BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó




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                                        VETO 


          Bill No:  SB 271
          Author:   Gaines (R), et al.
          Amended:  9/1/15  
          Vote:     21  

           SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE:  6-0, 4/14/15
           AYES:  Hancock, Anderson, Leno, McGuire, Monning, Stone
           NO VOTE RECORDED:  Liu

          SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8

           SENATE FLOOR:  37-0, 5/7/15
           AYES:  Allen, Anderson, Bates, Beall, Berryhill, Block,  
            Cannella, De León, Gaines, Galgiani, Hall, Hancock, Hernandez,  
            Hertzberg, Hill, Hueso, Huff, Jackson, Lara, Leno, Leyva,  
            McGuire, Mendoza, Mitchell, Monning, Moorlach, Morrell,  
            Nguyen, Nielsen, Pan, Pavley, Roth, Runner, Stone, Vidak,  
            Wieckowski, Wolk
           NO VOTE RECORDED:  Fuller, Liu

           SENATE FLOOR:  40-0, 9/4/15
           AYES:  Allen, Anderson, Bates, Beall, Berryhill, Block,  
            Cannella, De León, Fuller, Gaines, Galgiani, Glazer, Hall,  
            Hancock, Hernandez, Hertzberg, Hill, Hueso, Huff, Jackson,  
            Lara, Leno, Leyva, Liu, McGuire, Mendoza, Mitchell, Monning,  
            Moorlach, Morrell, Nguyen, Nielsen, Pan, Pavley, Roth, Runner,  
            Stone, Vidak, Wieckowski, Wolk

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  80-0, 9/3/15 - See last page for vote

           SUBJECT:   Unmanned aircraft systems


          SOURCE:    Author
          








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          DIGEST:  This bill makes it a criminal infraction to knowingly  
          and intentionally operate an unmanned aircraft system (UAS) at  
          or less than 350 feet above a public school campus or to use a  
          UAS to capture images of a public school campus during school  
          hours without the written permission of the school principal. 

          ANALYSIS: 
          
          Existing federal law, the Aviation Administration Modernization  
          and Reform Act of 2012, requires the Secretary of Transportation  
          to develop a comprehensive plan to safely accelerate the  
          integration of civil unmanned aircraft systems into the national  
          airspace system. The plan is required to provide for safe  
          integration of civil unmanned aircraft systems into national  
          airspace as soon as practicable, not later than September 30,  
          2015. (112 P.L. 95, 332) 

          Existing state law: 

          1)Prohibits wiretapping or eavesdropping on confidential  
            communications. (Penal Code § 630) 

          2)Makes it a crime for a person, intentionally, and without  
            requisite consent, to eavesdrop on a confidential  
            communication by means of any electronic amplifying or  
            recording device. (Penal Code § 632.) 

          This bill: 

          1)Prohibits the knowing and intentional operation of a UAS at or  
            less than 350 feet above the grounds of a public school (K-12  
            school). 


          2)Prohibits the unauthorized use of a UAS to capture images of  
            K-12 school grounds during school hours. 


          3)Provides exceptions to these prohibitions for: 


             a)   The news media, i.e., newspaper, television, radio, news  








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               wire services, periodicals, and their Internet Web sites,  
               including individuals connected to or employed by the news  
               media; 


             b)   Law enforcement agencies; 


             c)   UAS users who have written permission from the school  
               principal, the principal's designee, or a higher authority;  
               and 


             d)   Entities authorized by the Federal Aviation  
               Administration (FAA) to use UAS, if the UAS is operated in  
               accordance with the terms and conditions of the  
               authorization. 


          4)Requires the news media to stop using a UAS over a K-12  
            school's grounds upon the request of a school principal on the  
            basis that the UAS would disrupt class or other school  
            activities.


          5)Authorizes the imposition of a warning for the first  
            violation, and a fine of $200 for each subsequent violation.


          6)Defines "school hours" to include any school session,  
            extracurricular activities, events sponsored by the school,  
            and one hour before and after any session, activity, or event.  



          7)Defines "unmanned aircraft" and "unmanned aircraft system"  
            consistent with FAA regulation. 


          Comments 

          This bill prohibits the use of drones on school grounds and  








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          capturing images of a school during school hours or school  
          activities without written permission of the school. The penalty  
          for a first offense is a warning. The penalty for a second or  
          subsequent offense is an infraction punishable by a fine of not  
          more than $200 plus approximately 300% penalty assessments so  
          the maximum fine would be approximately $800. The prohibition in  
          this bill applies during school hours as defined. Law  
          enforcement and news organizations are exempt from the  
          prohibition.

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


          According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, minor  
          nonreimbursable costs to cities and counties for enforcement,  
          offset to some extent by fine revenues.




          SUPPORT:   (10/27/15)


          None received


          OPPOSITION:   (10/27/15)




          California Public Defenders Association   


           


          GOVERNOR'S VETO MESSAGE:


               I am returning the following nine bills without my  








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               signature:

               Assembly Bill 144
               Assembly Bill 849
               Senate Bill 168
               Senate Bill 170
               Senate Bill 271
               Senate Bill 333
               Senate Bill 347
               Senate Bill 716
               Senate Bill 722

               Each of these bills creates a new crime - usually by  
               finding a novel way to characterize and criminalize conduct  
               that is already proscribed. This multiplication and  
               particularization of criminal behavior creates increasing  
               complexity without commensurate benefit.

               Over the last several decades, California's criminal code  
               has grown to more than 5,000 separate provisions, covering  
               almost every conceivable form of human misbehavior. During  
               the same period, our jail and prison populations have  
               exploded.

               Before we keep going down this road, I think we should  
               pause and reflect on how our system of criminal justice  
               could be made more human, more just and more  
               cost-effective.


          ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  80-0, 9/3/15
          AYES:  Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom,  
            Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang,  
            Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle,  
            Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina  
            Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez,  
            Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden,  
            Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder,  
            Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina,  
            Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen,  
            Patterson, Perea, Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez,  
            Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting,  








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            Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins


           Prepared by:Mary Kennedy / PUB. S. / 
          11/4/15 14:01:14


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