CA SB 1246
enactedAutonomous vehicles.
California · 2025-2026 Regular Session · upper
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Quick answers
Did CA SB 1246 pass?
Yes. CA SB 1246 has been enacted into law. Latest recorded action (2026-09-30): Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 1021, Statutes of 2026.
What is CA SB 1246 about?
(1) Existing law authorizes the operation of an autonomous vehicle on public roads for testing purposes by a driver who possesses the proper class of license for the type of vehicle operated if specified requirements are satisfied. Existing law prohibits the operation of an autonomous vehicle on public roads until the manufacturer submits an application to the Department of Motor Vehicles (department) , as specified, and that application is approved. Existing law requires the department to adopt regulations setting forth requirements for the submission and approval of an application, including, among other things, any testing, equipment, and performance standards the department concludes are necessary to ensure the safe operation of autonomous vehicles on public roads, as specified. Existing law requires manufacturers of autonomous vehicles that operate without a human operator physically present in the vehicle, except as provided, to comply with certain requirements, including, among other things, to maintain a dedicated emergency response telephone line that is available for emergency response officials and to equip each autonomous vehicle with a 2-way voice communication device that enables emergency response officials who are near the vehicle to communicate effectively with a remote human operator, as specified. Under existing law, an "emergency response official" includes, but is not limited to, emergency dispatchers, peace officers, as specified, and first responders. This bill would require manufacturers of autonomous vehicles to maintain communications capacity sufficient to support the maximum number of concurrent remote assistance or teleoperations sessions, as specified. The bill would require remote drivers to be located within the United States and hold a driver's license that is valid for operation in California, is of the appropriate class, and includes any required endorsements. The bill would require an autonomous vehicle manufacturer to ensure, through its staffing and assignments, that local incident technicians are immediately dispatched upon notification, electronically or otherwise, of a crash or other incident or upon receiving a request from an emergency response official or 911 dispatch center. The bill would, in the event of a fleetwide emergency or system failure that may create a traffic hazard or impeded emergency response, require an autonomous vehicle manufacturer to immediately notify affected local jurisdictions, including emergency dispatch, of the location and status of their fleet and deploy local incident technicians, where appropriate, whenever affected vehicles cannot be remotely recovered. The bill would require the department, on or before July 1, 2028, to adopt guidelines establishing reasonable response times for local incident technicians to be present at the scene upon the request of an emergency response official or 911 dispatch center. The bill would expand the definition of "emergency response official" for these purposes to also include traffic control, traffic enforcement, and parking enforcement personnel from a public agency in an applicable jurisdiction. The bill would require autonomous vehicle manufacturers, for an autonomous vehicle that operates as a commercial vehicle and that is not equipped with manual controls for completing the dynamic driving task, to ensure that remote assistants or remote drivers have the ability to place the autonomous vehicle in neutral to allow an emergency response official to move the vehicle, cause the autonomous vehicle to move as directed by an emergency response official, or turn off the vehicle and have it remain stationary until otherwise directed by an emergency response official. The bill would require autonomous vehicle manufacturers to maintain data on response times of local incident technicians and responses to fleetwide emergencies or system failures, emergency events, immobilizations, obstructions, crashes, and requests from emergency response officials. The bill would require autonomous vehicle manufacturers to provide this data to the department quarterly and would require the department to publish summary statistics on its internet website, as specified. The bill would authorize the department to share records with the Public Utilities Commission to support regulatory oversight of autonomous vehicle passenger service operations. The bill would specify that a violation of the above provisions is not a crime. The bill would authorize a city attorney or county counsel to bring a civil action on behalf of a city, county, or city and county to enforce specified violations of the above provisions. The bill would authorize a court to impose specified civil penalties payable to the jurisdiction bringing the action, as specified. (2) Existing law establishes the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) within the Department of Justice and requires the commission to develop guidelines and implement courses of instruction regarding specified topics, including, among others, racial profiling, handling domestic violence, and human trafficking. This bill would require POST to develop uniform guidelines and requirements for, and to provide approval of, the training and written guidance required to be provided by autonomous vehicle manufacturers. The bill would authorize POST to impose fees sufficient to cover the reasonable regulatory costs associated with administering these provisions. The bill would require POST to implement a course or courses of instruction for voluntary training of law enforcement officers, as defined, on autonomous vehicles that operate as commercial vehicles as it relates to public safety and to develop related uniform minimum guidelines for voluntary use by California law enforcement agencies, as specified. The bill would require the course or courses, learning and performance objectives, training standards, and guidelines to be developed in consultation with appropriate groups and individuals that have an interest and expertise in the field of the operation of autonomous vehicles, as specified. (3) The bill would make its provisions operative July 1, 2028.
