BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 626
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Date of Hearing: July 15, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Brian Maienschein, Chair
SB
626 (McGuire) - As Amended April 16, 2015
SENATE VOTE: 36-0
SUBJECT: Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District: police force.
SUMMARY: Authorizes the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit
District's board of directors to establish the position of chief
of police and to contract for additional law enforcement
services. Specifically, this bill:
1)Authorizes the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District's
(SMART) board of directors (Board) to establish the position
of chief of police.
2)Requires the chief of police, appointed by the Board, to be a
duly sworn peace officer and to meet the current requirements
of the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training,
pursuant to existing law.
3)Authorizes the Board to contract for any additional law
enforcement services, if the Board determines that more than
one officer is needed, from law enforcement agencies located
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within Marin County or Sonoma County.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Establishes the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District Act
(Act), which governs the formation, board, powers and duties,
financing authority, and boundary changes for SMART.
2)Authorizes the Board to appoint, by ordinance, a general
manager, secretary, chief engineer, legal counsel, controller,
auditor, treasurer, and other officers, assistants, and
deputies, as the Board may deem necessary.
3)Grants powers to the Board to do the following:
a) Own, operate, manage, and maintain a passenger rail
system within SMART's territory;
b) Determine the rail transit facilities, including
ancillary bicycle and pedestrian pathways, for SMART to
acquire and construct, the manner of operation, and the
funding of the facilities;
c) Adopt an annual budget that provides for the
compensation of officers and employees;
d) Fix rates, rental, charges, and classifications of rail
transit service operated by SMART;
e) Adopt an administrative code that prescribes the powers
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and duties of district officers, the method of appointment
of district employees, and the methods, procedures, and
systems for the operation and management of SMART; and,
f) Adopt rules and regulations governing the use of
facilities owned or operated by SMART and for the
administration of employer-employee relations.
FISCAL EFFECT: None
COMMENTS:
1)Bill Summary. This bill authorizes SMART's Board to establish
the position of chief of police, and to appoint a chief of
police that must be a duly sworn peace officer and who meets
the current requirements of the Commission on Peace Officer
Standards and Training. Under this bill, if SMART's Board
determines that more than one officer is needed, the Board may
contract for any additional law enforcement services from law
enforcement agencies located within Marin or Sonoma County.
This bill is sponsored by SMART.
2)SMART. AB 2224 (Nation), Chapter 341, Statutes of 2002,
created SMART and established the powers, duties, formation,
governance, organization, maintenance, operation, and
potential dissolution process for the district. SMART was
established to provide an institutional structure for the
ownership and governance of a passenger rail system within
Sonoma and Marin Counties. The 12-member Board is comprised
of locally elected officials, as specified in the Act. SMART
will provide rail service along 70 miles of the historic
Northwestern Pacific Railroad alignment, serving 14 stations
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from Cloverdale in Sonoma County to the San Francisco-bound
ferry terminal in Larkspur, Marin County. SMART began
construction on the system in May 2012, and plans to begin
revenue service in 2016.
The Legislature has granted the Bay Area Rapid Transit
District, the North County Transit District, the San Diego
Municipal Transit System, and the Southern California Rapid
Transit District the ability to establish and maintain a
police force. However, the majority of transit providers
contract with local law enforcement or private entities for
security needs. Proponents of this bill argue that the
'hybrid approach', to have a chief of police, but contract out
for additional law enforcement services, will grant
flexibility for SMART's Board to determine what future needs
will be once revenue service begins.
3)Author's Statement. According to the author, "AB 2224 did not
provide SMART's Board 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, would allow
for unfiltered information sharing between the thirteen local
law enforcement agencies, state and local jurisdictions and
the SMART Chief of Police.
"Currently law enforcement agencies are prohibited by
Government Code [Section] 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
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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."
4)Arguments in Support. SMART argues that this bill "would
authorize SMART to create the position of chief of police.
This will allow SMART to equally participate in any public
safety or criminal activity involving SMART's right-of-way.
SB 626 reiterates SMART's intent to not create its own police
force by specifying that the District may contract with local
law enforcement agencies if additional law enforcement
services are needed. The creation of the chief of police
position also establishes the most cost effective means for
SMART to provide the most appropriate level of public safety
service."
5)Arguments in Opposition. Legal Services for Prisoners with
Children argue that this bill "is both unnecessary and
dangerous to public safety. By authorizing the creation of an
in-house police force, SB 626 would bring guns into the SMART
system. In general, criminal justice problems that arise on
public transportation involve fare evasion, petty theft, and
occasional auto theft - nonviolent crimes which clearly do not
require guns to address. Moreover, the recent history of BART
police in the Bay Area - including the 2009 killing of unarmed
Oscar Grant at Fruitvale State - suggests that staffing
transit security with officers who may carry guns adds to,
rather than diminishes, the dangers facing riders."
6)Double-Referral. This bill was heard by the Transportation
Committee on June 22, 2015, where it passed with a 16-0 vote.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
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Support
Sonoma-Marin Rail Transit District [SPONSOR]
Central Marin Police Authority
Marin County Sheriff's Office
Novato Police Department
San Rafael Police Department
Sheriff-Coroner Steve Freitas, Sonoma County
Opposition
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children
Analysis Prepared by:Misa Lennox / L. GOV. / (916)
319-3958
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