(a) Any traffic officer may stop any commercial vehicle, as defined in Section 260, that is a rental vehicle and inspect the bills of lading, shipping, delivery papers, or other evidence to determine whether the driver is transporting household goods in violation of the Household Movers Act (Chapter 3.1 (commencing with Sec. 19225) of Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code. The officer may only stop and inspect where the officer has probable cause to believe that the vehicle is being operated in violation of that act.
(b) It is a public offense, for which an officer may issue a citation, for a driver to unlawfully transport household goods in violation of the Household Goods Carriers Act. That public offense is punishable as prescribed in Article 8 (commencing with Section 5311) of Chapter 7 of Division 2 of the Public Utilities Code. It is an infraction to refuse to submit to an inspection as authorized by subdivision (a).
(c) A copy of the citation for any offense described in subdivision (b) shall be sent by the department that employs the traffic officer to the Director of the Consumer Services Division of the California Public Utilities Commission. A copy of a citation shall be removed from any record of the commission upon a showing that the person was not convicted of the offense or that bail was not forfeited for that offense. A person for whom a copy of a citation has been sent to the commission and is on file with the commission may request the commission for an administrative hearing on that matter.
(Amended by Stats. 2020, Ch. 370, Sec. 264. (SB 1371) Effective January 1, 2021.)