SB 1339 Summary

• Authorizes the Bay Area Air Quality Management District and Metropolitan Transportation Commission to jointly adopt a commute benefit ordinance requiring employers with 50+ employees in their common jurisdiction to offer covered employees one of three commute options: a pretax program for transit/vanpool/bicycle costs, an employer-paid subsidy (minimum $75/month in 2013, adjusted annually), or employer-provided transit.

• Allows employers to seek approval for alternative commute benefits if they demonstrate equivalent reduction in single-occupant vehicle trips, and deems transportation management associations compliant if they provide required benefits to member employers.

• Requires covered employers at least six months to comply after ordinance adoption and specifies that ordinances must detail employer notification procedures, compliance demonstration, alternative benefit evaluation criteria, and noncompliance consequences.

• Mandates a joint report to the Legislature by July 1, 2016 including program descriptions, employer compliance rates, employee behavioral changes, vehicle trip reductions, and greenhouse gas emission impacts.

• Sunsets the entire provision on January 1, 2017 unless extended by later legislation enacted before that date.