Terms Used In California Codes > Vehicle Code > Division 3 > Chapter 1 - Original and Renewal of Registration; Issuance of Certificates of Title

• Agent: means a county or city board of education or superintendent of schools acting with the board's consent, on behalf of one or more school districts for any purpose of this chapter, the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges or the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges acting with the Board of Governors' consent, on behalf of one or more community college districts for any purpose of this chapter, and the school district, county office of education, or other chartering entity acting with the consent of, and on behalf of, one or more charter schools for any purpose of this chapter. See California Education Code 17173
• Applicant: means a community college district, a campus of the California State University, a campus of the University of California, which may include the college named in Section 92200, or a partnership of campuses across and within the public higher education segments. See California Education Code 17200
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• Authority: means the California School Finance Authority, or any board, body, commission, department, or officer succeeding to the principal functions of the authority, or to which the powers conferred upon the authority by this chapter shall be given by law. See California Education Code 17173
• autoette: is a motor vehicle, located on a natural island with an area in excess of 20,000 acres and that is within a county having a population in excess of 4,000,000, that meets all of the following requirements:

  California Vehicle Code 175

• automated enforcement system: is a ny system operated by a governmental agency, in cooperation with a law enforcement agency, that photographically records a driver's responses to a rail or rail transit signal or crossing gate, or both, or to an official traffic control signal described in Section 21450, and is designed to obtain a clear photograph of a vehicle's license plate and the driver of the vehicle. See California Vehicle Code 210
• automobile dismantler: includes a person not otherwise expressly excluded by Section 221 who keeps or maintains on real property owned by the person, or under their possession or control, either of the following vehicles or catalytic converters, whether for the purpose of resale of used parts, for the purpose of reclaiming for use some or all of the materials, whether metal, glass, fabric, or otherwise, or to dispose of them, or for any other purpose:

  California Vehicle Code 220

• auxiliary dolly: is a vehicle, not designed for carrying persons or property on its own structure, which is so constructed and used in conjunction with a semitrailer as to support a portion of the weight of the semitrailer and any load thereon, but not permanently attached to the semitrailer, although a part of the weight of such dolly may rest on another vehicle. See California Vehicle Code 225
• axle: is a structure or portion of a structure consisting of one or more shafts, spindles, or bearings in the same vertical transverse plane by means of which, in conjunction with wheels mounted on said shafts, spindles, or bearings, a portion of the weight of a vehicle and its load, if any, is continuously transmitted to the roadway when the vehicle is in motion. See California Vehicle Code 230
• Bail: Security given for the release of a criminal defendant or witness from legal custody (usually in the form of money) to secure his/her appearance on the day and time appointed.
• Bankruptcy: Refers to statutes and judicial proceedings involving persons or businesses that cannot pay their debts and seek the assistance of the court in getting a fresh start. Under the protection of the bankruptcy court, debtors may discharge their debts, perhaps by paying a portion of each debt. Bankruptcy judges preside over these proceedings.
• Board: means the State Allocation Board. See California Education Code 17243
• board: means the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. See California Revenue and Taxation Code 20
• bus: is a ny vehicle, including a trailer bus, designed, used, or maintained for carrying more than 15 persons including the driver. See California Vehicle Code 233
• business: includes a proprietorship, partnership, corporation, and any other form of commercial enterprise. See California Vehicle Code 234
• Campus: means a community college district, a campus of the California State University, or a campus of the University of California, which may include the college named in Section 92200. See California Education Code 17200
• Capacity expansion projects: means projects that expand the ability of a four-year public postsecondary educational institution to support future California resident enrollment growth. See California Education Code 17200
• Charter school: means a school established pursuant to Part 26. See California Education Code 17173
• city: means any city, town, or municipal corporation incorporated under the laws of this State. See California Water Code 8002
• city: includes city and county, and "county" does not include city and county. See California Water Code 8152
• City: includes incorporated city, city and county, municipal corporation, municipality, town, and incorporated town. See California Revenue and Taxation Code 14
• City: includes every city and city and county within this State. See California Vehicle Code 255
• Classification: means that each position in the classified service shall have a designated title, a regular minimum number of assigned hours per day, days per week, and months per year, a specific statement of the duties required to be performed by the employees in each such position, and the regular monthly salary ranges for each such position. See California Education Code 45101
• clean fuel vehicle: means any passenger or commercial vehicle or pickup truck that is fueled by alternative fuels, as defined in Section 301 of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (P. See California Vehicle Code 257
• Collector motor vehicle: means a motor vehicle owned by a collector, as defined in subdivision (a) of Section 5051, and the motor vehicle is used primarily in shows, parades, charitable functions, and historical exhibitions for display, maintenance, and preservation, and is not used primarily for transportation. See California Vehicle Code 259
• commercial vehicle: is a motor vehicle of a type required to be registered under this code used or maintained for the transportation of persons for hire, compensation, or profit or designed, used, or maintained primarily for the transportation of property. See California Vehicle Code 260
• Committee print: A publication used by committees for various purposes. For example, the rules of each standing committee may be published as a committee print, and drafts of bills or committee reports may be produced as committee prints.
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• County: includes city and county. See California Revenue and Taxation Code 15
• County: includes every county and city and county within this State. See California Vehicle Code 270
• County: includes city and county. See California Water Code 14
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Darkness: is a ny time from one-half hour after sunset to one-half hour before sunrise and any other time when visibility is not sufficient to render clearly discernible any person or vehicle on the highway at a distance of 1,000 feet. See California Vehicle Code 280
• date of transfer: means (a) . See California Water Code 8151
• Dealer: is a person not otherwise expressly excluded by Section 286 who:

  California Vehicle Code 285

• Decedent: A deceased person.
• Declared gross vehicle weight: means weight that equals the total unladen weight of the vehicle plus the heaviest load that will be transported on the vehicle. See California Vehicle Code 289
• Demotion: means assignment to an inferior position or status, without the employee's written voluntary consent. See California Education Code 45101
• Department: means the Department of Motor Vehicles except, when used in Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 2100) of Division 2 and in Divisions 11 (commencing with Section 21000), 12 (commencing with Section 24000), 13 (commencing with Section 29000), 14 (commencing with Section 31600), 14. See California Vehicle Code 290
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• disabled person: is a ny of the following:

  California Vehicle Code 295.5

• disabled veteran: is a ny person who, as a result of injury or disease suffered while on active service with the armed forces of the United States, suffers any of the following:

  California Vehicle Code 295.7

• Disciplinary action: includes any action whereby an employee is deprived of any classification or any incident of any classification in which he has permanence, including dismissal, suspension, demotion, or any reassignment, without his voluntary consent, except a layoff for lack of work or lack of funds. See California Education Code 45101
• distributor: is a ny person other than a manufacturer who sells or distributes new vehicles subject to registration under this code, new trailers subject to identification pursuant to Section 5014. See California Vehicle Code 296
• drainage improvement: means any storm drain improvement, drainage improvement, or drainage system, authorized to be transferred pursuant to this chapter. See California Water Code 8150
• driver: is a person who drives or is in actual physical control of a vehicle. See California Vehicle Code 305
• Embezzlement: In most states, embezzlement is defined as theft/larceny of assets (money or property) by a person in a position of trust or responsibility over those assets. Embezzlement typically occurs in the employment and corporate settings. ^{Source: OCC}
• Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
• Environmental license plates: as used in this article , means license plates or permanent trailer identification plates that have displayed upon them the registration number assigned to the passenger vehicle, commercial motor vehicle, motorcycle, trailer, or semitrailer for which a registration number was issued in a combination of letters or numbers, or both, requested by the owner or lessee of the vehicle. See California Vehicle Code 5103
• farm labor vehicle: is a ny motor vehicle designed, used, or maintained for the transportation of nine or more farmworkers, in addition to the driver, to or from a place of employment or employment-related activities. See California Vehicle Code 322
• for hire: means that the entity providing transportation services is compensated for the transportation under contract or agreement. See California Vehicle Code 462
• foreign jurisdiction: is a ny other state, the District of Columbia, territories or possessions of the United States, and foreign states, provinces, or countries. See California Vehicle Code 325
• former prisoner of war: is a ny person who, while serving as a member of the United States Armed Forces, as a member of the Philippine Commonwealth Armed Forces, as a part of a United States Expeditionary Force, or as a United States civilian, was held as a prisoner of war by forces hostile to the United States during any armed conflict and is currently a resident of California. See California Vehicle Code 324.5
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• garage: is a building or other place wherein the business of storing or safekeeping vehicles of a type required to be registered under this code and which belong to members of the general public is conducted for compensation. See California Vehicle Code 340
• golf cart: is a motor vehicle having not less than three wheels in contact with the ground, having an unladen weight less than 1,300 pounds, which is designed to be and is operated at not more than 15 miles per hour and designed to carry golf equipment and not more than two persons, including the driver. See California Vehicle Code 345
• Highway: is a way or place of whatever nature, publicly maintained and open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel. See California Vehicle Code 360
• Joint tenancy: A form of property ownership in which two or more parties hold an undivided interest in the same property that was conveyed under the same instrument at the same time. A joint tenant can sell his (her) interest but not dispose of it by will. Upon the death of a joint tenant, his (her) undivided interest is distributed among the surviving joint tenants.
• Legacy: A gift of property made by will.
• legal owner: is a person holding a security interest in a vehicle which is subject to the provisions of the Uniform Commercial Code, or the lessor of a vehicle to the State or to any county, city, district, or political subdivision of the State, or to the United States, under a lease, lease-sale, or rental-purchase agreement which grants possession of the vehicle to the lessee for a period of 30 consecutive days or more. See California Vehicle Code 370
• Lessor: includes "bailor" and "lease" includes "bailment. See California Vehicle Code 372
• lessor-retailer: is a lessor or renter who, except under the circumstances described in subdivision (a) of Section 286, makes a retail sale or sales of a previously leased or rented vehicle or vehicles to other than any of the following:

  California Vehicle Code 373

• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• Local authorities: means the legislative body of every county or municipality having authority to adopt local police regulations. See California Vehicle Code 385
• logging dolly: is a vehicle designed for carrying logs, having one or more axles that, if there are more than one, are not more than 54 inches apart, and used in connection with a motor truck solely for the purpose of transporting logs and securely connected with the towing vehicle both by a reach and by the load. See California Vehicle Code 385.2
• logging vehicle: is a vehicle used exclusively in the conduct of logging operations and not designed for the transportation of persons or property on a highway. See California Vehicle Code 385.3
• Low-income student: means either of the following:

  California Education Code 17200

• low-speed vehicle: is a motor vehicle that meets all of the following requirements:

  California Vehicle Code 385.5

• motor vehicle: includes a recreational vehicle as that term is defined in subdivision (a) of §. See California Vehicle Code 415
• motorcycle: is a motor vehicle having a seat or saddle for the use of the rider, designed to travel on not more than three wheels in contact with the ground. See California Vehicle Code 400
• motortruck: is a motor vehicle designed, used, or maintained primarily for the transportation of property. See California Vehicle Code 410
• new vehicle: is a vehicle constructed entirely from new parts that has never been the subject of a retail sale, or registered with the department, or registered with the appropriate agency or authority of any other state, District of Columbia, territory or possession of the United States, or foreign state, province, or country. See California Vehicle Code 430
• Non-navigable streams: as used in this article , means streams and washes in a county which are not declared by law to be navigable and which are not in fact navigable for commercial purposes. See California Water Code 8125
• Nonresident: is a person who is not a resident of this State. See California Vehicle Code 435
• owner: is a person having all the incidents of ownership, including the legal title of a vehicle whether or not such person lends, rents, or creates a security interest in the vehicle. See California Vehicle Code 460
• Participating party: means :

