Vehicles: group axle weight exemption: idle reduction technology.

(1) Existing law imposes a maximum gross vehicle weight limit on a vehicle or combination of vehicles based on the number of axles of the vehicle or combination of vehicles. Existing law authorizes the Department of Transportation to fix the maximum weight limit of a vehicle operating on a highway after the department makes specified determinations. Existing law authorizes, with specified exemptions, a city, county, or city and county to prohibit the use of a street by a vehicle exceeding a maximum gross weight limit the city, county, or city and county has established according to prescribed requirements by ordinance. Existing law authorizes the department, and a city or county satisfying specified criteria, to establish the gross vehicle weight that a bridge or other structure will sustain safely. This bill would authorize a vehicle subject to those provisions that is equipped with idle reduction technology to exceed the group axle weight limit by the weight of the idle reduction technology, as defined, or not more than 400 pounds, whichever is less. The bill would require a vehicle operator, upon request, to provide proof that the idle technology is fully functional at all times and the excess weight is not for any purpose other than for the use of the idle reduction technology. Because a violation of this requirement would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.