BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Senator Loni Hancock, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: SB 626 Hearing Date: May 12, 2015
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|Author: |McGuire |
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|Version: |April 16, 2015 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |No |
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|Consultant:|JRD |
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Subject: Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District: Police Force
HISTORY
Source: Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District
Prior Legislation:AB 2224 (Nation) - Ch.341, Statutes of 2002
Support: Sonoma County Sheriff Steve Freitas; Marin County
Sheriff Robert Doyle;
Novato Police Chief James Berg; San Rafael Police
Chief Diana Bishop;
Central Marin Police Authority Chief Todd Cusimano
Opposition:None known
PURPOSE
The purpose of this legislation is to authorize the Sonoma-Marin
Area Rail Transit District to establish the position of chief of
police.
Existing law establishes the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit
(SMART) District Act. (Public Utilities Code § 105000.)
Under existing law the government of the district shall be
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vested in a board of directors, which consists of 12 members.
(Public Utilities Code § 105020.)
Under existing law the board has the power to:
Own, operate, manage, and maintain a passenger rail
system within the territory of the district.
Determine the rail transit facilities, including
ancillary bicycle and pedestrian pathways, to be acquired
and constructed by the district, the manner of operation,
and the means to finance them.
Adopt an annual budget for the district that provides
for the compensation of its officers and employees.
Fix rates, rentals, charges, and classifications of rail
transit service operated by the district.
Adopt an administrative code that prescribes the powers
and duties of district officers, the method of appointment
of district employees, and the methods, procedures, and
systems for the operation and management of the district.
Adopt rules and regulations governing the use of rail
transit facilities owned or operated by the district.
Cause a post audit of the financial transactions and
records of the district to be made at least annually by a
certified public accountant.
Adopt rules and regulations providing for the
administration of employer-employee relations.
Do any and all things necessary to carry out the
purposes of this part.
(Public Utilities Code § 105032.)
Existing law lists are peace officers whose authority extends to
any place in the state for the purpose of performing their
primary duty or when making an arrest as to any public offense
with respect to which there is immediate danger to person or
property, or of the escape of the perpetrator of that offense,
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as specified. Those peace officers may carry firearms only if
authorized and under terms and conditions specified by their
employing agency. (Penal Code § 830.33.)
This legislation authorizes the SMART board to establish the
position of chief of police.
This legislation specifies that the police chief will be a duly
sworn police officer and must comply with the standards for
recruitment and training of peace officers established in
existing law.
This legislation specifies that, should the SMART board
determine that more than one officer is needed, it may contract
for those services with Marin and/or Sonoma counties.
RECEIVERSHIP/OVERCROWDING CRISIS AGGRAVATION
For the past eight years, this Committee has scrutinized
legislation referred to its jurisdiction for any potential
impact on prison overcrowding. Mindful of the United States
Supreme Court ruling and federal court orders relating to the
state's ability to provide a constitutional level of health care
to its inmate population and the related issue of prison
overcrowding, this Committee has applied its "ROCA" policy as a
content-neutral, provisional measure necessary to ensure that
the Legislature does not erode progress in reducing prison
overcrowding.
On February 10, 2014, the federal court ordered California to
reduce its in-state adult institution population to 137.5% of
design capacity by February 28, 2016, as follows:
143% of design bed capacity by June 30, 2014;
141.5% of design bed capacity by February 28, 2015; and,
137.5% of design bed capacity by February 28, 2016.
In February of this year the administration reported that as "of
February 11, 2015, 112,993 inmates were housed in the State's 34
adult institutions, which amounts to 136.6% of design bed
capacity, and 8,828 inmates were housed in out-of-state
facilities. This current population is now below the
court-ordered reduction to 137.5% of design bed capacity."(
Defendants' February 2015 Status Report In Response To February
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10, 2014 Order, 2:90-cv-00520 KJM DAD PC, 3-Judge Court, Coleman
v. Brown, Plata v. Brown (fn. omitted).
While significant gains have been made in reducing the prison
population, the state now must stabilize these advances and
demonstrate to the federal court that California has in place
the "durable solution" to prison overcrowding "consistently
demanded" by the court. (Opinion Re: Order Granting in Part and
Denying in Part Defendants' Request For Extension of December
31, 2013 Deadline, NO. 2:90-cv-0520 LKK DAD (PC), 3-Judge Court,
Coleman v. Brown, Plata v. Brown (2-10-14). The Committee's
consideration of bills that may impact the prison population
therefore will be informed by the following questions:
Whether a proposal erodes a measure which has contributed
to reducing the prison population;
Whether a proposal addresses a major area of public safety
or criminal activity for which there is no other
reasonable, appropriate remedy;
Whether a proposal addresses a crime which is directly
dangerous to the physical safety of others for which there
is no other reasonably appropriate sanction;
Whether a proposal corrects a constitutional problem or
legislative drafting error; and
Whether a proposal proposes penalties which are
proportionate, and cannot be achieved through any other
reasonably appropriate remedy.
COMMENTS
1. Need for This Legislation
According to the author:
Assembly Bill 2224 did not provide the SMART Board of
Directors the authority to create and maintain a chief
of police. Having a sworn chief of police would
provide SMART the framework to provide safety and
security for train riders, employees, property,
buildings and infrastructure. In addition to providing
support in protecting our passengers, having one
employee at SMART as a sworn officer, it would allow
for unfiltered information sharing between the
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thirteen local law enforcement agencies, state and
local jurisdictions and the SMART Chief of Police.
Currently law enforcement agencies are prohibited by
Government Code 6254 to release specific law
enforcement sensitive information to the general
public (SMART). Access to law enforcement information
between our safety partners will allow for the SMART
Chief of Police to make decisions weighing the needs
to our riders with accurate information pertaining to
safety and security concerns. With SMART being under
federal regulations, SMART reports to Department of
Homeland Security (Transportation Security
Administration) on transportation safety needs and
works in conjunction with the Federal Bureau of
Investigations on security and terrorism related
concerns.
This bill is needed because:
a. Train service is scheduled to start in 2016.
b. Without a sworn police chief, sharing sensitive law
enforcement intelligence and cases between SMART and
other law agencies will diminish if not cease. Without
this information, SMART becomes vulnerable and unable
to respond to sensitive information pertaining to
service disruption, acts of vandalism and violence.
SMART would be unable to legally receive information
on patients, injuries, suspects or other vital
information during an investigation.
c. Rail has been designated by federal law enforcement
agencies as potential targets because of its open
architecture and easy access points.
d. SMART will be connecting two major existing means
of transportation; the Sonoma County Airport and the
Golden Gate Ferry which is direct access for commuters
and tourists from San Francisco.
e. SMART Chief of Police needs timely, accurate,
unfiltered information during incidents along SMART's
right of way to make safety related decisions for its
passengers and employees.
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f. This proposal can have cost savings for SMART
because it allows them to better plan for their needs
without immediately relying on contracted services
from local law enforcement agencies.
2. Effect of This Legislation
There are approximately 250 entities statewide that are eligible
to receive state transit funding only four transit operators are
statutorily allowed to maintain their own police department.
All other transit service providers, including SMART, contract
with local law enforcement or private entities to provide their
security needs.
The author contends that, without a sworn police officer on
staff, law enforcement agencies will not share sensitive
information with SMART. Without this information, SMART becomes
vulnerable and unable to respond to sensitive information
pertaining to service disruption, acts of vandalism, and
violence. The author suggests that this bill solves this
problem because, with a sworn police chief, SMART will be able
to access sensitive information from other law enforcement
agencies.
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