2016 Attorney General Opinion. License Plate Readers. Insurance Enforcement. Procurement FAIL.

What is the question answered by Attorney General Opinion KP-0076? Whether Bowie County can engage a private company to use a license plate reader data looking for vehicles that don’t have liability insurance?

Is there a fee splitting arangement in this scenario? Yes, the vehcile owner will get a letter from the District Attorney office, and fees will be split 50-50 between the County and the company.

Can this fee splitting arrangement with automatic license plate readers…

TREND: Revenue from Extended Parking Meter Hours

Which local government is considering more parking meter revenue to fund a stadium? Sacramento

What changes to parking meters are proposed? Meters operate until 10pm, instead of 6pm

Why the extension in time? to cover the fans who attend events at the new stadium

Was this included in the King’s arena deal with the City? Some say by default, as the city agreed to ccommitting to the collection of millions of dollars in new parking revenue

Sacramento Bee | City Council proposes…

3 Ways Self-Driving Cars Spark Road Improvements. Local Governments & States Unite.

In preparing for the machines to rule the earth, or for the lass dramatic self-driving cars, states and cities are upgrading roads.

Here’s the list of improvements made for driverless cars:

  • better road markings
  • upgraded traffic technology to communicate with connected cars
    • e.g. how long should a left turn arrow last?
  • smart phone apps to gather and report information about congestion and road conditions and foreseeably notify drivers of alerts

Governing | In Preparation for Driverless…

Vehicle Miles Traveled Road Funding. + 1 State & its a huge state.

What state is now considering to join Oregon with a vehicle miles traveled tax?

California

What are supporter arguments?

  • California has athe 45th worst roads in the country
  • Bad roads cost Californians $44 billion/year
  • Gas consumption peaked in 2005, making gas taxes an unreliable funding source
  • USC study shows a 2.1 cents per mile traveled tax can replace all of the revenue gained from the current state excise and sales taxes on gasoline

Tax Foundation | The VMT tax: A solution to…

Another Car Hacked. Hackers can Find your car's GPS coordinates + more. 3 Bits Informed Intel.

Which care was hacked? Nissan Leaf

How did hackers gain control of the vehicle? By exploiting a weakness in the way it communicates with its companion app, NissanConnect EV

What systems can be controlled or accessed by hackers? 

  • Hackers can control interal heat and colling controls
  • Access driving records
  • Determine your exact location with GPS coordinates

The Guardian | Hackers can control Nissan Leaf’s heating and access driving history

 

Lege Trend: Sales Tax Break for Car Manufacturers. Bonjour Industrial Tourism & Eco Devo Dollars.

Which state is considering a new sales tax break for car manufacturers? California

What kind of the sales tax break is under consideration? eliminate sales tax on new automobiles manufactured in California for out-of-state buyers

What’s the goal of this bill? industrial tourism– buy a product; see the sights.
 
Is there a sunset time for this tax break? Yes, 2020.
 

INTERIM Self Driving Cars Want Federal Action. Too Many Pesky States. 5 Quick Points.

Which group is pushing Congress to act over the states? Consumer Technology Association

Why should Congress resgulate self driving cars and not states? “transportation is a national issue”

Even without Congressional action federal regulators will tell the states what to do with new guidelines. Transportation Department & its National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will create guidelines for state policymakers to draw on when regulating self-driving cars.

What’s the…

Trend from the West: Have your TCEQ open Clean Transportation Centers.

Where did the California Energy Commission opened a Clean Transportation Center?  San Joaquin Valley

Why? 2 reasons. 

  1. accelerate the use of clean vehicles and fuels
  2. assist the region quickly meet its air quality targets

What will the clean energy center provide?

  • technical assistance
  • project development expertise
  • support with acquiring funding for San Joaquin Valley vehicle fleet owners, local governments, businesses and residents.
  • Expand the use of zero-emission vehicles, clean…