DEPLOYDatabase

Regulation · Safety standard

Cal. Veh. Code § 38750: Autonomous Vehicles

California's foundational autonomous-vehicle statute. Defines 'autonomous technology' and 'autonomous vehicle' (SAE Level 3-5) and requires a manufacturer to obtain DMV approval and meet safety-certification and $5 million insurance requirements before operating on public roads beyond testing. Current text amended by SB 480 (Stats. 2025, ch. 415), effective Jan 1, 2026. Part of California's broader autonomous-vehicle framework (see california-av-regulations, the comprehensive DMV plus CPUC entity).

Jurisdiction: United States/California · Effective 2013-01-01

Machine-readable surfaces

Sources (1)

  1. California Vehicle Code § 38750 (autonomous vehicles) — official statute text, current operative version (amended by SB 480, Stats. 2025 ch. 415, eff. Jan 1, 2026) · https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=VEH&sectionNum=38750 · 2026-01-01

Status history

  • In effect · 2013-01-01 · editor:DEPLOY content-agent (Sprint 1.5b status-event pass)

    Cal. Veh. Code Sec. 38750 (SB 1298); in effect since Jan 1, 2013. Baseline status event.

Common questions

What does Cal. Veh. Code § 38750: Autonomous Vehicles cover?
California's foundational autonomous-vehicle statute. Defines 'autonomous technology' and 'autonomous vehicle' (SAE Level 3-5) and requires a manufacturer to obtain DMV approval and meet safety-certification and $5 million insurance requirements before operating on public roads beyond testing. Current text amended by SB 480 (Stats. 2025, ch. 415), effective Jan 1, 2026. Part of California's broader autonomous-vehicle framework (see california-av-regulations, the comprehensive DMV plus CPUC entity).
Where does Cal. Veh. Code § 38750: Autonomous Vehicles apply?
Cal. Veh. Code § 38750: Autonomous Vehicles is recorded as a safety_standard applying in California on the DEPLOY registry.
When did Cal. Veh. Code § 38750: Autonomous Vehicles take effect?
Cal. Veh. Code § 38750: Autonomous Vehicles is recorded as effective January 1, 2013 on the DEPLOY registry.
Is Cal. Veh. Code § 38750: Autonomous Vehicles still in effect?
Cal. Veh. Code § 38750: Autonomous Vehicles is currently in effect and applies to covered operators in the named jurisdiction.
What types of robots does Cal. Veh. Code § 38750: Autonomous Vehicles apply to?
Cal. Veh. Code § 38750: Autonomous Vehicles is recorded as applying to autonomous vehicles on the DEPLOY registry.
Which robot models on the DEPLOY registry fall under Cal. Veh. Code § 38750: Autonomous Vehicles?
8 robot models on the DEPLOY registry match the form-factor scope of Cal. Veh. Code § 38750: Autonomous Vehicles: Apollo RT6, Argo AI Self-Driving System, Aurora, Aurora Driver and 4 others. Form-factor scope match does not by itself establish compliance status; review the underlying primary sources for each operator.
Methodology: Verified · 1 source (no primary) · last reviewed 2026-05-31

Verification posture

Verified

Low confidence

Review state

Stable

Last reviewed 2026-05-31

Architectural position

Cohort: av

Sources by quality tier

1
unclassified
Unclassified source

The framework is documented at /methodology. Corrections at /corrections. Reviewer: DEPLOY editorial team.

Methodology surface for Cal. Veh. Code § 38750: Autonomous Vehicles.

Canonical ID af7ede0f-866c-4f44-81ec-58c256ad08d1