Assembly Transportation Committee advances package of bills on AVs, EV chargers, school safety and towing reform

The Assembly Transportation Committee advanced a slate of transportation measures on Oct. 26, voting to pass the bills to the next stage of the Legislature.

Committee members voted to send new regulations on commercial autonomous deliveries, electric-vehicle charger reliability standards, school-zone speed reductions and a prohibition on towing cars solely for unpaid parking tickets to appropriations or other committees for further consideration. Several bills drew extended public and member debate over safety, equity and local enforcement.

Why it matters: The package touches multiple issues that affect Californians’ daily travel and household costs — from how groceries are delivered and where chargers must work reliably, to whether a car can be towed for unpaid tickets. Lawmakers said they wanted to balance public safety and worker protections with regulatory certainty for new technologies.

What the committee did and key takeaways - Autonomous deliveries: The committee advanced AB 33, a proposal to require a human safety operator aboard driverless vehicles used to make commercial deliveries to homes or businesses. Proponents, including labor sponsors, framed the bill as a public-safety and jobs-protection measure; industry groups opposed it, saying it would block existing DMV-permitted deployments and drive companies to other states. The bill passed the committee by a 12–2 vote.

- EV charging reliability: AB 1423, which would require publicly funded EV chargers installed with state grants before 2024 to meet forthcoming California Energy Commission reliability standards and include enforcement mechanisms, passed out of committee. Supporters said California has spent more than $1.7 billion on charging infrastructure and needs accountability for uptime; charging-industry groups urged the Legislature to…