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Inventory of the California State Assembly Transportation Committee Records
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Table of contents
Title: Assembly Transportation Committee Records
Dates: 1954-2012
Collection Number: See series descriptions for LP numbers.
Creator:
Assembly Interim Transportation and Commerce Committee
Assembly Transportation and Commerce Committee
Assembly Transportation Committee
Assembly Subcommittee on Air Pollution
Assembly Subcommittee on Air Quality
Assembly Subcommittee on Freeway Traffic Control
Assembly Subcommittee on the Golden Gate Bridge District
Assembly Subcommittee on Highway Structural Safety
Assembly Subcommittee on Los Angeles Regional Transportation
Assembly Subcommittee on Metropolitan Transportation
Assembly Subcommittee on the Muffler Problem
Assembly Subcommittee on Northern California
Assembly Subcommittee on the Oversight of the Century Freeway Project
Assembly Subcommittee on Problems of Log Hauling
Assembly Subcommittee on Safety Devices and Regulations
Assembly Subcommittee on San Francisco Rail Commuter Service
Assembly Subcommittee on Southern California Regional Transportation
Assembly Subcommittee on Traffic Safety and Devices
Assembly Subcommittee on Transit
Assembly Subcommittee on Truck Weights, Load Characteristics, and Regulations
Collection Size:
141 cubic feet, including audiovisual materials
Repository:
California State Archives
Sacramento, California
Abstract: The Assembly Transportation Committee records consist of 141 cubic feet of records reflecting the committee's activities,
along with those of its antecedents, in studying and analyzing transportation related legislation as well as general transportation
issues. The bulk of the collection consists of bill files, which date from 1968 through 2012. Also present are hearing files,
subject files, reports, and correspondence.
Physical Location: California State Archives
Languages: Languages represented in the collection:
English
While the majority of the records are open for research, any access restrictions are noted in the record series descriptions.
For permission to reproduce or publish, please consult California State Archives staff. Permission for reproduction or publication
is given on behalf of the California State Archives, Office of the Secretary of State, Sacramento, as the owner of the physical
items. The researcher assumes all responsibility for possible infringement that may arise from reproduction or publication
of materials from the California State Archives' collections.
[Identification of item], [Name of Committee] Records, LP[number]:[folder number], California State Archives, Office of the
Secretary of State, Sacramento, California.
Acquisition and Custodial History
The State Archives received these records in accordance with California Government Code 9080(b) which requires legislative
committees to transfer their records to the State Archives when they are no longer needed by the committee.
Note
The California State Archives received the records of the Assembly Transportation Committee over a number of years and archives
staff have arranged them at various times. While the physical arrangement of the records reflects this variety, this inventory
describes all of the records according to present archival descriptive standards for legislative committee records. Therefore,
the physical arrangement of these records does not necessarily follow the inventory's order.
Transportation has been an important issue for the state legislature since its beginning in 1850. Until 1945, jurisdiction
over transportation was broken down into different elements and managed by different committees that have since come and gone.
These Assembly committees included Roads and Highways, Commerce and Navigation, Motor Vehicles, Aviation and Air Craft, Common
Carriers, and Public Works, State Capitol and Parks. In 1945, the State Assembly unified the jurisdictions into one committee:
the Assembly Committee on Transportation and Commerce.
At the end of World War II, the State Assembly recognized the increase in affluence and commerce in America. The Assembly
stated "transportation and commerce in the postwar world [would] create and intensify many conditions which [would] require
legislation." In order to address these conditions in transportation and commerce, the State Assembly created the Transportation
and Commerce Committee with House Resolution 274 in 1945 (Assembly Journal, June 9, 1945, p. 3995).
Five Assembly members were assigned to the committee, one serving as chair and another as vice chair. It was the responsibility
of this newly founded committee to "ascertain, study, and analyze all facts relating to the transportation of persons and
goods and the problems of commerce" (Assembly Journal, June 9, 1945, p. 3995). This included ascertaining, studying and analyzing:
the adequacy of California's waterways and roadways, devices and the equipment associated with transportation, hazards and
inefficiencies of traffic, and the administration of all state and local agencies that in any way affect the operation, administration,
enforcement or revision of the streets and highways, harbors and navigation and vehicle codes.
