CC SR 20220621 P - Catalytic Converter Legislation
CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: 06/21/2022
AGENDA REPORT AGENDA HEADING: Consent Calendar
AGENDA TITLE:
Consideration and possible action to authorize the Mayor to sign a letter supporting
legislation pertaining to catalytic converter theft prevention.
RECOMMENDED COUNCIL ACTION:
(1) Authorize the Mayor to sign a letter of support for Assembly Bill (AB) 1740, AB
2407, AB 2682, Senate Bill (SB) 986, and SB 1087, related to catalytic converter
theft prevention.
FISCAL IMPACT: None
Amount Budgeted: N/A
Additional Appropriation: N/A
Account Number(s): N/A
ORIGINATED BY: McKenzie Bright, Administrative Analyst
REVIEWED BY: Karina Bañales, Deputy City Manager
APPROVED BY: Ara Mihranian, AICP, City Manager
ATTACHED SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS:
A. Draft letter of support for bills seeking to discourage catalytic converter theft
(page A-1)
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION:
Catalytic converters convert most of a vehicle’s emissions into less harmful forms,
improving air quality and vehicle performance. Catalytic converters contain valuable, rare
metals such as platinum, rhodium, and palladium and are relatively easy to remove,
located on the underside of vehicles and can easily be sold for the rare metals inside.
Experienced thieves can remove a catalytic converter in one to two minutes using basic
tools.
Preventing catalytic converter theft is difficult due to the ease and speed with which
catalytic converter thefts can be committed and the difficulty of tracing and particular
catalytic converter back to its owner (the victim), because they don’t typically have any
identifying markers.
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CITYOF RANCHO PALOS VERDES
The Lomita Sheriff’s Station has in recnt years hosted two catalytic converter etching
events, etching vehicle identification numbers (VIN) free of charge onto catalytic
converters for resident vehicles in the station’s service area, including Rancho Palos
Verdes. Etching a VIN onto a catalytic converter can help the Sheriff’s Department
(LASD) or other law enforcement agencies identify the owner of a recovered catalytic
converter.
In Rancho Palos Verdes, thefts of catalytic converters ha ve increased dramatically, from
1 in 2019, to 13 in 2020, and 41 in 2021. Between January and April 2022, 14 catalytic
converters were stolen in the City.
On November 2, 2021, the City Council adopted the City’s 2022 Legislative Platform,
outlining the policy positions of the City.1 The platform includes the support of legislation
that enhances public safety (2022 Legislative Platform, item 2.A.).
Existing loopholes in legislation protect criminals from prosecution unless a victim can be
identified. A law enforcement agency may make arrests of individuals in possession of
suspect catalytic converters but may not be able to prove a case in court.
There are a number of bills moving through the state legislature seeking to close
loopholes that make catalytic converter thefts less difficult to prosecute. Five bills which
continue to move forward in the legislative process are detailed below.
AB 1740 (Muratsuchi)
Assemblymember Muratsuchi’s Assembly Bill (AB) 1740, would require core recyclers to
record additional vehicle information related to catalytic converters and would prohibit the
purchase or receipt of a catalytic converter from anyone other than the vehicle owner or
a commercial enterprise.
AB 1740 seeks to assist law enforcement agencies to prevent and prosecute catalytic
converter thefts. This bill would make it more difficult for people to profit from their theft
by requiring core recyclers to better document the source of the catalytic converter they
are purchasing and by limiting the people core recyclers can purchase catalytic
converters from to the owners of the vehicles the part comes from. The bill is supported
by the League of California Cities.
AB 2407 (O’Donnell)
Assemblymember O’Donnell’s AB 2407 would require core recyclers to report specified
information about the purchase and sale of catalytic converters to the chief of police or
the sheriff to obtain and preserve a seller’s thumbprint, and to request to receive theft
alert notifications regarding stolen catalytic converters.
1 The 2022 Legislative Platform and a record of the bills the City Council has taken a position on during
the 2021-2022 legislative session is available at rpvca.gov/LegislationCorner.
2
AB 2407 seeks to assist law enforcement agencies in the prevention and prosecution of
catalytic converter thefts, and to help make core recyclers aware of when catalytic
converters have been reported stolen in their area. It is supported by the California
Contract Cities Association and the Palos Verdes Police Officers Association , among
others.