Who sponsors CA SB 1246?
Cortese is the primary sponsor of CA SB 1246.
Description
(1) Existing law authorizes the operation of an autonomous vehicle on public roads for testing purposes by a driver who possesses the proper class of license for the type of vehicle operated if specified requirements are satisfied. Existing law prohibits the operation of an autonomous vehicle on public roads until the manufacturer submits an application to the Department of Motor Vehicles (department) , as specified, and that application is approved. Existing law requires the department to adopt regulations setting forth requirements for the submission and approval of an application, including, among other things, any testing, equipment, and performance standards the department concludes are necessary to ensure the safe operation of autonomous vehicles on public roads, as specified. Existing law requires manufacturers of autonomous vehicles that operate without a human operator physically present in the vehicle, except as provided, to comply with certain requirements, including, among other things, to maintain a dedicated emergency response telephone line that is available for emergency response officials and to equip each autonomous vehicle with a 2-way voice communication device that enables emergency response officials who are near the vehicle to communicate effectively with a remote human operator, as specified. Under existing law, an "emergency response official" includes, but is not limited to, emergency dispatchers, peace officers, as specified, and first responders. This bill would require manufacturers of autonomous vehicles to maintain communications capacity sufficient to support the maximum number of concurrent remote assistance or teleoperations sessions, as specified. The bill would require remote drivers to be located within the United States and hold a driver's license that is valid for operation in California, is of the appropriate class, and includes any required endorsements. The bill would require an autonomous vehicle manufacturer to ensure, through its staffing and assignments, that local incident technicians are immediately dispatched upon notification, electronically or otherwise, of a crash or other incident or upon receiving a request from an emergency response official or 911 dispatch center. The bill would, in the event of a fleetwide emergency or system failure that may create a traffic hazard or impeded emergency response, require an autonomous vehicle manufacturer to immediately notify affected local jurisdictions, including emergency dispatch, of the location and status of their fleet and deploy local incident technicians, where appropriate, whenever affected vehicles cannot be remotely recovered. The bill would require the department, on or before July 1, 2028, to adopt guidelines establishing reasonable response times for local incident technicians to be present at the scene upon the request of an emergency response official or 911 dispatch center. The bill would expand the definition of "emergency response official" for these purposes to also include traffic control, traffic enforcement, and parking enforcement personnel from a public agency in an applicable jurisdiction. The bill would require autonomous vehicle manufacturers, for an autonomous vehicle that operates as a commercial vehicle and that is not equipped with manual controls for completing the dynamic driving task, to ensure that remote assistants or remote drivers have the ability to place the autonomous vehicle in neutral to allow an emergency response official to move the vehicle, cause the autonomous vehicle to move as directed by an emergency response official, or turn off the vehicle and have it remain stationary until otherwise directed by an emergency response official. The bill would require autonomous vehicle manufacturers to maintain data on response times of local incident technicians and responses to fleetwide emergencies or system failures, emergency events, immobilizations, obstructions, crashes, and requests from emergency response officials. The bill would require autonomous vehicle manufacturers to provide this data to the department quarterly and would require the department to publish summary statistics on its internet website, as specified. The bill would authorize the department to share records with the Public Utilities Commission to support regulatory oversight of autonomous vehicle passenger service operations. The bill would specify that a violation of the above provisions is not a crime. The bill would authorize a city attorney or county counsel to bring a civil action on behalf of a city, county, or city and county to enforce specified violations of the above provisions. The bill would authorize a court to impose specified civil penalties payable to the jurisdiction