The Transportation and Commerce Committee functioned as a standing committee when the legislature was in session. During
this time the committee focused on reviewing current bills and making recommendations to the Assembly. When the legislature
was not in session the Transportation and Commerce Committee reverted to an interim committee. The interim committee was
comprised of the same members as the standing committee but their objective was different. Instead of focusing on specific
legislation, as they would during the regular session, the Interim Transportation and Commerce Committee would concentrate
on identifying and examining problems and weaknesses in California transportation.
Because of the large scope of issues the committee oversaw, the number of members assigned to the committee quickly rose from
the original five. In 1946, 13 assembly members were assigned to the committee. In 1947, 16 members were assigned to the
committee. Over the next 12 years, the membership fluctuated some but was generally held in the low to mid teens.
In 1969, pursuant to House Resolution 21, a reorganization of the Assembly's committee jurisdictions occurred. In 1968, the
Assembly had 23 committees. That was paired down to 21 in 1969 with substantial changes to the names and jurisdictions of
the committees. The Assembly Committee on Transportation and Commerce dropped the Commerce and became simply the Assembly
Committee on Transportation. Jurisdiction over commerce was given to the Public Utilities and Corporations Committee.
The new Committee on Transportation had 10 members appointed to it, one serving as chair and another serving as vice chair.
The committee no longer had jurisdiction over the problems of commerce but there was plenty to cover with the transportation
of people and goods and all the problems that came along with that. The committee's scope expanded to explicitly include
aviation as part of their jurisdiction whereas before it had not.
The Assembly Committee on Transportation remains the same today in jurisdiction and administration as at its inception in
1969, with the only change being the number of members appointed to the committee. Now there are 14 members up from the original
10. The subjects of concern are much the same as they have been. Automobile safety, pollution and smog, fuels, and traffic
congestion remain as central concerns to the Assembly Committee on Transportation as they were at the committee's inception.
The chairpersons of this committee from 1954-2012 were as follows:
Hobbie, Don (Rep.), 1954-1955 (deceased during 1955 session)
Backstrand, Leland M. (Rep.-Dem.), 1955-1956
Luckel, Frank (Rep.), 1957-1958
Backstrand, Leland M. (Rep.), 1959-1960
Beaver, Jack A. (Rep.), 1961-1962
Carrell, Thomas C. (Dem.), 1963-1966
Foran, John Francis (Dem.), 1967-1970
Deddeh, Wadie P. (Dem.), 1971-1972
Meade, Kenneth A. (Dem.), 1973-1974
Ingalls, Walter M. (Dem.), 1975-1980
Young, Bruce E. (Dem.), 1981-1984
Katz, Richard (Dem.), 1985-1994
Bowler, Larry (Rep.), 1995-1996
Murray, Kevin G. (Dem.), 1997-1998
Torlakson, Tom (Dem.), 1999-2000
Dutra, John A. (Dem.), 2001-2004
Oropeza, Jenny (Dem.), 2005-2006
Nava, Pedro (Dem.), 2007-2008
Eng, Mike (Dem.), 2009-2010
Lowenthal, Bonnie (Dem.), 2011-2014
Frazier, Jim (Dem.), 2015-
The Assembly Transportation Committee records consist of 141 cubic feet of records reflecting the committee's activities,
along with those of its antecedents, in studying and analyzing transportation related legislation as well as general transportation
issues.
The bulk of the collection consists of bill files, which date from 1968 through 2012. Second in size to the bill files are
the hearing files, which make up a substantial portion of the collection, covering 1956-1987. The collection's large volume
and date range of hearing files, both from the transportation standing, interim, and subcommittees, provide researchers with
clear insight into the concerns and issues being addressed by the committee and its antecedents throughout their history.
