BILL ANALYSIS ------------------------------------------------------------ |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 2668| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |1020 N Street, Suite 524 | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ------------------------------------------------------------ THIRD READING Bill No: AB 2668 Author: Galgiani (D) Amended: 6/24/10 in Senate Vote: 21 SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE : 7-0, 6/29/10 AYES: Leno, Cogdill, Cedillo, Hancock, Huff, Steinberg, Wright SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8 ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 75-0, 6/2/10 - See last page for vote SUBJECT : Weapons: possession at State Capitol and legislative building SOURCE : Assembly Sergeants-at-Arms California Highway Patrol DIGEST : This bill makes it a misdemeanor to possess specified weapons, including unloaded firearms, in or on the grounds of the State Capitol Building or the Legislative Office Building. ANALYSIS : Current law provides that any person who brings or possesses within any state or local public building, as defined, or at any meeting required to be open to the public, as specified, any of the following is guilty of a public offense punishable by imprisonment in a county CONTINUED AB 2668 Page 2 jail for not more than one year, or in the state prison for 16 months, two or three years: 1. Any firearm. 2. Any deadly weapon described in Section 653k or 12020. 3. Any knife with a blade length in excess of four inches, the blade of which is fixed or is capable of being fixed in an unguarded position by the use of one or two hands. 4. Any unauthorized tear gas weapon. 5. Any taser or stun gun, as defined in Section 244.5. 6. Any instrument that expels a metallic projectile, such as a BB or pellet, through the force of air pressure, CO[2] pressure, or spring action, or any spot marker gun or paint gun. This prohibition does not apply to any of the following: 1. A person who possesses weapons in, or transports weapons into, a court of law to be used as evidence. A. A duly appointed peace officer as defined in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2, a retired peace officer with authorization to carry concealed weapons as described in subdivision (a) of Section 12027, a full-time paid peace officer of another state or the federal government who is carrying out official duties while in California, or any person summoned by any of these officers to assist in making arrests or preserving the peace while he or she is actually engaged in assisting the officer. This exception shall not apply to any person who brings or possesses any weapon specified therein within any courtroom if he or she is a party to an action pending before the court. 2. A person holding a valid license to carry the firearm, as specified. AB 2668 Page 3 3. A person who has permission to possess that weapon granted in writing by a duly authorized official who is in charge of the security of the state or local government building. 4. A person who lawfully resides in, lawfully owns, or is in lawful possession of, that building with respect to those portions of the building that are not owned or leased by the state or local government. 5. A person licensed or registered as an Alarm Service Operator, acting within the course and scope of his or her duties, as specified, who has been hired by the owner or manager of the building if the person has permission of a resident of the building. A. A person who, for the purpose of sale or trade, brings any weapon that may otherwise be lawfully transferred, into a gun show, as specified. B. A person who, for purposes of an authorized public exhibition, brings any weapon that may otherwise be lawfully possessed, into a gun show, as specified. As used in this section, "state or local public building" means a building that meets all of the following criteria: 1. It is a building or part of a building owned or leased by the state or local government, if state or local public employees are regularly present for the purposes of performing their official duties. A state or local public building includes, but is not limited to, a building that contains a courtroom. 2. It is not a building or facility, or a part thereof, which is referred to in Section 171c, 171d, 626.9, 626.95, or 626.10 of this code, or in Section 18544 of the Elections Code. 3. It is a building not regularly used, and not intended to be used, by state or local employees as a place of residence. (Penal Code Section 171b.) AB 2668 Page 4 Current law provides that any person, except a duly appointed peace officer as specified, a full-time paid peace officer of another state or the federal government who is carrying out official duties while in California, any person summoned by any such officer to assist in making arrests or preserving the peace while he is actually engaged in assisting such officer, a member of the military forces of this state or the United States engaged in the performance of his duties, or a person holding a valid license to carry the firearm, as specified, who brings a loaded firearm into, or possesses a loaded firearm within, the State Capitol, any legislative office, any office of the Governor or other constitutional officer, or any hearing room in which any committee