Mileage-based road usage fee.

Existing law requires the Chair of the California Transportation Commission to create a Road Usage Charge (RUC) Technical Advisory Committee in consultation with the Secretary of the Transportation Agency. Under existing law, the purpose of the technical advisory committee is to guide the development and evaluation of a pilot program to assess the potential for mileage-based revenue collection as an alternative to the gas tax system. Existing law requires the technical advisory committee to study RUC alternatives to the gas tax, gather public comment on issues and concerns related to the pilot program, and to make recommendations to the Secretary of the Transportation Agency on the design of a pilot program, as specified. Existing law repeals these provisions on January 1, 2019. This bill would extend the operation of these provisions until January 1, 2023. The bill would, in addition, require the technical advisory committee to continue to assess the potential for mechanisms, including, but not limited to, a mileage-based revenue collection system, to use as alternative methods to the existing gas tax system for generating the revenue necessary to maintain and operate the state's transportation system. The bill would, instead, require the committee to gather public comment related to the assessment of those mechanisms.