Transportation is an integral part of California culture and American society. The legislation addressed and passed with
the recommendation of this committee has the potential to affect large industries and government agencies as well as private
businesses and citizens.
The remainder of the collection includes subject files, reports, and correspondence (see series descriptions for complete
list of dates). These first two series can provide researchers with an idea of the wide range of agencies, boards, commissions,
industries, and legal codes that interact with the Transportation Committee and the level of influence the committee has on
each of these entities. Some organizations the Assembly Transportation Committee works closely with include the California
Air Resources Board, California Energy Commission, California Highway Patrol, California High-Speed Rail Authority, California
Department of Transportation (CalTrans), California Transportation Commission, Department of Motor Vehicles, various transportation
districts, and the trucking industry.
The correspondence in this collection consists of the Chair's correspondence. These files shed a light on the scope of issues
the committee addresses and the constituents, both large and small, well-organized groups and concerned individuals, the committee
aims to serve.
The records reflect the close involvement of the committee on a variety of important subjects. They document the committee's
involvement in and continuing commitment to mass transportation, its efforts to combat transportation-related pollution and
smog, and efforts to improve vehicle and traffic safety through regulation.
The collection also contains several relevant records pertaining to very recent issues which researchers may be interested
in. One of these issues is the hands-free cell phone law. Introduced as Senate Bill 1613, this bill aims to prohibit the
use of a handheld cell phone while operating a vehicle. Drivers 18 and older have the option of using a hands free device
connected to their cell phone if they wish to talk while driving. The bill was enacted into law, Chapter 290, Statutes of
2006. Under SB33, drivers under 18 are restricted entirely from using a cell phone with or without a hands-free device while
driving as part of their provisional license (Statutes 2007, Chapter 214)
Another recent issue is that of illegal alien drivers' licenses. Until 1993, illegal aliens were eligible for drivers' licenses
in California. Governor Wilson eliminated this privilege in 1993 when he signed SB976 into law as Chapter 820, Statutes of
1993. Though some legislators have been diligently working to get legislation passed reopening the doors for illegal aliens
to have a means of obtaining a drivers license, they have yet to be successful.
A final issue of current relevance is the recent increased attention in California transportation legislation to the needs
of bicyclists and pedestrians. The most fundamental piece of legislation enacted regarding this increased attention was Assembly
Concurrent Resolution 211 (2002). This bill, which became Resolution Chapter 120 (2002), encouraged all cities and counties
to, in accordance with the California Department of Transportation and US Department of Transportation's recommendations and
guidelines, integrate bicycling and walking into their transportation infrastructure. Since the passage of this resolution,
several other pieces of legislation have been introduced and passed to improve the conditions for pedestrians and cyclists
on the roadways.
Because of its far-reaching scope of influence on society and the role it often plays as leader in the field of transportation
related solutions, the legislation assigned to Assembly Transportation Committee captures the attention of large and wide
variety of groups and individuals. The interest of not only Californians, but Americans and citizens abroad in California's
transportation makes these records valuable to those researching California's transportation history and to those elsewhere
looking for guidance on the future of their own transportation endeavors.
Further accruals are expected.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
California. Legislature. Assembly. Committee on Transportation.
California. Legislature. Assembly. Transportation and Commerce Committee
Transportation
Smog
Traffic safety
Drivers' licenses
Bruce Young Papers
Wadie P. Deddeh Papers
Walter M. Ingalls Papers
Richard Katz Papers
Kevin Murray Papers
Tom Torlakson Papers
John Dutra Papers
Jenny Oropeza Papers
Oral Histories of Committee Members
John F. Foran, Oral History Interview, Conducted 2003 by Laura McCreery, Regional Oral History Office, University of California
at Berkeley, for the California State Archives State Government Oral History Program.
Kenneth A. Meade, Oral History Interview, Conducted 1987 by Timothy P. Fong, Regional Oral History Office, University of California
at Berkeley, for the California State Archives State Government Oral History Program.