AB 2682 (Gray)
Assemblymember Gray’s AB 2682 would require any automotive repair dealer that
installs or replaces a catalytic converter to ensure the catalytic converter is permanently
marked with the digits of the VIN on which it is being installed, and would prohibit a car
dealer or retail seller from selling a new or used vehicle without the VIN being marked on
that converter.
The bill seeks to make catalytic converters more traceable and therefore less desirable
to steal.
SB 986 (Umberg)
Senator Umberg’s Senate Bill (SB) 986 would require core recyclers to retain a
description of catalytic converters including etched or engraved information; require a
recycler to provide a traceable form of payment other than cash for a catalytic converter;
require written agreement between a core recycler and seller to include identifying
numbers or markers that match the agreement; and prohibit dealers and retail sellers from
selling a new or used vehicle without the vehicle identification number engraved or etched
onto the catalytic converter.
SB 986 is sponsored by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office and supported
by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the California Contract Cities
Association, among others.
SB 1087 (Gonzalez)
Senator Gonzalez’s SB 1087 would prohibit a core recycler from purchasing a catalytic
converter from anyone other than a licensed business that would reasonably generate,
possess, or sell used catalytic converters or an individual possessing documentation that
they are the lawful owner of the used catalytic converter.
SB 1087 is relatively similar to Assemblymember Muratsuchi’s AB 1740 and is supported
by the League of California Cities.
CONCLUSION:
These bills seek to improve public safety by giving additional enforcement tools to law
enforcement related to catalytic converters. Therefore, Staff recommends the City Council
authorize the Mayor to send a letter of support for AB 1740, AB 2407, AB 2682, AB 986,
and SB 1087 (see Attachment A).
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ALTERNATIVES:
In addition to the Staff recommendation, the following alternative action s are available for
City Council’s consideration:
1. Identify revised language to add to the letter.
2. Do not authorize the Mayor to sign the letter.
3. Take other action, as deemed appropriate.
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June 21, 2022 Via Email
The Honorable Toni Atkins
Senate President Pro Tempore
1021 O Street, Suite 8518
Sacramento, CA 95814
The Honorable Anthony Rendon
Assembly Speaker
State Capitol
Room 219
Sacramento, CA 95814
SUBJECT: Notice of Support for AB 1740 (Muratsuchi), AB 2407 (O’Donnell), AB
2682 (Gray), SB 986 (Umberg), and SB 1087 (Gonzalez)
Dear Senator Atkins and Assemblymember Rendon:
On behalf of the City of Rancho Palos Verdes, I am writing to express our support for AB
1740 (Muratsuchi), AB 2407 (O’Donnell), AB 2682 (Gray), SB 986 (Umberg), and SB
1087 (Gonzalez). These bills seek to make varied changes, including increasing the
tracking of catalytic converter sales, outlining parameters for who may purchase or
possess these auto parts, and mandating the engraving of vehicle identification numbers
(VIN) onto catalytic converters for all new and used vehicles.
The state has seen a dramatic increase in the number of catalytic converter thefts. In
Rancho Palos Verdes alone, thefts of catalytic converters have increased from 1 in 2019,
to 13 in 2020, 41 in 2021, and between January-April 2022, 14 stolen catalytic converters.
Existing law makes it extremely difficult for law enforcement officers to apprehend
catalytic thieves. These bills seek to address the dramatic rise in catalytic converter theft
in California by making it more difficult for bad actors to buy and sell stolen catalytic
converters.
For these reasons, the City of Rancho Palos Verdes supports AB 1740 , AB 2407, AB
2682, SB 986, and SB 1087.
A-1
fJAVln L. B RAnLEY, MA YOR
BARBARA FERRARO, MAYOR PRO TEM
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Senator Atkins and Assembly Member Rendon
June 21, 2022
Page 2
Sincerely,
David L. Bradley
Mayor, City of Rancho Palos Verdes
cc: Ben Allen, Senator, 26th State Senate District
Al Muratsuchi, Assemblymember, 66th State Assembly District
Tom Umberg, Senator, 34th State Senate District
Lena Gonzalez, Senator, 33rd State Senate District
Patrick O’Donnell, Assemblymember, 70th State Assembly District
Adam Gray, Assemblymember, 21st State Assembly District
James Powers, Captain, Lomita Sheriff’s Station
Aaron Belda, President, Palos Verdes Police Officers Association
George Gascón, District Attorney, Los Angeles County
Jeff Kiernan, League of California Cities
Marcel Rodarte, California Contract Cities Association
Sharon Gonsalves, Renne Public Policy Group
Rancho Palos Verdes City Council and City Manager
A-2