  California Education Code 17173

• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• passenger vehicle: is a ny motor vehicle, other than a motortruck, truck tractor, or a bus, as defined in Section 233, and used or maintained for the transportation of persons. See California Vehicle Code 465
• Person: includes any person, firm, partnership, general partner of a partnership, limited liability company, registered limited liability partnership, foreign limited liability partnership, association, corporation, company, syndicate, estate, trust, business trust, or organization of any kind. See California Revenue and Taxation Code 19
• Person: includes a natural person, firm, copartnership, association, limited liability company, or corporation. See California Vehicle Code 470
• pickup truck: is a motor truck with a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating of less than 11,500 pounds, an unladen weight of less than 8,001 pounds, and which is equipped with an open box-type bed not exceeding 9 feet in length. See California Vehicle Code 471
• pole or pipe dolly: is a vehicle, other than a motor vehicle, having one or more axles which axles, if there be more than one, are not more than 54 inches apart, and two or more wheels, used in connection with a motor vehicle solely for the purpose of transporting poles, timbers, pipes, or integral structural materials and connected with the towing vehicle both by chain, rope, cable, or drawbar, and by the load, without any part of the weight of the dolly resting upon the towing vehicle. See California Vehicle Code 475
• Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
• Public law: A public bill or joint resolution that has passed both chambers and been enacted into law. Public laws have general applicability nationwide.
• Recess: A temporary interruption of the legislative business.
• Reclassification: means the upgrading of a position to a higher classification as a result of the gradual increase of the duties being performed by the incumbent in such position. See California Education Code 45101
• registered owner: is a person registered by the department as the owner of a vehicle. See California Vehicle Code 505
• Registration service: includes , but is not limited to, a person who, for compensation, processes registration documents, conducts lien sales, or processes vehicle dismantling documents. See California Vehicle Code 505.2
• Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
• remanufactured vehicle: is a vehicle that has been constructed by a licensed remanufacturer and consists of any used or reconditioned integral parts, including, but not limited to, frame, engine, transmission, axles, brakes, or suspension. See California Vehicle Code 507.5
• remanufacturer: is a ny person who for commission, money, or other thing of value, produces a vehicle that consists of any used or reconditioned integral parts, including, but not limited to, frame, engine, transmission, axles, brakes, or suspension which is subject to registration under this code. See California Vehicle Code 507.8
• renter: is a person who is engaged in the business of renting, leasing or bailing vehicles for a term not exceeding four months and for a fixed rate or price. See California Vehicle Code 508
• repair shop: is a place where vehicles subject to registration under this code are repaired, rebuilt, reconditioned, repainted, or in any way maintained for the public at a charge. See California Vehicle Code 510
• representative: is a ny person regularly employed by a manufacturer or distributor for the purpose of negotiating or promoting the sale of the manufacturer's or distributer's vehicles to their franchisees or for regularly supervising or contacting franchisees or prospective franchisees in this state for any purpose. See California Vehicle Code 512
• Rescission: The cancellation of budget authority previously provided by Congress. The Impoundment Control Act of 1974 specifies that the President may propose to Congress that funds be rescinded. If both Houses have not approved a rescission proposal (by passing legislation) within 45 days of continuous session, any funds being withheld must be made available for obligation.
• Resident: means any person who manifests an intent to live or be located in this state on more than a temporary or transient basis. See California Vehicle Code 516
• retail sale: is a sale of goods to a person for the purpose of consumption and use, and not for resale to others, including, but not limited to, an arrangement where a motor vehicle is consigned to a dealer for sale. See California Vehicle Code 520
• revenue bonds: means bonds, notes, lease obligations, certificates of participation, commercial paper, and any other evidences of indebtedness. See California Education Code 17173
• Road: means any existing vehicle route established before January 1, 1979, with significant evidence of prior regular travel by vehicles subject to registration pursuant to Article 1 (commencing with Section 4000) of Chapter 1 of Division 3. See California Vehicle Code 527
• Salvage pool: means a person engaged exclusively in the business of disposing of total loss salvage vehicles, nonrepairable vehicles, or recovered stolen vehicles sent to it by, or on behalf of, insurance companies, authorized adjusters, leasing companies, self-insured persons, or financial institutions. See California Vehicle Code 543
• Salvage vehicle rebuilder: means any person who rebuilds a total loss salvage vehicle, as defined in Section 544, or a vehicle reported for dismantling pursuant to Section 11520, for subsequent resale. See California Vehicle Code 543.5
• school district with an anticipated increase in enrollment: means a school district in which the level of enrollment is projected by the district to be higher during any of the five years, including the year in which the projection is made, than the year preceding the year in which the projection is made. See California Education Code 17243
• schoolbus: is a motor vehicle designed, used, or maintained for the transportation of any school pupil at or below the 12th grade level to or from a public or private school or to or from public or private school activities, except the following:

  California Vehicle Code 545

• Segment: means the public higher education segments of California, which are the University of California, the California State University, or the California Community Colleges. See California Education Code 17200
• semitrailer: is a vehicle designed for carrying persons or property, used in conjunction with a motor vehicle, and so constructed that some part of its weight and that of its load rests upon, or is carried by, another vehicle. See California Vehicle Code 550
• Special construction equipment: is:

  California Vehicle Code 565

• Special interest vehicle: is a vehicle of an age that is unaltered from the manufacturer's original specifications and, because of its significance, including, but not limited to, an out-of-production vehicle or a model of less than 2,000 sold in California in a model-year, is collected, preserved, restored, or maintained by a hobbyist as a leisure pursuit. See California Vehicle Code 5051
• Special mobile equipment: is a vehicle, not self-propelled, not designed or used primarily for the transportation of persons or property, and only incidentally operated or moved over a highway, excepting implements of husbandry. See California Vehicle Code 575
• State: means the State of California, unless applied to the different parts of the United States. See California Water Code 18
• state agency: means a state office, officer, department, division, bureau, board, or commission, or any other state body or agency. See California Vehicle Code 5151
• Student housing project: means one or more housing facilities to be occupied by students of one or more campuses. See California Education Code 17200
• Supplemental restraint system: means an automatic passive restraint system consisting of a bag that is designed to inflate upon collision, commonly referred to as an "airbag. See California Vehicle Code 593
• Tenancy in common: A type of property ownership in which two or more individuals have an undivided interest in property. At the death of one tenant in common, his (her) fractional percentage of ownership in the property passes to the decedent
• Total loss salvage vehicle: means either of the following:

  California Vehicle Code 544

• tow dolly: is a vehicle towed by a motor vehicle and designed and used exclusively to transport another motor vehicle and upon which the front or rear wheels of the towed motor vehicle are mounted, while the other wheels of the towed motor vehicle remain in contact with the ground. See California Vehicle Code 617
• tow truck: is a motor vehicle which has been altered or designed and equipped for, and primarily used in the business of, transporting vehicles by means of a crane, hoist, tow bar, tow line, or dolly or is otherwise primarily used to render assistance to other vehicles. See California Vehicle Code 615
• traffic: includes pedestrians, ridden animals, vehicles, street cars, and other conveyances, either singly or together, while using any highway for purposes of travel. See California Vehicle Code 620
• trailer: includes a semitrailer when used in conjunction with an auxiliary dolly, if the auxiliary dolly is of a type constructed to replace the function of the drawbar and the front axle or axles of a trailer. See California Vehicle Code 630
• trailer coach: is a vehicle, other than a motor vehicle, designed for human habitation or human occupancy for industrial, professional, or commercial purposes, for carrying property on its own structure, and for being drawn by a motor vehicle. See California Vehicle Code 635
• transferee: is a person who has acquired the sole ownership of or an equity in a vehicle of a type required to be registered under this code. See California Vehicle Code 640
• truck tractor: is a motor vehicle designed and used primarily for drawing other vehicles and not so constructed as to carry a load, other than a part of the weight of the vehicle and the load so drawn. See California Vehicle Code 655
• Trust account: A general term that covers all types of accounts in a trust department, such as estates, guardianships, and agencies. ^{Source: OCC}
• United States: means the United States of America, and in relation to any particular matter includes the officers, agents, employees, agencies, or instrumentalities authorized to act in relation thereto. See California Water Code 20
• used vehicle: is a vehicle that has been sold, or has been registered with the department, or has been sold and operated upon the highways, or has been registered with the appropriate agency of authority, of any other state, District of Columbia, territory or possession of the United States or foreign state, province or country, or unregistered vehicles regularly used or operated as demonstrators in the sales work of a dealer or unregistered vehicles regularly used or operated by a manufacturer in the sales or distribution work of such manufacturer. See California Vehicle Code 665
• vehicle: is a device by which any person or property may be propelled, moved, or drawn upon a highway, excepting a device moved exclusively by human power or used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks. See California Vehicle Code 670
• Vehicle manufacturer: is a ny person who produces from raw materials or new basic components a vehicle of a type subject to registration under this code, off-highway motorcycles or all-terrain vehicles subject to identification under this code, or trailers subject to identification pursuant to Section 5014. See California Vehicle Code 672
• Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
• Working capital: means funds to be used by, or on behalf of, a participating party to pay maintenance or operating expenses, or any other costs that would be treated as an expense item under generally accepted accounting principles in connection with the ownership or operation of an educational facility, including, but not limited to, all of the following:

  California Education Code 17173

• works: includes canals, ditches, levees, dikes, embankments, dams, machinery, and other appropriate or ancillary means of accomplishing the purposes mentioned in this chapter. See California Water Code 8001