Summary — AB 658 (Gonzalez) — Vehicle registration fee: affordability impact analysis

Status and timing
- Bill number: AB 658

- Author (as introduced): Jeff Gonzalez

- Introduced: February 14, 2025

- Referred to: Committee on Transportation (referred 2025-03-03)

- Fiscal committee: Yes; fiscal estimate received 2025-12-01

- Vote threshold / Appropriation: MAJORITY; no appropriation required (per digest)

- Note: The bill text below concerns vehicle registration fees and the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). (The metadata provided with the request contains a different title; this summary follows the bill text.)

Purpose / intent
- Require the DMV to produce and publish a public “affordability impact analysis” after any statutory increase in the vehicle registration fee (Section 9250), with the goal of documenting the financial impact of registration fee increases and providing data to inform policy options that reduce burden on low‑ and middle‑income households.

Key provisions
- New Vehicle Code Section 9250.20 — when a registration fee increase is enacted, the DMV must complete and post an affordability impact analysis on its website within six months of the fee increase becoming effective.
- The analysis must cover (past five years unless otherwise noted):
1. Average increase in annual vehicle registration costs, including breakdowns by vehicle value.
2. Total number of vehicles with delinquent registrations and annual delinquencies, with breakdowns by vehicle value and registrant ZIP Code.
3. Total delinquent registration debt, annual additions, and breakdowns by vehicle value, time past due, original balance vs. late penalties.
4. Number of vehicles impounded/sold to collect unpaid registration debt (per Article 6 / Section 9800 et seq.) and total debt collected, by vehicle value and ZIP Code.
5. Delinquent registrations and amounts referred to Franchise Tax Board (FTB) for collection (levies/garnishment) with ZIP/vehicle value breakdowns.
6. Amounts collected by FTB and remitted to DMV over five years.
7. Number of civil actions by DMV to collect registration debt (per Section 9562(d)), with breakdowns.
8. Number of vehicles subject to registration holds for unpaid parking or toll violations (Sections 4760/4770), with breakdowns.
9. Number of vehicles exempt from fees under specified code sections (Section 9105 and Revenue & Taxation Sections 10783/10783.2), by ZIP Code.
10. Itemized list of cost increases over five years contributing to the Motor Vehicle Account (MVA) shortfall.
11. Description of DMV efficiency efforts (reduced field visits, automation, online transaction increases) over five years and estimated budgetary savings.
12. Proposals for additional savings to mitigate future registration fee increases.
13. Any alternative analyses/strategies for eliminating MVA shortfalls while minimizing impact on low‑ and middle‑income families.
- Definition: “Vehicle value” is the five value classes defined in Revenue & Taxation Code §11052(a).

Who is affected
- Department of Motor Vehicles: required to compile, analyze, and publish comprehensive multi‑year data after fee increases (administrative workload).
- Vehicle owners/registrants — especially low‑ and middle‑income households and those in ZIP Codes with concentrated delinquency — because the analysis focuses on affordability, delinquency, and enforcement outcomes.
- Franchise Tax Board and local law enforcement/entities involved in impoundment/enforcement, to the extent their data are used.
- Policymakers and the public: will have access to detailed data to evaluate the effects of fee increases and potential alternatives.

Potential impacts and considerations
- Greater transparency about the fiscal and household impacts of registration fee increases; may influence legislative or executive decisions over future fee changes.
- Administrative burden on DMV to collect, process, and publicly present detailed, ZIP‑level and vehicle‑value–stratified data; potential need for resources or systems upgrades.
- Privacy and data‑aggregation considerations when publishing ZIP Code–level breakdowns.
- Could encourage or justify alternatives (efficiency savings, exemptions, targeted relief) instead of across‑the‑board fee increases.

Procedural notes
- The bill was referred to the Transportation Committee on March 3, 2025. Fiscal analysis has been requested and a fiscal estimate was recorded on December 1, 2025. Coauthor additions and sponsor listings appear in the legislative history.