BILL NUMBER: AB 424 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JANUARY 13, 2010
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JANUARY 7, 2010
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JANUARY 4, 2010
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 22, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Torres
FEBRUARY 23, 2009
An act to add Section 53114.5 to the Government Code, relating to
the 911 emergency telephone number system.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 424, as amended, Torres. Warren-911-Emergency Assistance Act:
public education campaign.
The Warren-911-Emergency Assistance Act requires every local
public agency to establish and operate, or to be a part of, an
emergency telephone system using the digits "911," and creates the
State 911 Advisory Board to assist in facilitating the purpose of the
act to establish the number 911 as the primary emergency telephone
number statewide.
This bill would require the office of the State Chief Information
Officer to develop and implement a public education campaign to
instruct the public on the appropriate and inappropriate uses of the
911 emergency telephone number system.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) Calling 911 is the primary way of initiating communication
between the public and public safety and law enforcement responders.
(b) The 911 emergency telephone number
response system in California is facing multiple challenges in
meeting the needs of the public, including rapidly evolving
communications technologies, understaffing of public safety answering
points, budget constraints, and technical limitations of the current
systems. Due to these challenges, the state's 911 emergency
telephone number response system is failing to
meet minimum standards for response in some areas, and jeopardizing
the health and safety of Californians.
(c) Californians can participate in addressing some of these
challenges by increasing their knowledge of appropriate and
inappropriate uses of the 911 emergency telephone number system, and
the characteristics of the communication systems they use to access
the 911 emergency response system.
(d) The responsible state entities should undertake a public
education campaign to increase the public's knowledge and assist the
public in making effective use of the 911 emergency telephone number
system, thereby improving the performance of the 911 emergency
telephone number response system.
SEC. 2. Section 53114.5 is added to the Government Code, to read:
53114.5. (a) The office of the State Chief Information Officer
shall develop and implement a public education campaign to instruct
the public on appropriate and inappropriate uses of the 911 emergency
telephone number system. The public education campaign may include
any of the following:
(1) Education programs designed to help members of the public:
(A) Distinguish emergencies that require a 911 call from
nonemergencies that can be handled through other types of requests
for information and response.
(B) Understand alternatives, including 211 and 311, that can
provide nonemergency assistance to the public.
(C) Understand what information they can provide when calling 911
to assist the 911 relay operator or dispatcher, including, but not
limited to, the caller's phone number, the caller's location, and a
brief description of the emergency.
(2) Education programs aimed specifically at informing schoolage
children about the appropriate and inappropriate uses of 911.
(3) Any other matters that the office deems appropriate or that
the advisory board recommends and the office approves.
(b) The costs to develop and implement the public education
campaign shall be costs of administration within the meaning of
paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) of Section 41136 of the Revenue and
Taxation Code, so long as these costs directly relate to the 911
emergency telephone number system, and shall be funded upon an
appropriation by the Legislature for that purpose.