(a) Upon receipt of a written recommendation from the Department of the California Highway Patrol that the certificate or permit of a charter-party carrier be suspended either (1) for failure to maintain any vehicle used in transportation for compensation in a safe operating condition or to comply with the Vehicle Code or with regulations contained in Title 13 of the California Code of Regulations relative to motor carrier safety if that failure is either a consistent failure or presents an imminent danger to public safety, or (2) for failure to enroll all drivers in the pull notice system as required by Section 1808.1 of the Vehicle Code, the commission shall, pending a hearing in the matter pursuant to subdivision (d), suspend the carrier’s certificate or permit. The written recommendation shall specifically indicate compliance with subdivision (c).
(b) A carrier whose certificate or permit is suspended pursuant to subdivision (a) may obtain a reinspection of its terminal and vehicles by the department, by submitting a written request for reinstatement to the commission and paying a reinstatement fee of one thousand dollars ($1,000). The commission shall deposit all reinstatement fees collected pursuant to this subdivision in the Public Utilities Commission Transportation Reimbursement Account. The commission shall then forward a request for reinspection to the department which shall then perform a reinspection within a reasonable time. The commission shall reinstate a carrier’s certificate or permit suspended under subdivision (a) promptly upon receipt of a written recommendation from the department that the carrier’s safety compliance has improved to the satisfaction of the department, unless the certificate or permit is suspended for another reason, or has been revoked.
(c) Before transmitting a recommendation pursuant to subdivision (a) to the commission, the Department of the California Highway Patrol shall notify the charter-party carrier in writing of all of the following:
(1) That the department has determined that the carrier’s safety record is unsatisfactory, furnishing a copy of any documentation or summary of any other evidence supporting the determination.
(2) That the determination may result in suspension or revocation of the carrier’s certificate or permit by the commission.
(3) That the carrier may request a review of the determination by the department within five days of its receipt of the notice required under this subdivision. If a review pursuant to this paragraph is requested by the carrier, the department shall conduct and evaluate that review prior to transmitting any notification to the commission pursuant to subdivision (a).
(d) Whenever the commission suspends the certificate or permit of any charter-party carrier pursuant to subdivision (a), the commission shall furnish the carrier written notice of the suspension and shall hold a hearing within a reasonable time, not to exceed 21 days, after a written request therefor is filed with the commission, with a copy thereof furnished to the Department of the California Highway Patrol. At the hearing, the carrier shall show cause why the suspension should not be continued. At the conclusion of the hearing, the commission may, in addition to any other penalty provided in this chapter, terminate the suspension, continue the suspension in effect, or revoke the certificate or permit. The commission may revoke the certificate or permit of any carrier suspended pursuant to subdivision (a) at any time 90 days or more after its suspension if the commission has not received a written recommendation for reinstatement from the department and the carrier has not filed a written request for a hearing with the commission.
(e) If the commission, after a hearing, finds that a charter-party carrier has continued to operate as such a carrier after its certificate or permit has been suspended pursuant to subdivision (a), the commission shall do one of the following:
(1) Revoke the operating certificate or permit of the carrier.
(2) Impose upon the holder of the certificate or permit a civil penalty of not less than one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500) nor more than seven thousand five hundred dollars ($7,500) for each day of unlawful operations.
(Amended by Stats. 2009, Ch. 263, Sec. 2. (AB 951) Effective January 1, 2010.)