BILL ANALYSIS SB 1296 Page 1 SENATE THIRD READING SB 1296 (Correa) As Amended April 7, 2010 Majority vote SENATE VOTE :35-0 PUBLIC SAFETY 6-0 APPROPRIATIONS 17-0 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Ayes:|Ammiano, Hagman, Beall, |Ayes:|Fuentes, Conway, | | |Gilmore, Hill, Portantino | |Bradford, | | | | |Huffman, Coto, Davis, De | | | | |Leon, Gatto, Hall, | | | | |Harkey, Miller, Nielsen, | | | | |Norby, Skinner, Solorio, | | | | |Torlakson, Torrico | |-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------| | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY : Provides for education of law enforcement in the areas of traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Specifically, this bill : 1)Requires the Commission on Peace Officers Standards and Training (POST) to meet with the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) and community, local, or other state organizations and agencies that have expertise in the area of TBI and PTSD in order to assess the training needed by peace officers, who are first responders in emergency situations, on the topic of returning veterans or other persons suffering from TBI or PTSD. 2)States that if POST determines that there is an unfulfilled need for training on TBI and PTSD, POST shall determine the training format that is both fiscally responsible and meets the training needs of the greatest number of officers. 3)States that if POST determines that there is an unfulfilled need for training on TBI and PTSD, POST, upon the next regularly scheduled review of a training module relating to persons with disabilities, shall create and make available on DVD and may distribute electronically, or provide by means of another form or method of training, a course on how to SB 1296 Page 2 recognize and interact with returning veterans or other persons suffering from TBI or PTSD. This course shall be designed for, and made available to, peace officers who are first responders to emergency situations. 4)Requires the training course to be developed by POST in consultation with DVA and appropriate community, local, or other state organizations and agencies that have expertise in the area of TBI and PTSD. POST would be required to make the course available to law enforcement agencies in California. 5)Requires POST to distribute, as necessary, a training bulletin via the Internet to law enforcement agencies participating in POST's program on the topic of TBI and PTSD. 6)Specifies that POST shall report to the Legislature, no later than June 30, 2012, on the extent to which peace officers are receiving adequate training in how to interact with persons suffering from TBI or PTSD. 7)Provides that its requirement for submitting a report is inoperative on June 30, 2016, as specified. 8)Requires that the report is to be submitted as a printed copy to both the Legislative Counsel and the Secretary of the Senate, and as an electronic copy to the Chief Clerk of the Assembly, and made available to the public in compliance with the Government Code, as specified. EXISTING LAW : 1)States that by July 1, 2006, POST shall establish and keep updated a continuing education classroom training course relating to law enforcement interaction with mentally disabled persons. The training course shall be developed by POST in consultation with appropriate community, local, and state organizations and agencies that have expertise in the area of mental illness and developmental disability, and with appropriate consumer and family advocate groups. In developing the course, POST shall also examine existing courses certified by POST that relate to mentally disabled persons. POST shall make the course available to law enforcement agencies in California. SB 1296 Page 3 2)Provides the course shall consist of classroom instruction and shall utilize interactive training methods to ensure that the training is as realistic as possible. The course shall include, at a minimum, core instruction in all of the following: a) The cause and nature of mental illnesses and developmental disabilities; b) How to identify indicators of mental disability and how to respond appropriately in a variety of common situations; c) Conflict resolution and de-escalation techniques for potentially dangerous situations involving mentally disabled persons; d) Appropriate language usage when interacting with mentally disabled persons; e) Alternatives to lethal force when interacting with potentially dangerous mentally disabled persons; f) Community and state resources available to serve mentally disabled persons and how these resources can be best utilized by law enforcement to benefit the mentally disabled community; and, g) The fact that a crime committed in whole or in part because of an actual or perceived disability of the victim is a specified hate crime. 3)States POST shall submit a report to the Legislature by October 1, 2004, that shall include all of the following: a) A description of the process by which the course was established, including a list of the agencies and groups that were consulted; b) Information on the number of law enforcement agencies that utilized, and the number of officers that attended, the course or other courses certified by POST relating to mentally disabled persons from July 1, 2001, to July 1, 2003, inclusive; SB 1296 Page 4 c) Information on the number of law enforcement agencies that utilized, and the number of officers that attended, courses certified by POST relating to mentally disabled persons from July 1, 2000, to July 1, 2001, inclusive; and, d) An analysis of the Police Crisis Intervention Training Program used by the San Francisco and San Jose Police Departments, to assess the training used in these programs and compare it with existing courses offered by POST in order to evaluate the adequacy of mental disability training available to local law enforcement officers. 4)States the Legislature encourages law enforcement agencies to include the course created in this section, and any other course certified by the commission relating to mentally disabled persons, as part of their advanced officer training program. 5)States legislative intent to reevaluate, on the basis of its review of the report, the extent to which law enforcement officers are receiving adequate training in how to interact with mentally disabled persons. FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee: 1)One-time special fund costs, in the range of $150,000, should POST opt to develop the DVD training module. POST indicates these costs would be absorbable as the proposed review and module are consistent with POST's existing mission (Peace Officer Training Fund). 2)Minor absorbable special fund costs to POST for meeting with outside parties, developing and disseminating a training bulletin, and reporting to the Legislature. COMMENTS : According to the author, "TBI and PTSD have been identified as the 'signature injuries' and 'silent epidemics' affecting an increasing number of veterans returning from recent military conflicts. It has been estimated that 300,000 Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans are afflicted with PTSD. Persons with TBI are often referred to as the 'walking wounded.' Their injuries, mostly unnoticeable at first sight, pose certain challenges to those who come in contact with them. TBI and PTSD SB 1296 Page 5 symptoms can sometimes include behaviors of anger, hostility, and aggression. "SB 1296 will provide the necessary tools for peace officers who are first responders to emergency situations to recognize and interact with returning veterans or other persons suffering from TBI and PTSD." Please see the policy committee for a full discussion of this bill. Analysis Prepared by : Gabriel Caswell / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744 FN: 0005968