CA SB 544

enacted

Railroad crossings: permit applications: review.

California · 2025-2026 Regular Session · upper

Description

Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has the exclusive power to, among other things, determine and prescribe the manner and the terms of installation, operation, maintenance, use, and protection of railroad crossings. Existing law prohibits the construction of a public road, highway, or street across the track of any railroad corporation at grade and other specified actions with regard to railroad crossings without the permission of the commission. This bill would require an application for a railroad crossing to include, at a minimum, certain information concerning the proposed railroad crossing. The bill would require the commission to adopt an expedited review and approval process for ratesetting proceedings for an exempt railroad crossing application, as defined. The bill also would require the commission, upon initiating a ratesetting proceeding, to determine whether the proceeding is for an exempt railroad crossing application, and if so, to issue a proposed resolution pursuant to the expedited review and approval process.

Introduced: 2025-02-20
Status date: —
Latest action: 2025-10-01 — Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 224, Statutes of 2025.
Bill type: bill
Last updated: —

Subjects

Committees

Not provided by source.

Action timeline

2025-02-20
Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.
introduction,reading-1,referral-committee
2025-02-21
From printer. May be acted upon on or after March 23.
2025-03-05
Referred to Coms. on E., U & C. and TRANS.
referral-committee
2025-03-17
Set for hearing March 24.
2025-03-25
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on TRANS. (Ayes 16. Noes 0. Page 512.) (March 24). Re-referred to Com. on TRANS.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-03-27
Set for hearing April 8.
2025-04-09
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To consent calendar. (Ayes 15. Noes 0. Page 710.) (April 8). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-04-10
Set for hearing April 21.
2025-04-21
April 21 hearing postponed by committee.
2025-04-22
Set for hearing April 28.
2025-04-28
From committee: Be ordered to second reading pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8 and ordered to consent calendar.
committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2
2025-04-29
Read second time. Ordered to consent calendar.
reading-1,reading-2
2025-05-01
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 37. Noes 0. Page 984.) Ordered to the Assembly.
passage,reading-1,reading-3
2025-05-01
In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.
reading-1
2025-05-19
Referred to Com. on U. & E.
referral-committee
2025-06-25
June 25 set for first hearing canceled at the request of author.
2025-07-10
From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To consent calendar. (Ayes 18. Noes 0.) (July 9).
amendment-passage,committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-07-14
Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
amendment-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-08-20
From committee: Do pass. Ordered to consent calendar. (Ayes 15. Noes 0.) (August 20).
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable
2025-08-21
Read second time. Ordered to consent calendar.
reading-1,reading-2
2025-08-28
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 74. Noes 0. Page 2776.) Ordered to the Senate.
passage,reading-1,reading-3
2025-08-28
In Senate. Concurrence in Assembly amendments pending.
2025-09-02
Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 40. Noes 0. Page 2409.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling.
amendment-passage,committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable
2025-09-09
Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 2 p.m.
executive-receipt
2025-10-01
Approved by the Governor.
executive-signature
2025-10-01
Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 224, Statutes of 2025.
became-law

Versions

02/20/25 - Introduced — 2025-02-20Compare
07/14/25 - Amended Assembly — 2025-07-14Compare
09/04/25 - Enrolled — 2025-09-04Compare
10/01/25 - Chaptered — 2025-10-01Compare
SB544Compare
(document, no version)Compare

