergency shelter or feeding programs shall be for one dollar ($1) per month. The lease amount may be paid in advance of the term covered in order to reduce the administrative costs associated with the payment of the monthly rental fee. The lease shall require the payment of an administrative fee not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500) per year, unless the department determines that a higher administrative fee is necessary, for the department’s cost of administering the lease.

(c) The Legislature finds and declares that the lease of real property pursuant to this section serves a public purpose.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2018, Ch. 443, Sec. 1. (AB 3139) Effective January 1, 2019.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) The department may lease the real property located at 4747 Pacific Highway in the City of San Diego, department parcel number 760-216-19-00, which was acquired for highway purposes and is not excess property, to a city or county, a political subdivision of a city or county, or another state agency, for purposes of an emergency shelter or feeding program.

(b) (1) The lease amount shall be for one dollar ($1) per month.

(2) The lease amount may be paid in advance of the term covered to reduce the administrative costs associated with the payment of the monthly rental fee.

(3) The lease shall require the payment of an administrative fee not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500) per year, unless the department determines that a higher administrative fee is necessary, for the department’s cost of administering the lease.

(c) The Legislature finds and declares that the lease of real property pursuant to this section serves a public purpose.

(d) Notwithstanding Chapter 7.8 (commencing with Section 8698) of Division 1 of Title 2 of the Government Code, all structures that are constructed or modified under this section shall be compliant with the minimum standards provided in the 2016 California Building Code Appendix N, the 2016 California Residential Code Appendix X, or any future standards adopted by the Department of Housing and Community Development related to emergency housing or emergency housing facilities.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2018, Ch. 442, Sec. 1. (AB 3061) Effective January 1, 2019.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) (1) Any airspace under a freeway, or real property acquired for highway purposes, in the City of Los Angeles, that is not excess property, may be offered for lease on a right of first refusal by the department to the city, or to a political subdivision of the city, for purposes of an emergency shelter or feeding program, for purposes of a secure vehicle lot program, or for any combination of these purposes.

(2) For up to 25 parcels, the lease amount for emergency shelter or feeding programs or secure vehicle lot programs shall be for one dollar ($1) per month. The lease amount may be paid in advance of the term covered in order to reduce the administrative costs associated with the payment of the monthly rental fee. The lease shall require the payment of an administrative fee not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500) per year, unless the department determines that a higher administrative fee is necessary, for the department’s cost of administering the lease.

(3) The Legislature finds and declares that the lease of real property pursuant to this subdivision serves a public purpose.

(b) (1) Any airspace under a freeway, or real property acquired for highway purposes, in the City of San Jose, that is not excess property, may be offered for lease on a right of first refusal by the department to the city, or to a political subdivision of the city, for purposes of an emergency shelter or feeding program.

(2) For up to 10 parcels, the lease amount for emergency shelter or feeding programs shall be for one dollar ($1) per month. The lease amount may be paid in advance of the term covered in order to reduce the administrative costs associated with the payment of the monthly rental fee. The lease shall require the payment of an administrative fee not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500) per year, unless the department determines that a higher administrative fee is necessary, for the department’s cost of administering the lease.

(3) The Legislature finds and declares that the lease of real property pursuant to this subdivision serves a public purpose.

(c) A vehicle stored in a secure vehicle lot program pursuant to subdivision (a) shall comply with all of the following:

(1) It shall be uninhabited.

(2) Prior to storage in a secure vehicle lot program, it shall be assessed for safe storage, as defined by the department and in consultation with the City of Los Angeles.

(3) It shall not contain hazardous material, as defined in Section 25501 of the Health and Safety Code, unless otherwise specified in the terms of the lease entered into between the City of Los Angeles and the department.

(d) For purposes of this section, “secure vehicle lot program” means the use of the leased property to store a vehicle, including, but not limited to, a recreational vehicle, belonging to a person receiving services from the lessee or other governmental agency for the purpose of relieving homelessness.

history: (History: Amended by Stats. 2024, Ch. 721, Sec. 1. (AB 2525) Effective January 1, 2025.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation


text:
(a) The department may make available for lease airspace or real property for the purposes described in this section if it determines that the airspace or real property is available for rent and that the airspace or real property has independent site access separate from an access-controlled highway or highway structure. The department may offer the airspace or real property for lease to a local or state agency for the purpose of conducting a temporary emergency shelter or feeding program. As a condition of entering into the lease, the lessee shall agree that, during the period of the lease, the airspace or real property and its improvements shall not be used as childcare facilities and that no playground equipment shall be permitted under the lease. Any existing lease of airspace or real property between the department and a local or state agency may be terminated without penalty at any time, upon mutual agreement of both the department and the lessee, for the purpose of entering into a new lease pursuant to this section.

