BAR Advisory Group Meeting - October 22, 2026

Meeting details

The Bureau of Automotive Repair will hold a public meeting in person and by teleconference under Government Code section 11123.5. The meeting will also be available by live webcast.

Date and time
Thursday, October 22, 2026
9:30 AM - 1:00 PM (or until close of business)

In-person location
Department of Consumer Affairs, HQ 2
Hearing Room
1747 North Market Blvd.
Sacramento, CA 95834

Teleconference and webcast
Webex (interactive)
Live webcast (view only)

Agenda

1. Welcome and introductions - Patrick Dorais, BAR Chief

2. Legislation and regulations update - Holly Helsing, BAR Executive Office

3. Odometer fraud - David Chin, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

4. Referee inspection update - Clay Leek, BAR Executive Office

5. 15-minute break

6. Examination development - Karen Okicich and Shana Larrucea, Department of Consumer Affairs’ Office of Professional Examination Services

7. Complaint case study - Bill Thomas, BAR Executive Office

8. Enforcement statistics - BAR Enforcement Operations Branch (handout only)

9. Licensing statistics - BAR Licensing Program (handout only)

10. Public comment on items not on the agenda

11. Next BAR Advisory Group meeting - Thursday, January 28, 2027

12. Adjournment

BAG member organizations and representatives

Organizations that have indicated to the Bureau that their representative will be attending the meeting in person are identified with an asterisk. All other organization representatives are expected to attend remotely. Any updates on attendance, including an alternate representative attending on behalf of a member organization, will be addressed during agenda item one.

American Automobile Association - Northern California- Don Clowes
Automobile Club of Southern California - Megan McKernan
Automotive Maintenance and Repair Association/Motorist Assurance Program* - Tim Hatcher
Automotive Service Councils of California* - David Kusa
California Auto Body Association* - Jack Molodanof
California Automotive Business Coalition* - Bud Rice
California Automotive Foundation - Kim McPhaul
California Automotive Teachers - Ruben Parra
California Automotive Wholesalers' Association - Ryan Pierini
California New Car Dealers Association* - Les Swizer
Personal Insurance Federation of California - Seren Taylor
Preventative Automotive Maintenance Association* - Matthew Webb
Specialty Equipment Market Association - Dean Schlingmann

Notices to the public

Members of the public may, but are not obligated to, provide their names or personal information as a condition to observing or participating in the meeting. When signing into the Webex platform, participants may be asked for their name and email address. Participants who choose not to provide their names will be required to provide a unique identifier such as their initials or another alternative, so that the meeting moderator can identify individuals who wish to make a public comment; participants who choose not to provide their email address may utilize a fictitious email address in the following sample format: XXXXX@mailinator.com.

Public comments will be limited to two minutes per person.

For questions about this meeting or to request a disability-related accommodation to participate in the meeting, contact Zach Richardson at (279) 260-2367 or Zachary.Richardson@dca.ca.gov. Please submit your request at least five business days before the meeting to help ensure availability of the requested accommodation.

The BAR Advisory Group is established by the Bureau of Automotive Repair pursuant to Business and Professions Code section 9880.4.

Informational item - regulatory workshop

Senate Bill 1392 (Leno’s Law)
Thursday, October 22, 2026
2:30 PM – 4:30 PM (or until close of business)

The Bureau will host a public workshop to discuss the implementation of Senate Bill 1392 (Chapter 245, Statutes of 2026) and answer questions from interested parties. SB 1392 authorizes the Bureau to adopt regulations to establish a process to qualify collector motor vehicles for exemption from their next required Smog Check inspection.