Cal. VEH § 4854 — California Code / Code veh / Division 3 / Chapter 1 / Article 7 / Section 4854
Section 4854
Status: in_force

(a) The department shall establish a program authorizing an entity to issue devices as alternatives to the conventional license plates, stickers, tabs, and registration cards authorized by this code, subject to all of the following requirements:

(1) The alternative device is subject to the approval of the department and the Department of the California Highway Patrol and shall not be used in lieu of a device issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles until that approval has been granted.

(2) (A) Except as specifically authorized in subparagraph (B), an alternative device shall not include vehicle location technology.

(B) (1) (i) Vehicle location technology may be offered for vehicles registered as fleet vehicles, pursuant to Article 9.5 (commencing with Section 5301), commercial vehicles, as defined in Section 260, and those operating under an occupational license, pursuant to Division 5 (commencing with Section 11100).

(ii) Vehicles that began using an alternative device that included vehicle location technology during an authorized pilot program established by Section 4853 may continue to use that alternative device if the vehicle location technology meets the requirements set forth in this section and applicable regulations.

(iii) Beginning on January 1, 2027, and thereafter, any vehicle may be offered an alternative device that includes vehicle location technology.

(2) An alternative device that includes vehicle location technology shall comply with all of the following:

(i) The vehicle location technology shall be capable of being permanently disabled by means of a nonreversible method that ceases all vehicle location functionality and tracking information capabilities.

(ii) The vehicle location technology shall be capable of being manually disabled and enabled by a driver of the vehicle who is inside the vehicle.

(iii) The method of manually disabling and enabling the vehicle location technology shall be prominently located inside the vehicle and easy to use, and shall not require access to a remote or online application, password, or any form of log-in information.

(iv) Once a driver has manually disabled the vehicle location technology from inside the vehicle, the only method of enabling the vehicle location technology shall be to manually enable the technology from inside the vehicle. The registered owner of the license plate, the vehicle manufacturer, the department, or any other entity shall not have the capability of enabling the vehicle location technology through remote means.

(3) If an alternative device is equipped with vehicle location technology, the alternative device shall display a visual indication when the vehicle location technology is in active use.

(4) Data exchanged between the department and the alternative device, or the provider of the alternative device, is limited to that data necessary to display evidence of registration compliance, including the payment of registration fees, plate configurations, and the information or images displayed on the alternative product. If the department receives data from an alternative device or the provider of an alternative device in violation of this paragraph, the department shall immediately delete that data.

(5) Use of an alternative device is optional, and users shall affirmatively opt in to using the alternative device instead of a conventional license plate, sticker, tab, or registration card.

(b) (1) The department shall adopt regulations to carry out this program, including, but not limited to, all of the following:

(A) Determining standards necessary for the safe use of alternative products.

(B) Requirements for product oversight and consumer support.

(C) Requirements for product size, design, display, and functionality.

(D) Introduction of new products through a pilot program.

(E) Transitioning pilot products, and approved enhancements to existing alternative products, to a statewide product offering.

(F) Approval of products for statewide use.

(G) Determining data sharing, privacy, and security protocols pursuant to Section 1 of Article I of the California Constitution’s right to privacy and other applicable privacy laws.

(H) Processes for revoking an alternative product’s authority for use.

(I) Testing enhancements to approved alternative products.

(J) Determining the types of plates eligible to participate and associated approval processes.

(K) Establishing reasonable fees to reimburse the department for the costs to implement the program.

(L) Reporting requirements.

(M) Requirements to ensure registered users of a device are aware of GPS capability and usage and can deactivate the function.

(N) Requirements to ensure nonregistered vehicle operators are aware of GPS capability and usage. This may include, but is not limited to, live notifications of the GPS function, toll-free communication with the device provider for vehicle location function status and deactivation, or visual indicators of GPS capability or usage.

(2) In developing these regulations, the department may consult with the Department of the California Highway Patrol and shall conduct hearings with the opportunity for public comment on the adoption of any regulation applicable to alternative registration products.

(3) In developing these regulations, the department may specify timeframes for compliance and temporary operating authority for products piloted under Section 4853 that are submitted for approval under this section.

(4) An entity seeking approval to issue an alternative device or electronic vehicle registration card for pilot or statewide use under this section shall submit a business plan for the device to the department for approval that includes, but is not limited to, all of the following:

(A) An administrative oversight plan.

(B) A product support plan, including, but not limited to, methods of providing proof of registration that are not subject to technological failures to be used in the event of the alternative device malfunctioning or failing.

(C) Information technology security, privacy, and cybersecurity evaluations and measures to protect against unauthorized access to information and the device.

(D) Procedures to comply with applicable privacy and security requirements, including, but not limited to, the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (Title 1.81.5 (commencing with Section 1798.100) of Part 4 of Division 3 of the Civil Code). For purposes of this section, a provider of the device shall not share or sell the information obtained to provide the device, or any other information obtained by virtue of contracting with the department to provide the device, including, but not limited to, information collected by the device itself, nor shall it use the information for any purpose other than as strictly necessary to provide the device and show proof of vehicle registration.