bringing the action, as specified. (2) Existing law establishes the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) within the Department of Justice and requires the commission to develop guidelines and implement courses of instruction regarding specified topics, including, among others, racial profiling, handling domestic violence, and human trafficking. This bill would require POST to develop uniform guidelines and requirements for, and to provide approval of, the training and written guidance required to be provided by autonomous vehicle manufacturers. The bill would authorize POST to impose fees sufficient to cover the reasonable regulatory costs associated with administering these provisions. The bill would require POST to implement a course or courses of instruction for voluntary training of law enforcement officers, as defined, on autonomous vehicles that operate as commercial vehicles as it relates to public safety and to develop related uniform minimum guidelines for voluntary use by California law enforcement agencies, as specified. The bill would require the course or courses, learning and performance objectives, training standards, and guidelines to be developed in consultation with appropriate groups and individuals that have an interest and expertise in the field of the operation of autonomous vehicles, as specified. (3) The bill would make its provisions operative July 1, 2028.
- Introduced
- 2026-02-19
- Latest action
- 2026-09-30 — Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 1021, Statutes of 2026.
- Bill type
- bill
- Last updated
- —
Subjects
Sponsors
- Corteseauthor
Committees
Not provided by source.
Action timeline
Newest first
2026-09-30
Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 1021, Statutes of 2026.
became-law
2026-09-30
Approved by the Governor.
executive-signature
2026-09-09
Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 2 p.m.
executive-receipt
2026-08-31
Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 28. Noes 7.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling.
amendment-passage,committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable
2026-08-30
Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate.
passage,reading-1,reading-3
2026-08-30
In Senate. Concurrence in Assembly amendments pending.
2026-08-30
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 65. Noes 11. Page 6903.) Ordered to the Senate.
passage,reading-1,reading-3
2026-08-21
Ordered to third reading.
reading-1,reading-3
2026-08-21
Read third time and amended.
amendment-passage,reading-1,reading-3
2026-08-13
Assembly Rule 63 suspended.
2026-08-13
From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 11. Noes 4.) (August 13).
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable
2026-08-13
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
reading-1,reading-2,reading-3
2026-08-05
August 5 set for first hearing. Placed on suspense file.
2026-07-02
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 7. Noes 1.) (July 1). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2026-06-24
Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on C. & C.
amendment-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2026-06-23
From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on C. & C. (Ayes 13. Noes 2.) (June 22).
amendment-passage,committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2026-06-15
From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on TRANS.
amendment-passage,committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2026-06-04
Referred to Coms. on TRANS., C. & C., and JUD.
referral-committee
2026-05-27
In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.
reading-1
2026-05-27
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 27. Noes 9. Page 4503.) Ordered to the Assembly.
passage,reading-1,reading-3
2026-05-19
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
reading-1,reading-2,reading-3
2026-05-18
From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 5. Noes 2. Page 4270.) (May 14).
amendment-passage,committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable
2026-05-18
Read second time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
amendment-passage,reading-1,reading-2
2026-05-08
Set for hearing May 14.
2026-05-04
May 4 hearing: Placed on APPR. suspense file.
2026-04-24
Set for hearing May 4.
2026-04-22
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 9. Noes 3. Page 3979.) (April 21). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2026-04-16
Set for hearing April 21.
2026-04-15
Re-referred to Com. on JUD.
referral-committee
2026-04-08
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on RLS. (Ayes 8. Noes 3. Page 3761.) (April 7). Re-referred to Com. on RLS.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2026-03-27
Set for hearing April 7.
