BILL ANALYSIS �
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Kevin de Le�n, Chair
AB 238 (Gomez) - Protective orders: entry into statewide
database.
Amended: May 29, 2013 Policy Vote: Public Safety 7-0
Urgency: No Mandate: Yes
Hearing Date: June 24, 2013
Consultant: Jolie Onodera
This bill does not meet the criteria for referral to the
Suspense File.
Bill Summary: AB 238 would provide that when an emergency
protective order (EPO) is requested by a law enforcement
officer, the law enforcement officer shall have the order
entered into the computer database system for protective and
restraining orders maintained by the Department of Justice
(DOJ). This bill repeals the current requirement that the
officer requesting the EPO carry copies of the order while on
duty.
Fiscal Impact: Annual state-reimbursable costs likely less than
$50,000 (General Fund). Los Angeles County issued approximately
5,500 EPOs in 2012. Assuming three to five minutes per EPO
entry, estimated statewide costs to enter 16,500 EPOs would be
in the range of $22,000 to $37,000 (General Fund).
Background: Existing law authorizes a law enforcement officer to
seek an emergency protective order from a court, 24 hours a day,
seven days a week, if any person or child is in immediate and
present danger of domestic violence or abuse, or in imminent
danger of abduction by a parent or relative, or stalking. The
EPO may only be issued if the judicial officer makes specified
findings. An EPO expires in either five court days or seven
calendar days after issuance, whichever is shorter.
Whenever a protective order or restraining order is issued,
specified information about the order is to be entered into the
DOJ California Restraining and Protective Order System (CARPOS)
within one business day by any law enforcement officer who
served the protective order or by the clerk of the court if
someone other than an officer served the order. Under current
AB 238 (Gomez)
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law, however, EPOs are not required to be entered into the
CARPOS. For EPOs, the law enforcement officer who requests an
EPO is required to serve the EPO on the restrained party,
provide a copy to the protected party, file a copy with the
court as soon as practicable after issuance, and carry a copy of
the order while on duty.
To provide better protection to victims, this bill deletes the
requirement for an officer to carry a copy of the EPO while on
duty and instead have the EPO entered into the CARPOS, thereby
allowing the information to be available to all officers.
Proposed Law: This bill would provide, for both civil and
criminal EPOs, that a law enforcement officer who requests an
EPO shall, in addition to the requirements under existing law,
have the order entered into the computer database system for
protective and restraining orders maintained by the DOJ. In
addition, this bill would repeal the existing requirement that
the officer requesting the EPO carry copies of the order while
on duty.
Staff Comments: By imposing additional duties on local law
enforcement agencies, this bill imposes a state-mandated local
program, with any additional costs to local agencies potentially
subject to reimbursement by the state. It is estimated the
additional time to enter EPOs into the DOJ's CARPOS would be
minimal, potentially three to five minutes per order. There were
approximately 5,500 EPOs issued in Los Angeles County in 2012.
Assuming Los Angeles County represents about one third of the
statewide caseload, it is estimated the annual cost to enter
16,500 EPOs issued statewide would cost in the range of $22,000
to $37,000 (General Fund), for local law enforcement staff to
enter the information into CARPOS.