(E) Ensuring that the information transmitted between the alternative device or electronic vehicle registration card, the department, and the provider, as well as any mobile application required for the alternative device or electronic vehicle registration card, including storage, is encrypted and protected to the highest reasonable security standards broadly available.

(5) An alternative device intended to serve in lieu of a license plate shall be subject to all of the following requirements:

(A) Have a minimum effective viewable area that meets the size specifications of Section 4852.

(B) Provide legibility and visibility according to standards consistent with those applied to standard metal reflectorized license plates, as set forth in this article.

(C) Be displayed in a manner consistent with Article 9 (commencing with Section 5200).

(D) Display only information and images approved by the department or deemed necessary by the department.

(E) Be readable by automated license plate readers used by the Department of the California Highway Patrol and any other automated enforcement system.

(F) Be readable by the human eye during hours of both daylight and darkness at a distance of no less than 75 feet.

(G) The alphanumeric characters assigned to the vehicle by the department and evidence of valid registration are capable of and shall be displayed on the device whenever a vehicle is in motion, stationary, parked on or off of a road or highway, or unoccupied.

(6) An alternative device intended to serve in lieu of a registration card is subject to both of the following requirements:

(A) Meets the requirements of Section 4453.

(B) May be used to comply with Section 4462.

(7) An alternative device intended to serve in lieu of a license plate or a registration card shall not record or transmit personal identifiable information and shall only record or transmit data limited to what is necessary to display evidence of registration compliance.

(8) The department may establish additional requirements it deems necessary to implement this subdivision.

(9) The department may authorize an alternative device to replicate the appearance of a license plate approved pursuant to any of the following:

(A) Section 5007.

(B) Article 8.4 (commencing with Section 5060).

(C) Article 8.5 (commencing with Section 5100).

(D) Article 8.6 (commencing with Section 5151).

(c) An alternative device failure or malfunction may be deemed a correctable violation if all of the provisions of Section 40610 are met.

(d) The provider of the device, if the device has digital capabilities, shall build into the device a process for frequent notification if the device becomes defective. The provider of the device shall seek to replace defective devices as soon as possible.

(e) Alternative devices issued pursuant to this section may emit diffused nonglaring light only to the extent necessary to meet the visibility requirements of Sections 5201 and 24601.

(f) (1) An employer, or a person acting on behalf of the employer, shall not use an alternative device to monitor employees except during work hours, and only if strictly necessary for the performance of the employee’s duties. For purposes of this section, “monitor” includes, but is not limited to, locating, tracking, watching, listening to, or otherwise surveilling the employee.

(2) An employer, or a person acting on behalf of the employer, shall not retaliate against an employee for removing or disabling an alternative device’s monitoring capabilities, including vehicle location technology, outside of work hours. An employee who believes they have been subject to a violation of this paragraph may file a complaint with the Labor Commissioner pursuant to Section 98.7 of the Labor Code. In addition to the civil penalties described in this provision, an employee retaliated against in violation of this section shall be entitled to all available penalties, remedies, and compensation, including, but not limited to, reinstatement and reimbursement of lost wages, work benefits, or other compensation caused by the retaliation.

(3) An employer or a person acting on behalf of the employer shall provide an employee with a notice stating that monitoring will occur before conducting any monitoring with an alternative device. The notice shall include, at a minimum, all of the following elements:

(A) A description of the specific activities that will be monitored.

(B) A description of the worker data that will be collected as a part of the monitoring.

(C) A notification of whether the data gathered through monitoring will be used to make or inform any employment-related decisions, including, but not limited to, disciplinary and termination decisions, and, if so, how, including any associated benchmarks.

(D) A description of the vendors or other third parties, if any, to which information collected through monitoring will be disclosed or transferred. The description shall include the name of the vendor or third party and the purpose for the data transfer.

(E) A description of the organizational positions that are authorized to access the data gathered through the alternative device.

(F) A description of the dates, times, and frequency that the monitoring will occur.

(G) A description of where the data will be stored and the length of time it will be retained.

(H) A notification of the employee’s right to disable monitoring, including vehicle location technology, outside of work hours.

(4) (A) An employer who violates this subdivision shall be subject to a civil penalty of two hundred fifty dollars ($250) for an initial violation and one thousand dollars ($1,000) per employee for each subsequent violation.

(B) For purposes of determining the penalty described in subparagraph (A), the penalty shall be assessed per employee, per violation, and per day that monitoring without proper notice is conducted.

(C) The Labor Commissioner shall enforce this section using the procedures set forth in Section 1197.1 of the Labor Code, as applicable, including through the issuance of citations against employers who violate this section. The procedures for issuing and contesting citations, and enforcing judgments for civil penalties, that are issued by the Labor Commissioner pursuant to this section shall be the same as those set forth in Section 1197.1 of the Labor Code.

(D) An employer, and any third-party vendor that contracts with an employer to provide GPS tracking of vehicles through an alternative device as described in this section, upon request, shall furnish any report or information that the Labor Commissioner or the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement requires to carry out this section.