BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair 2015 - 2016 Regular Session SB 512 (Hill) - Criminal History Information: Health Services Personnel ----------------------------------------------------------------- | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Version: April 6, 2015 |Policy Vote: PUB. S. 4 - 2 | | | | |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Urgency: No |Mandate: Yes | | | | |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Hearing Date: May 11, 2015 |Consultant: Jolie Onodera | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File. Bill Summary: SB 512 would require local criminal justice agencies to furnish summary criminal history information to city, county, and city and county health services personnel who are engaged in efforts to identify and treat individuals who have alcohol abuse, substance abuse, or mental health issues, as specified. Fiscal Impact: Potentially significant state-reimbursable costs (General Fund) for local criminal justice agencies to provide local health services personnel with summary criminal history information. Local criminal justice agencies are authorized to charge a fee for the provision of criminal history information for purposes of employment (hiring), licensing, or certification purposes. However, to the extent agencies are not authorized to charge a fee for the provision of criminal history information for the purposes of "identification and treatment," local agencies could potentially submit claims for reimbursement of SB 512 (Hill) Page 1 of ? those costs (General Fund). Background: Existing law requires a local criminal justice agency to record and store specified arrest and identification data, also known as local summary criminal history information, regarding persons arrested by the agency. Existing law requires each local agency to furnish local summary criminal history information to specified entities, including, but not limited to, the courts of the state, peace officers, district attorneys, probation officers, and parole officers, when the information is needed in the course of their duties. (Penal Code (PC) § 13300(b).) Under existing law, a local agency may furnish local summary criminal history information, upon a showing of compelling need, to specified entities, including but not limited to a public utility, an animal control officer, and peace officers from other states and countries, provided that when the information is furnished to assist an agency, officer, or official, that a specified provision of the Labor Code apply. (PC § 13300(c).) Existing law provides that whenever local summary criminal history information furnished is to be used for employment, licensing, or certification purposes, the local agency shall charge the person or entity making the request a fee which it determines to be sufficient to reimburse the local agency for the cost of furnishing the information, provided that no fee shall be charged to any public law enforcement agency for local summary criminal history information furnished to assist it in employing, licensing, or certifying a person who is applying for employment with the agency as a peace officer or criminal investigator. Any state agency required to pay a fee to the local agency for information received under this section may charge the applicant a fee sufficient to reimburse the agency for the expense. (PC § 13300(f).) Proposed Law: This bill would require local criminal justice agencies to SB 512 (Hill) Page 2 of ? furnish summary criminal history information to city, county, and city and county health services personnel who are engaged in efforts to identify and treat individuals who have alcohol abuse, substance abuse, or mental health issues, for the purpose of providing assessment, treatment, rehabilitation, or other health care to those individuals. Prior Legislation: AB1960 (Perea) Chapter 730/2014 requires the Director of a state hospital or a clinician, as defined, to obtain the state summary criminal history information for a patient committed to the Department of State Hospitals, as specified. AB 1511 (Gaines) Chapter 449/2014 authorizes local criminal justice agencies to provide local summary criminal history information to an animal control officer for the purposes of performing his or her official duties. The bill permits a local agency to charge a reasonable fee sufficient to cover the costs of providing that information. AB 1136 (Huff) Chapter 222/2014 authorizes the Department of Social Services and county child welfare agencies to share information with respect to applicants, licensees, certificates, or individuals who have been the subject of any administrative action resulting in the denial, suspension, probation, or revocation of a license, permit, or certificate, or in the exclusion of a person from a facility who is subject to a background check. Staff Comments: By requiring local criminal justice agencies to furnish criminal history information to local agency health personnel, this bill creates a state-mandated local program. Although local criminal justice agencies are authorized to charge a fee for the provision of criminal history information for purposes of employment (hiring), licensing, or certification purposes, to the extent local criminal justice agencies are not authorized under existing law to charge a fee for the provision of criminal history information for the purposes of "identification and SB 512 (Hill) Page 3 of ? treatment" of individuals, the increased costs to local criminal justice agencies could potentially qualify as a reimbursable state mandate, requiring a subvention of funds from the State. The magnitude of costs would be dependent on the volume of requests from local health personnel statewide, which is unknown at this time, but could be significant. -- END --