Vehicles: tow trucks.

Existing law authorizes a person who owns or possesses private property to cause the removal and storage of a vehicle parked on that property, as specified. Existing law requires a motor carrier of property, including a tow truck, to obtain a permit from the Department of Motor Vehicles. Existing law prescribes certain consumer protection requirements for facilities that store towed and impounded vehicles, including, among others, a requirement that those facilities be accessible during prescribed normal business hours, that they accept prescribed forms of payment, and that they not charge a fee for certain transactions. This bill would require the Department of the California Highway Patrol to convene an advisory working group that includes representatives from the department, the towing industry, the insurance industry, and other stakeholders to study the feasibility of developing and maintaining a registry of towing companies operating in the state. The bill would require the advisory working group to report its findings and recommendations, and any appropriations that may be necessary to implement those recommendations, to the Assembly Committee on Transportation and the Senate Committee on Transportation on or before May 1, 2021, and would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2022.