of the Senate or Assembly is conducting a hearing, or upon the grounds of the State Capitol, which is bounded by 10th, L, 15th, and N Streets in the City of Sacramento, shall be punished by imprisonment in the county jail for a period of not more than one year, a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or both such imprisonment and fine, or by imprisonment in the state prison. (Penal Code 171c.) This bill would provide that any person who brings or possesses, within the State Capitol, any legislative office, any hearing room in which any committee of the Senate or Assembly is conducting a hearing, the Legislative Office Building at 1020 N Street in the City of Sacramento, or upon the grounds of the State Capitol, which is bounded by 10th, L, 15th, and N Streets in the City of Sacramento, any of the following, is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for a period not to exceed one year, or by a fine not exceeding $1,000, or by both that fine and imprisonment, if the area is posted with a statement providing reasonable notice that prosecution may result from possession of any of these items: 1. Any firearm. 2. Any deadly weapon described in Section 653k or 12020. 3. Any knife with a blade length in excess of four inches, the blade of which is fixed or is capable of being fixed in an unguarded position by the use of one or two hands. AB 2668 Page 5 4. Any unauthorized tear gas weapon. 5. Any stun gun, as defined in Section 244.5. 6. Any instrument that expels a metallic projectile, such as a BB or pellet, through the force of air pressure, CO2 pressure, or spring action, or any spot marker gun or paint gun. 7. Any ammunition as defined in Section 12316. 8. Any explosive as defined in Section 12000 of the Health and Safety Code. This bill states that its provisions would not apply to the following: 1. A duly appointed peace officer as defined in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2, a retired peace officer with authorization to carry concealed weapons as described in subdivision (a) of Section 12027, a full-time paid peace officer of another state or the federal government who is carrying out official duties while in California, or any person summoned by any of these officers to assist in making arrests or preserving the peace while he or she is actually engaged in assisting the officer. 2. A person holding a valid license to carry the firearm pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with Section 12050) of Chapter 1 of Title 2 of Part 4, and who has permission granted by the Chief Sergeants at Arms of the State Assembly and the State Senate to possess a concealed weapon upon the premises described in subdivision (a). 3. A person who has permission granted by the Chief Sergeants at Arms of the State Assembly and the State Senate to possess a weapon upon the premises described in subdivision (a). This bill states that its provisions shall not preclude prosecution under any other law with a penalty greater than is set forth in this section. AB 2668 Page 6 This bill states that its provisions are cumulative, and shall not be construed as restricting the application of any other law. However, an act or omission punishable in different ways by different provisions of law shall not be punished under more than one provision. This bill makes a technical change to existing law to conform with these provisions. FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes Local: Yes SUPPORT : (Verified 8/3/10) Assembly Sergeants-at-Arms (co-source) California Highway Patrol (co-source) ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office, "Sponsored by the Assembly Sergeants-at-Arms and the California Highway Patrol, Assembly Bill 2668 is a clean-up bill to existing law affecting the possession of weapons within the State Capitol building. "There are 75,000 to 80,000 visitors a month to the Capitol; 3 to 6 Concealed Weapons Permits a month are granted; and 7 to 10 off duty peace officers with weapons a month are permitted. "In order to provide the California Highway Patrol and the Sergeants-at-Arms the proper tools to deal with the safety of all Capitol employees, the law needs to be re-defined to remove ambiguities. "AB 2668 clarifies the Penal Code to more closely mirror the law relating to the possession of weapons in other state or local buildings, and will allow law enforcement to carry out their job more efficiently." ASSEMBLY FLOOR : AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Arambula, Bass, Beall, Bill Berryhill, Blakeslee, Block, Blumenfield, Bradford, Brownley, Buchanan, Caballero, Charles Calderon, Carter, AB 2668 Page 7 Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon, DeVore, Emmerson, Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani, Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gilmore, Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Knight, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Miller, Monning, Nava, Nestande, Niello, Nielsen, V. Manuel Perez, Portantino, Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Swanson, Torlakson, Torres, Torrico, Tran, Villines, Yamada, John A. Perez NO VOTE RECORDED: Tom Berryhill, Lieu, Norby, Audra Strickland, Vacancy RJG:do 8/3/10 Senate Floor Analyses SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE **** END ****