BILL ANALYSIS
AB 611
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 611 (Fong)
As Amended April 15, 2009
Majority vote
GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION 16-1APPROPRIATIONS 13-3
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|Ayes:|Price, Chesbro, Cook, |Ayes:|De Leon, Nielsen, |
| |Coto, | |Ammiano, |
| |De Leon, Galgiani, Hall, | |Charles Calderon, Davis, |
| |Hill, Jeffries, Lieu, | |Fuentes, |
| |Nestande, Portantino, | |Hall, John A. Perez, |
| |Silva, Torres, Torrico, | |Price, Skinner, Solorio, |
| |Tran | |Audra Strickland, |
| | | |Torlakson |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Anderson |Nays:|Duvall, Harkey, Miller |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Requires the California Emergency Management Agency
(Cal EMA) to take measures to help people with limited English
proficiency (LEP) prepare for emergencies and understand
information conveyed during emergencies, such as utilizing
bilingual persons in public contact positions, and coordinating
with organizations that represent the needs of LEP persons in
order to disseminate guidance to local and regional governmental
entities. Specifically, this bill :
1)Provides that the Secretary of Cal EMA (Secretary) shall take
into consideration the multiple languages and the needs of
populations with LEP during emergency preparedness planning,
response, and recovery, including when developing committee
recommendations within the Standardized Emergency Management
System (SEMS) structure, drafting guidance for local and
regional governmental entities, and reviewing emergency plans
of state, regional, and local governmental entities
[Government Code Section 8588.16 (a) (1)].
2)Provides that the Secretary shall work in collaboration with
local ethnic community-based organizations and ethnic media
outlets in developing communication strategies so that alert
and warning information can be more broadly sent out to LEP
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communities [Government Code Section 8588.16 (b)].
3)Specifies that the Secretary shall utilize a registry of
qualified bilingual persons in public contract positions, as
defined, to assist with emergency preparedness, response, and
recovery, as deemed necessary [Government Code Section 8588.16
(c)].
4)Provides that the Secretary shall incorporate the needs of
populations with LEP in all emergency preparedness, response,
and recovery training and exercises, including the exercises
identified in the statewide exercise strategy and other
exercises related to crisis communications [Government Code
Section 8588.16 (d)].
5)Makes legislative findings and declarations.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires, under the California Emergency Services Act, Cal EMA
to coordinate the emergency services of all state agencies in
connection with emergencies; and, to establish a standardized
emergency management system for use by all emergency response
agencies. Cal EMA is responsible for assuring the state's
readiness to respond to and recover from the effects of
emergencies that threaten lives, property, and the
environment. Cal EMA assists local governments and state
agencies in developing their emergency preparedness, response,
recovery, and mitigation plans, in accordance with the State
Emergency Plan.
2)Provides that the Secretary is responsible for coordinating
the emergency activities of all state agencies in connection
with a state emergency.
3)Requires the Secretary to appoint representatives of the
disabled community to serve on SEMS committees. Requires the
Secretary to ensure that all SEMS committee recommendations
regarding preparedness, planning, and procedures relating to
emergencies include the needs of people with disabilities.
4)Establishes the Emergency Council to act as an advisory body
to the Governor in times of emergency and on matters of
emergency preparedness. Requires the Emergency Council to
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publish a biennial report on the state of emergency
preparedness for catastrophic disasters. Requires the report
to include information from the after action analysis of
disasters in the preceding two years, research directed by the
Emergency Council, and surveys of local and state emergency
response agencies. Requires the report to also include a
summary of strategic actions necessary to address identified
gaps in emergency preparedness and an evaluation of previous
efforts to close gaps identified in previous reports, audits,
and independent analyses.
5)Requires Cal EMA to develop model guidelines for local
government agencies and community-based organizations planning
to develop a disaster registry program. Specifies that
adoption of the model guidelines is voluntary. Requires the
guidelines to:
a) Specify the intent of the registry is to encourage that
those registered will receive a phone call or visit from
neighborhood disaster volunteers as soon as possible after
the disaster;
b) Establish a list of person eligible for the registry,
including disabled person (including persons with
developmental disabilities), the elderly, those for whom
English is not a first language, long-term health care
facilities, residential community care facilities, and
residential care facilities for the elderly;
c) Contain a statement specifying that the party
responsible for responding to those registered will not be
held liable for not responding; and,
d) Contain a plan for ensuring that hard data is available
if computers shut down.
6)Defines a "bilingual person" as a person who is proficient in
both the English language and the foreign language to be used.
Defines a "sufficient number of qualified bilingual persons in
public contact positions" as the number required to provide
the same level of services to non-English-speaking persons as
is available to English-speaking persons seeking services.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
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Committee, costs associated with this legislation would be minor
and absorbable within existing resources.
COMMENTS : According to the author, California has long been
prone to disasters, and emergency preparedness planning at the
state and local levels is crucial for ensuring our state is
equipped to recover from any disaster situation. With six
million LEP individuals in California, and 40% of Asian, Pacific
Islander, and Latino communities having limited English
proficiency, the state's emergency preparedness system must
account for the needs of our significant LEP population.
In any emergency situation, communication with the public is
crucial for sending out instructions and procedures, thereby
saving lives and minimizing injuries and damage.
Disaster preparedness report . The Tomas Rivera Policy Institute
and Asian Pacific American Legal Center worked together to
release a report in June 2008, that examines how communities
with large populations with LEP immigrants would fare in the
face of a natural disaster striking Southern California. After
conducting interviews with emergency service personnel, both in
local governments and in non-profit organizations, and holding
focus groups with LEP community members in their languages, they
came away with the several findings:
1)Both county and city government agencies and nonprofit relief
organizations, for the most part, are not providing culturally
sensitive disaster preparedness education in languages that
reflect the demographics of the populations being served.
2)Currently, there are no tools in place to provide immediate
translation of all emergency information in a rapid manner to
LEP populations in Southern California.
3)First responders rely on bilingual family members, often
children, to provide translation for officers, deputies, fire
personnel, etc.
4)Latino, Chinese, and Vietnamese focus group participants named
their respective native language radio stations as the first
place they turn to for emergency information, highlighting the
importance of these ethnic media outlets as a tool for
communication.
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5)All first response personnel interviewed stated that
immigration status is not considered when providing disaster
services, but none of the agencies interviewed had in place
mechanisms by which to reassure the public that immigration
status is not asked during disaster response.
Integrating Emergency Services . Little Hoover Commission issued
a report in 2006, titled "Preparing for Catastrophic Events"
that charged California for not being prepared to respond to a
catastrophic emergency. Since then, the Governor's Office of
Emergency Services has worked with the Office of Homeland
Security and, together, they have taken steps to improve the
performance in the area of emergency preparedness through their
Golden Guardian exercises. In 2007, legislation required the
Office of Emergency Services to merge with the Office of
Homeland Security to become the Cal EMA [AB 38 (Nava), Chapter
372, Statutes of 2008].
Even with the recent improvements, the Little Hoover Commission
2006 report indicates that our state and local agencies must be
prepared to accommodate communication for large numbers of LEP
individuals. This bill seeks to build on our existing emergency
preparedness system to respond to this particular need.
Analysis Prepared by : Rod Brewer / G. O. / (916) 319-2531 FN:
0000588