BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1669
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 1669 (Chu)
As Amended May 13, 2003
Majority vote
PUBLIC SAFETY 7-0 BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONS
11-0
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|Ayes:|Leno, La Suer, Berm?dez, |Ayes:|Correa, Shirley Horton, |
| |Goldberg, Koretz, | |Aghazarian, Berm?dez, |
| |Longville, Spitzer | |Corbett, Koretz, Leno, |
| | | |Maldonado, Vargas, |
| | | |Wyland, Yee |
| | | | |
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APPROPRIATIONS 22-1
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|Ayes:|Steinberg, Bates, Berg, |
| |Calderon, Lowenthal, |
| |Laird, Daucher, Diaz, |
| |Firebaugh, Goldberg, |
| |Leno, Maldonado, Nation, |
| |Negrete McLeod, Nu?ez, |
| |Pavley, Ridley-Thomas, |
| |Samuelian, Simitian, |
| |Wiggins, Yee, Chu |
| | |
|-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Haynes |
| | |
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SUMMARY : Revises the qualifications for physicians and
psychologists who evaluate a peace officer's mental and
emotional fitness for duty, and provides that only physicians
and psychologists meeting those qualifications can perform these
evaluations. Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires the emotional and mental condition of a peace officer
to be evaluated by either of the following:
a) A licensed physician and surgeon who is board-certified
AB 1669
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in psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and
Neurology; or,
b) A licensed psychologist who has a doctoral degree in
psychology and at least five years of post-graduate
experience in the diagnosis and treatment of emotional
disorders, with at least three of these years accrued
post-doctorate.
2)Provides that the physician and surgeon or psychologist shall
also have met any applicable education and training procedures
set forth by the California Commission on Peace Officer
Standards and Training (POST) designed for the conduct of
pre-employment screening of peace officers.
3)Provides that the holder of a physician's and surgeon's
certificate, or licensee, must meet the above requirements
prior to performing either an evaluation of a peace officer
applicant's emotional and mental condition or an evaluation of
a peace officer's fitness for duty.
4)Provides that the Medical Board of California (MBC), Division
of Licensing, may suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew the
license of a physician and surgeon who is a board-certified
psychiatrist if that physician and surgeon performs
evaluations of a peace officer applicant's emotional and
mental condition, or performs an evaluation of a peace
officer's fitness for duty, without meeting the requirements
for conducting an emotional and mental evaluation set forth in
Government Code Section 1031(f).
5)Adds performing evaluations of a peace officer applicant's
emotional and mental condition or performing an evaluation of
a peace officer's fitness for duty without meeting the above
requirements to the list of unprofessional conduct that
authorizes the Board of Psychology to refuse to issue, to
issue with terms and conditions, or to suspend or revoke the
registration or license of a psychologist.
6)Requires each department or agency that employs peace officers
to utilize a person meeting the above requirements for any
mental and emotional evaluation conducted in the course of the
department or agency's screening of peace officer recruits or
the evaluation of peace officers to determine their fitness
for duty.
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7)Makes certain other technical, non-substantive changes to
these provisions.
8)Provides that these provisions will become operative on
January 1, 2005.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires a "physician's and surgeon's certificate", issued by
MBC's Division of Licensing, to practice medicine. Makes it a
misdemeanor to practice medicine without such a license or
certificate.
2)Requires a license issued by MBC's Division of Allied Health
Professions to practice psychology. Provides that the
division shall issue licenses upon the recommendation and at
the direction of the Board of Psychology.
3)Allows the Board of Psychology to order the denial of an
application for licensure, to issue a license with terms and
conditions, and to suspend or revoke the registration or
license of a psychologist for unprofessional conduct, as
specified.
4)Requires each class of public officers or employees declared
by law to be peace officers to meet certain minimum
requirements, as specified.
5)States that the purpose of establishing standards for peace
officer training is to raise the level of competence of local
law enforcement officers. Requires POST to establish, and
amend from time to time, minimum standards for relating to
physical, mental and moral fitness for law enforcement
officers. Requires POST to conduct research concerning
job-related educational standards and job-related selection
standards including vision, hearing, physical ability, and
emotional stability.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee analysis, negligible nonreimbursable local costs for
prosecuting violations of this section.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "This bill is necessary to
ensure that mental health professionals who are performing
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fitness for duty evaluations and pre-employment screening for
peace officers are qualified to do so. This bill allows a peace
officer to feel certain that the professional who is evaluating
his or her mental and emotional conditions as it relates to a
peace officer's capacity to do his or her job has the special
expertise necessary to make that determination. Additionally,
this bill provides the general public with the assurance that
the peace officers who are patrolling their neighborhoods have
been properly screened for mental and emotional conditions that
would make them unfit for duty as officers."
Please see the policy committee analysis for full discussion of
this bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Danielle Lee / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744
FN: 0001137