BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                            



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                                       CONSENT


          Bill No:  SB 1417
          Author:   Jackson (D), et al.
          Amended:  As introduced
          Vote:     21

           
           SENATE GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION COMMITTEE  : 10-0, 4/22/14
          AYES:  Correa, Berryhill, Cannella, De León, Galgiani,  
            Hernandez, Lieu, Padilla, Torres, Vidak

           SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE  :  Senate Rule 28.8


           SUBJECT  :    Emergency Management Assistance Compact

           SOURCE  :     Author


           DIGEST  :    This bill extends the date on which the state's  
          ratification and approval of the Emergency Management Assistance  
          Compact (EMAC) becomes inoperative from March 1, 2015 to March  
          1, 2018, and also extends the repeal date thereof from January  
          1, 2016 to January 1, 2019.  

           ANALYSIS  :    

          Existing law:

          1.Ratifies, approves, and sets forth the provisions of EMAC, an  
            interstate agreement that provides for mutual assistance  
            between states responding to emergencies and disasters. The  
            compact becomes inoperative on March 1, 2015, and as of  
            January 1, 2016, is repealed.
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          2.Provides that the state shall indemnify and make whole any  
            officer or employee resident of California, or his/her heirs,  
            injured or killed in another state when rendering aid pursuant  
            to EMAC, as if the act(s) occurred in California, less any  
            recovery obtained under the tort laws of the host state.

          3.Provides that local government or special district personnel  
            who are officially deployed under the provisions of EMAC  
            pursuant to an assignment of the Governor's Office of  
            Emergency Services shall be defended by the Attorney General  
            or other legal counsel provided by the state, and shall be  
            indemnified subject to the same conditions and limitations  
            applicable to state employees.

          4.Specifies that the State of California shall not deploy any  
            personnel "to render aid" to a party state for any conditions  
            resulting from a "labor controversy," nor shall the state  
            receive aid from other states for conditions resulting from a  
            labor controversy. 

          This bill extends the date on which the state's ratification and  
          approval of EMAC becomes inoperative from March 1, 2015 to March  
          1, 2018, and also extends the repeal date thereof from January  
          1, 2016 to January 1, 2019.  

           Background
          
           In the 1970s, California played a major role in creating the  
          Interstate Civil Defense and Disaster Compact (ICDDC), which was  
          eventually adopted by nearly all other states and ratified by  
          Congress.  The ICDDC enabled states to share emergency  
          management resources during times of disaster and encouraged the  
          coordination of emergency preparedness activities between  
          states. 

          In 1992, a group of southern states initiated a project to  
          update the ICDDC.  That project resulted in EMAC, which was  
          ratified by Congress in 1996 and has now been adopted by all 50  
          states, including California.  Upon adoption of EMAC, many  
          states rescinded the older ICDDC, but California did not rescind  
          it.

          California enacted AB 823 (Nava, Chapter 233, Statutes of 2005)  

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          to adopt EMAC which became effective September 2005.  In 2007,  
          AB 1564 (Nava, Chapter 414) extended the EMAC sunset date for a  
          period of five years.  In 2011, AB 1420 (Assembly Governmental  
          Organization Committee, Chapter 413) extended the EMAC sunset  
          date until January 1, 2016.  This bill proposes to further  
          extend the EMAC sunset by an additional three years.   
          Specifically, this bill stipulates that the EMAC will cease to  
          be operative on March 1, 2018, and will sunset on January 1,  
          2019. 
           
           EMAC allows states impacted by a disaster to request and receive  
          assistance from other member states quickly and efficiently.   
          Each year, California sends resources, such as firefighting  
          equipment, rescue aircraft, search teams, emergency managers,  
          and other specialized personnel and equipment, to assist other  
          states during disasters.  Similarly, California has received  
          emergency assistance from other states over the years when  
          facing disasters such as earthquakes and firestorms.  The EMAC  
          mutual aid system has worked successfully and has benefitted  
          both California and other states in numerous situations as  
          outlined below.

          In 2005, California sent a wide assortment of emergency  
          personnel to New Orleans and Biloxi, Mississippi to assist with  
          response and recovery from Hurricane Katrina. The resources sent  
          included law enforcement officers from the California Highway  
          Patrol, personnel to help staff the State Operations Centers,  
          fire personnel and equipment, various aircraft, care and shelter  
          workers, building inspectors, California National Guard troops,  
          and various medical teams. 

          During 2007 and 2008, California sent Swift Water Rescue Teams  
          and emergency management personnel to Gulf States affected by  
          hurricanes Rita, Ike, and Gustav.
               
          When southern California experienced catastrophic wild fires in  
          2007, the state requested EMAC assistance and a total of  
          forty-three (43) states sent aid to California.  Over 27,000  
          out-of-state firefighters were deployed to California to help  
          with firefighting and fire prevention efforts.  This is the  
          largest and most significant instance of California receiving  
          aid through EMAC.  Without EMAC aid, California would not have  
          been able to fight the large firestorm effectively.  In 2013,  
          California also received firefighting resources and emergency  

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          assistance from numerous states during the Rim Fire near  
          Yosemite.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  Yes    
          Local:  No

           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  5/5/14)

          Governor's Office of Emergency Services
          California Professional Firefighters
          California State Sheriffs' Association

           ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT  :    The author's office notes that if  
          California's EMAC provision is allowed to sunset, no established  
          process beyond ad hoc state-to-state agreements will be in place  
          to allow California to receive or provide assistance should  
          another large scale event occur, and will place California in  
          the unfortunate position of being the only state in the country  
          without EMAC.  The author's office emphasizes that continuation  
          of EMAC will allow uninterrupted sharing of resources between  
          California and the rest of the country.  


          MW:nl  4/25/14   Senate Floor Analyses 

                           SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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