2026-03-24
From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on TRANS.
amendment-passage,committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2026-03-04
Referred to Com. on TRANS.
referral-committee
2026-02-20
From printer. May be acted upon on or after March 22.
2026-02-19
Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.
introduction,reading-1,referral-committee
Versions
- 02/19/26 - Introduced — 2026-02-19Compare
- 03/24/26 - Amended Senate — 2026-03-24Compare
- 05/18/26 - Amended Senate — 2026-05-18Compare
- 06/15/26 - Amended Assembly — 2026-06-15Compare
- 06/24/26 - Amended Assembly — 2026-06-24Compare
- 08/21/26 - Amended Assembly — 2026-08-21Compare
- 09/04/26 - Enrolled — 2026-09-04Compare
- 09/30/26 - Chaptered — 2026-09-30Compare
- (document, no version)Compare
- SB1246Compare
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Votes
Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Rules]
2026-04-07 · pass · 8-3
Member-level votes (13)
- Menjivar: yes
- Cortese: yes
- Grayson: yes
- Arreguín: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Gonzalez: yes
- Archuleta: yes
- Blakespear: yes
- Strickland: no
- Valladares: no
- Seyarto: no
- Dahle: other
- Wiener: other
Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]
2026-04-21 · pass · 9-3
Member-level votes (13)
- Reyes: yes
- Ashby: yes
- Durazo: yes
- Laird: yes
- Weber Pierson: yes
- Umberg: yes
- Caballero: yes
- Allen: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Wiener: no
- Niello: no
- Valladares: no
- Stern: other
Placed on suspense file
2026-05-04 · pass · 7-0
Member-level votes (7)
- Dahle: yes
- Cervantes: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Seyarto: yes
- Cabaldon: yes
- Grayson: yes
Do pass as amended
2026-05-14 · pass · 5-2
Member-level votes (7)
- Wahab: yes
- Cervantes: yes
- Cabaldon: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Grayson: yes
- Dahle: no
- Seyarto: no
3rd Reading
2026-05-27 · pass · 27-9
Member-level votes (40)
- Grayson: yes
- Hurtado: yes
- Limón: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Cortese: yes
- Blakespear: yes
- Cervantes: yes
- Durazo: yes
- Smallwood-Cuevas: yes
- Reyes: yes
- Padilla: yes
- Caballero: yes
- Umberg: yes
- Archuleta: yes
- Gonzalez: yes
- McGuire: yes
- Pérez: yes
- Becker: yes
- Weber Pierson: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Arreguín: yes
- Ashby: yes
- Laird: yes
- Grove: yes
- Menjivar: yes
- Rubio: yes
- Allen: yes
- Ochoa Bogh: no
- Niello: no
- Valladares: no
- Strickland: no
- Choi: no
- Wiener: no
- Alvarado-Gil: no
- Seyarto: no
- Jones: no
- Cabaldon: other
- Stern: other
- McNerney: other
- Dahle: other
Do pass as amended and be re-referred to the Committee on [Communications and Conveyance]
2026-06-22 · pass · 13-2
Member-level votes (16)
- Carrillo: yes
- Papan: yes
- Elhawary: yes
- Ransom: yes
- Rogers: yes
- Wilson: yes
- Ávila Farías: yes
- Jackson: yes
- Hart: yes
- Ahrens: yes
- Davies: yes
- Harabedian: yes
- Lackey: yes
- Hoover: no
- Macedo: no
- Ward: other
Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]
2026-07-01 · pass · 7-1
Member-level votes (9)
- Lowenthal: yes
- Boerner: yes
- Krell: yes
- Caloza: yes
- Rogers: yes
- Blanca Rubio: yes
- Bonta: yes
- Hoover: no
- Castillo: other
Related bills
No related bills recorded for this bill.
Official source
Attribution
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