AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 21, 2026

AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 2, 2026

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

97

Introduced by Assembly Member Pellerin

(Coauthor: Assembly Member Alanis)

February 20, 2026

An act to add Section 23152.1 to the Vehicle Code, relating to vehicles.

Vote: majority   Appropriation: no   Fiscal committee: yes   Local program: yes

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

Existing law makes it unlawful for a person who has 0.08% or more, by weight, of alcohol in their blood to drive a vehicle or to drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs and prescribes certain penalties depending on additional facts, such as whether the driving resulted in an injury to another. Existing decisional law holds that the slight volitional movement of the vehicle is sufficient for a driving under the influence violation.

This bill would state that for the purposes of a driving under the influence violation, “drive” includes the volitional movement of a vehicle with driver support features engaged that require a person to supervise the vehicle in order to steer, brake, or accelerate, as needed to maintain safety. To the extent that this bill would expand the scope of a crime, it would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section 23152.1 is added to the Vehicle Code, to read:

23152.1.

For the purposes of Section 191.5 of the Penal Code, and Section 23103, as specified in Section 23103.5, 23152, or 23153, “drive” includes the volitional movement of a vehicle with driver support features engaged that require a person to supervise the vehicle in order to steer, brake, or accelerate, as needed to maintain safety. This includes driver support features that require constant supervision and those that require a person to take direct control of the vehicle upon the request of the driver support feature. The term “drive” does not include operating a vehicle with driver support features engaged that do not require a person to supervise the vehicle in order to steer, brake, or accelerate, as needed to maintain safety, and will not request a person to take direct control of the vehicle.

SEC. 2.

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIIIB of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIIIB of the California Constitution.