BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1221|
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CONSENT
Bill No: SB 1221
Author: Hertzberg (D)
Amended: 4/26/16
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE: 6-0, 4/12/16
AYES: Hancock, Glazer, Leno, Liu, Monning, Stone
NO VOTE RECORDED: Anderson
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT: Firefighters: interaction with mentally disabled
persons
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill makes the POST training course relating to
interactions with the mentally disabled available to the State
Fire Marshall.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law requires the Commission on Peace Officer Standards
and Training (POST) "to establish and keep updated a continuing
education classroom training course relating to law enforcement
interaction with the mentally disabled" and to make the course
available to law enforcement agencies in California. (Penal Code
§13515.25.)
This bill:
1)Authorizes POST to make available this educational training to
the State Fire Marshall, who may revise the course as
appropriate to the firefighter training environment.
SB 1221
Page 2
2)Makes additional purely technical amendments to this section.
Background
This legislation extends POST's current training program to
prepare law enforcement officers for interactions with both
developmentally and mentally disabled persons to firefighters.
The POST training for law enforcement website highlights some
examples of such disabilities and its common occurrences that
the training would target: one out of 17 adults suffer from
schizophrenia, bi-polar disorder or major depression, 46% of the
homeless have a mental illness and/or substance abuse disorder,
and one out of 68 children is diagnosed with Autism Spectrum
Disorder. (www.post.ca.gov/did-you-know-mental-health.aspx)
Currently, law enforcement training provides a minimum of 664
training hours in its Regular Basic Course, which is divided
into 42 individual law enforcement topics called Learning
Domains (LD). LD37 focuses on People with Disabilities and
requires a minimum of 15 hours of instruction, learning
activities, a written exam and resolving a "high stakes"
scenario involving a person with a mental or developmental
disability. The training is designed to:
Introduce the laws that protect people with disabilities,
enhance the recognition of behaviors that are indicative of
disability or mental illness, provide de-escalation skills,
teach situation-appropriate responses and referrals to the
individual and community, and reduce the stigma associated
with mental illness and disabilities.
(www.post.ca.gov/mental-health-training-in-the-regualr-basic-co
urse.aspx)
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified4/25/16)
SB 1221
Page 3
Association of Regional Center Agencies
California Fire Chiefs Association
California Public Defenders Association
California State Council on Development Disabilities
California State Sheriffs' Association
Disability Rights California
Fire Districts Association of California
League of California Cities
National Association of Social Workers - California Chapter
Office of the Sheriff County of Los Angeles
OPPOSITION: (Verified4/25/16)
None received
Prepared by:Molly Lao / PUB. S. /
4/27/16 15:57:27
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