BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1669
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 1669 (Chu)
As Amended July 2, 2003
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |77-1 |(May 29, 2003) |SENATE: |24-11|(September 4, |
| | | | | |2003) |
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Original Committee Reference: PUB. S.
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.
The Senate amendments make technical, nonsubstantive changes to
clarify this bill's effective date and to relocate the bill's
provisions to more appropriate locations in the respective code
sections.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires a "physician's and surgeon's certificate," issued by
the Medical Board of California's (MBC) 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.
AB 1669
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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 Peace Officer Standards
and Training (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.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill:
1)Required 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
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)Provided that the licensed physician and surgeon or licensed
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)Provided that the licensed physician and surgeon, or licensed
psychologist, 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)Provided 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
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Government Code Section 1031(f).
5)Added 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)Required 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.
7)Made certain other technical, non-substantive changes to these
provisions.
8)Provided that these provisions will become operative on
January 1, 2005.
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
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
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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: 0003368