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AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 11, 2026

AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 9, 2026

AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 23, 2026

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

95

Introduced by Senator Caballero

(Coauthor: Senator Archuleta)

February 18, 2026

An act to add Section 1656.25 to the Vehicle Code, relating to vehicles.

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

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

Existing law makes it a crime to operate a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and sets forth the penalties for a violation of these provisions. Under existing law, if a person is convicted of a driving under the influence violation and the offense occurs within 10 years of one or more separate driving under the influence violations that resulted in convictions, the offense is subject to escalating fines, suspensions, and other sanctions.

This bill would require the Department of Motor Vehicles, upon an appropriation from the Legislature, to provide, as appropriate, a summary of the penalties for specified violations involving alcohol or drugs on specified vehicle registration materials and with each driver’s license, and license renewal. renewal, as specified. The bill would require the department’s summary to include, among other things, the financial consequences of driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol or drugs, and annual updates to DUI- related DUI-related statutes.

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

SECTION 1.

Section 1656.25 is added to the Vehicle Code, to read:

1656.25.

(a) The department shall, upon an appropriation from the Legislature, include, as appropriate, a summary of the penalties for violations of Sections 23152 to 23249.50, inclusive, and Sections 23500 to 23675, inclusive, with each motor vehicle registration, registration renewal, and transfer of registration, and with each driver’s license, and license renewal. This subdivision does not apply to an application for vehicle registration, vehicle registration renewal, transfer of registration, driver’s license, or driver’s license renewal processed by a registration service, as defined in Section 505.2, or a private industry partner contracted with the department pursuant to Section 1685.

(b) The printed summary shall contain, but is not limited to, all of the following information:

(1) Criminal penalties associated with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

(2) Administrative consequences associated with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, including driver’s license suspension or revocation, or prohibition of buying alcohol.

(3) Financial consequences of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, including fines and fees.

(4) Risks to public safety associated with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

(5) Annual updates to DUI-related statutes.

(c) For digital registration systems, the department shall ensure that the summary information is displayed prominently before user interaction as a pop-up window and on the any redirected internet website page.

(d) It is the intent of the Legislature to maintain the educational provisions of the physical materials under this section once the digital registration system is available and accessible to the public.