Documents

Votes

Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Transportation]
2025-03-24 · pass · 16-0
Member-level votes (17)
- Caballero: yes
- Limón: yes
- McNerney: yes
- Ashby: yes
- Ochoa Bogh: yes
- Becker: yes
- Archuleta: yes
- Allen: yes
- Stern: yes
- Gonzalez: yes
- Arreguín: yes
- Strickland: yes
- Hurtado: yes
- Grove: yes
- Rubio: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Dahle: other
Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] with the recommendation: To Consent Calendar
2025-04-08 · pass · 15-0
Member-level votes (15)
- Cortese: yes
- Gonzalez: yes
- Menjivar: yes
- Blakespear: yes
- Grayson: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Arreguín: yes
- Strickland: yes
- Dahle: yes
- Archuleta: yes
- Umberg: yes
- Limón: yes
- Cervantes: yes
- Seyarto: yes
- Valladares: yes
Consent Calendar 2nd
2025-05-01 · pass · 37-0
Member-level votes (40)
- Choi: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Limón: yes
- Cortese: yes
- Cervantes: yes
- Durazo: yes
- Gonzalez: yes
- Smallwood-Cuevas: yes
- McNerney: yes
- Blakespear: yes
- Dahle: yes
- Strickland: yes
- Allen: yes
- Ashby: yes
- Stern: yes
- Ochoa Bogh: yes
- McGuire: yes
- Menjivar: yes
- Laird: yes
- Caballero: yes
- Becker: yes
- Hurtado: yes
- Valladares: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Umberg: yes
- Cabaldon: yes
- Arreguín: yes
- Padilla: yes
- Pérez: yes
- Archuleta: yes
- Grayson: yes
- Weber Pierson: yes
- Wiener: yes
- Jones: yes
- Niello: yes
- Seyarto: yes
- Grove: yes
- Reyes: other
- Rubio: other
- Alvarado-Gil: other
Do pass as amended, and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] with recommendation: To Consent Calendar
2025-07-09 · pass · 18-0
Member-level votes (18)
- Kalra: yes
- Calderon: yes
- Rogers: yes
- Harabedian: yes
- Mark González: yes
- Patterson: yes
- Schiavo: yes
- Petrie-Norris: yes
- Hart: yes
- Irwin: yes
- Papan: yes
- Zbur: yes
- Ta: yes
- Boerner: yes
- Chen: yes
- Davies: yes
- Schultz: yes
- Wallis: yes
Do pass. To Consent Calendar.
2025-08-20 · pass · 15-0
Member-level votes (15)
- Fong: yes
- Arambula: yes
- Tangipa: yes
- Ta: yes
- Solache: yes
- Wicks: yes
- Caloza: yes
- Dixon: yes
- Pellerin: yes
- Jeff Gonzalez: yes
- Calderon: yes
- Pacheco: yes
- Elhawary: yes
- Hart: yes
- Mark González: yes
SB 544 Laird Consent Calendar Second Day
2025-08-28 · pass · 74-0
Member-level votes (79)
- Michelle Rodriguez: yes
- Zbur: yes
- Jeff Gonzalez: yes
- Carrillo: yes
- Stefani: yes
- Dixon: yes
- DeMaio: yes
- Krell: yes
- Muratsuchi: yes
- Ransom: yes
- Schiavo: yes
- Ahrens: yes
- Tangipa: yes
- Chen: yes
- Blanca Rubio: yes
- Bryan: yes
- Papan: yes
- Lee: yes
- Soria: yes
- Ellis: yes
- Bonta: yes
- Addis: yes
- Aguiar-Curry: yes
- Garcia: yes
- Hadwick: yes
- Hart: yes
- Ortega: yes
- Bauer-Kahan: yes
- Nguyen: yes
- Mark González: yes
- Solache: yes
- Gabriel: yes
- Bennett: yes
- Castillo: yes
- Irwin: yes
- Pellerin: yes
- Harabedian: yes
- Ward: yes
- Schultz: yes
- Calderon: yes
- Ta: yes
- Alanis: yes
- Pacheco: yes
- Macedo: yes
- Wicks: yes
- Connolly: yes
- Bains: yes
- Flora: yes
- Sanchez: yes
- Jackson: yes
- Lackey: yes
- Patel: yes
- Davies: yes
- Kalra: yes
- Celeste Rodriguez: yes
- McKinnor: yes
- Petrie-Norris: yes
- Ávila Farías: yes
- Caloza: yes
- Sharp-Collins: yes
- Wilson: yes
- Hoover: yes
- Fong: yes
- Gipson: yes
- Patterson: yes
- Quirk-Silva: yes
- Rivas: yes
- Rogers: yes
- Boerner: yes
- Arambula: yes
- Ramos: yes
- Lowenthal: yes
- Haney: yes
- Wallis: yes
- Alvarez: other
- Berman: other
- Elhawary: other
- Valencia: other
- Gallagher: other
Unfinished Business SB544 Laird Concurrence
2025-09-02 · pass · 40-0
Member-level votes (40)
- Alvarado-Gil: yes
- Cortese: yes
- Pérez: yes
- Strickland: yes
- Wiener: yes
- Caballero: yes
- Smallwood-Cuevas: yes
- Ochoa Bogh: yes
- Hurtado: yes
- Reyes: yes
- Rubio: yes
- Seyarto: yes
- Arreguín: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Durazo: yes
- Padilla: yes
- Laird: yes
- McGuire: yes
- Menjivar: yes
- Jones: yes
- Umberg: yes
- Archuleta: yes
- Choi: yes
- Gonzalez: yes
- Weber Pierson: yes
- Cervantes: yes
- Blakespear: yes
- Becker: yes
- Ashby: yes
- Dahle: yes
- Niello: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Grove: yes
- Allen: yes
- McNerney: yes
- Stern: yes
- Grayson: yes
- Valladares: yes
- Limón: yes
- Cabaldon: yes

Related bills

No related bills recorded for this bill.

Official source

http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260SB544

Attribution

Data from openstates_bulk_csv, retrieved 2026-07-24T01:34:27.960412Z

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