Committee moves a slate of bills: estate, stolen-vehicle, metal-theft and autonomous-systems measures advance

The Senate Judiciary Committee handled several additional bills on Feb. 18 and advanced multiple measures to the Senate floor.

SB 265 (Uniform Community Property Disposition at Death Act amendments) was presented as a technical uniform-law bill addressing which property is treated as community property at death; the committee adopted a technical amendment and favorably recommended the bill unanimously.

House Bill 217 (substitute) shortens the administrative window before rental agencies can report a vehicle stolen, preserving a 48-hour window for rental companies to account for late returns while allowing police to treat vehicles stolen after that period; the committee favorably recommended the substitute unanimously.

House Bill 271 (substitute) expands multiagency task-force responsibility to include metal theft and clarifies catalytic-converter reporting to the State Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice; the committee favorably recommended the substitute and placed the bill on the consent calendar.

Senate Bill 292, an effort to craft liability and recovery rules for level-4/5 autonomous vehicles, was presented by the sponsor as a work-in-progress. Industry and plaintiff-bar representatives said they would continue negotiations; the committee favorably recommended the bill with the sponsor’s commitment to keep working with stakeholders.