(b) The determination of availability and identification of specific parcels of airspace or real property eligible for lease under this section shall be made by the department in its sole discretion.

(c) All structures that are constructed or modified under this section shall be compliant with the minimum standards adopted pursuant to Chapter 7.8 (commencing with Section 8698) of Division 1 of Title 2 of the Government Code or the minimum standards provided in the 2019 California Building Code Appendix O, the 2019 California Residential Code Appendix X, and any future standards adopted by the Department of Housing and Community Development related to emergency housing or emergency housing facilities.

(d) Notwithstanding any other law, for any leases executed pursuant to this section or any other section by the department for the purpose of conducting a temporary emergency shelter or feeding program, the enforcement of applicable building standards adopted pursuant to Chapter 7.8 (commencing with Section 8698) of Division 1 of Title 2 of the Government Code or published in the California Building Code and the California Residential Code, including those relating to fire and panic safety, and any future standards adopted by the Department of Housing and Community Development related to emergency housing or emergency housing facilities, shall be the responsibility of the local authority in which the property subject to the lease is located and that has jurisdiction over the enforcement of building code standards.

(e) Any improvements to the leased property shall meet the following conditions:

(1) No improvements of a permanent nature are allowed, except for appropriate utilities, groundcover, lighting, and fencing to support the temporary emergency shelter or feeding program as approved by the department.

(2) Any improvements of a temporary nature in which people live, eat, recreate, receive services, or otherwise occupy shall not be underneath a transportation structure, and shall not be within 20 horizontal feet from the farthest edge of a transportation structure.

(f) (1) The monthly rent of a lease entered into pursuant to this section shall be one dollar ($1) per month. The lessee may pay the rental amounts due for the entire term of the lease in advance of the term covered in order to reduce the administrative costs associated with the payment of the monthly rental fee.

(2) To cover the department’s costs, the lease shall require the lessee to pay an annual administrative fee of up to five thousand dollars ($5,000), unless the department determines that a higher administrative fee is necessary to cover the department’s costs, in which case the annual administrative fee shall be no more than the amount of those costs, not to exceed fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000).

(3) (A) If the department determines at any time after the commencement of the lease that the leased property is needed for departmental purposes, the department may terminate the lease without penalty or reimbursement of prior lease payments made to the department, except that the department shall reimburse any advance lease payments and fees made to the department on a prorated basis.

(B) Notwithstanding any other law, if the department terminates the lease pursuant to subparagraph (A), neither the lessee nor any occupants of the leased property shall be entitled to relocation benefits or reimbursement of relocation expenses payable by the department or the state as result of that termination.

(C) The department shall provide the lessee with no less than 120 days’ written notice before the termination of a lease entered into pursuant to this section, except in the case of an emergency.

(4) The lessee shall defend, indemnify, and hold the state, its officers, officials, employees, agents, and volunteers harmless from any and all losses, claims, injuries, damages, suits, obligations, penalties, judgments, awards, and other liabilities including attorney fees, whether caused by, relating to, based upon, arising out of, or in connection with the performance of the lease, the temporary emergency shelter, or the feeding program.

(5) The lessee shall be responsible for all leased area site conditions, including, but not limited to, maintenance, litter and graffiti abatement, security, environmental testing and remediation for purposes of the lease, and other legal and permitting requirements at the leased site, as required by the department.

(g) The Legislature finds and declares that the lease of airspace or real property pursuant to this section serves a public purpose. The Legislature further finds and declares that the rental amount established in subdivision (f) constitutes fair market value for the leased airspace or real property.

(h) For purposes of the California Environmental Quality Act (Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code), the lessee is the lead agency for any action undertaken pursuant to this section.

(i) (1) Except as provided in subdivision (d), this section does not apply to a lease that a local or state agency enters into with the department pursuant to Section 104.16, 104.17, 104.18, 104.21, 104.24, 104.25, or 104.26.

(2) A local or state agency described in Section 104.16, 104.17, 104.18, 104.21, 104.24, 104.25, or 104.26 may enter into a lease with the department pursuant to this section.

(j) For purposes of this section, “local agency” means a city, county, or political subdivision of a city or county.

(k) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2029, and as of that date is repealed.

history: (History: Added by Stats. 2019, Ch. 343, Sec. 1. (SB 211) Effective January 1, 2020. Repealed as of January 1, 2029, by its own provisions.)

article: 3. The Department of Transportation