BILL ANALYSIS
SB 5
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 5 (Maldonado)
As Amended April 28, 2009
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE :36-0
PUBLIC SAFETY 7-0 APPROPRIATIONS 15-0
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|Ayes:|Arambula, Hagman, |Ayes:|De Leon, Nielsen, |
| |Ammiano, Furutani, | |Ammiano, |
| |Gilmore, Hill, Ma | |Coto, Davis, Duvall, |
| | | |Fuentes, Hall, Harkey, |
| | | |Miller, John A. Perez, |
| | | |Skinner, Solorio, Audra |
| | | |Strickland, Torlakson |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Requires the Commission on Peace Officers Standards
and Training (POST), if requested, to conduct a feasibility
study regarding designating as peace officers members of a fire
department bomb squad unit certified by the Federal Bureau of
Investigation as bomb technicians, and authorizes POST to seek
reimbursement for the reasonable costs of the study from the
requesting agency.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Provides that any person or persons desiring peace officer
status, as defined, who, on
January 1, 1990, were not entitled to be designated as peace
officers shall request POST to undertake a feasibility study
regarding designating that person or persons as peace officer.
The request and study shall be undertaken in accordance with
regulations adopted by POST. POST may charge any person
requesting a study, a fee, not to exceed the actual cost of
undertaking the study.
2)States that any person or persons designated as peace
officers, as defined, and who desire a change in peace officer
designation or status, shall request POST to undertake a study
to assess the need for change in designation or status. The
SB 5
Page 2
request and study shall be undertaken in accordance with
regulations adopted by POST. POST may charge any person,
agency, or organization requesting a study, a fee, not to
exceed the actual cost of undertaking the study.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriation
Committee analysis, negligible costs incurred by POST would be
reimbursed by the agency requesting the feasibility study. The
cost of such a feasibility study would be in the $50,000 range.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "Unlike their law
enforcement counterparts, as well as fire department-based bomb
squad technicians in other states, in California fire
department-based bomb technicians are not classified as 'peace
officers.' As a result, these technicians are often placed at a
critical disadvantage when they are required to testify in court
regarding an emergency incident they may have diffused and their
credentials are questioned simply because of a lack of peace
officer classification.
"Also, unlike their law enforcement counterparts and fire
department-based technicians in other states, California's fire
department-based bomb squad technicians do not carry firearms
because of the aforementioned classification oversight. This
can pose a significant safety threat to squad members when they
are called on to respond to a high-risk incident that may
involve individual perpetrators who specifically are looking to
do these public safety personnel harm.
"This bill requests POST to conduct a feasibility study
regarding the classification of fire department-based certified
bomb technicians as peace officers under Penal Code Section
830.37."
Please see the policy committee for a full discussion of this
bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Gregory Pagan / PUB. S. / (916)
319-3744
FN: 0001751