BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 1025
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Date of Hearing: June 16, 2014
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION
Bonnie Lowenthal, Chair
SB 1025 (Torres) - As Amended: April 10, 2014
SENATE VOTE : 36-0
SUBJECT : Department of the California Highway Patrol:
Department of Human Resources
SUMMARY : Changes the title of California Highway Patrol (CHP)
communications operators to public safety dispatchers and public
safety operators.
EXISTING LAW : Permits the State Department of Human Resources
to consider the total compensation for communications operators
in comparable positions in the police departments for the cities
of Los Angeles, Oakland, San Diego, and San Jose, and the City
and County of San Francisco.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : The initial statute that this bill amends was enacted
in 2001. Initially, in 1999, AB 865 (Honda) proposed that the
then-Department of Personnel (DPA) should review the
compensation of communications officers in major cities within
the state when determining the compensation for CHP
communications officers. The intent behind AB 865 was to ensure
CHP was compensating communications officers comparably to other
law enforcement employers in order to curtail turnover in a
period when CHP was experiencing increasing call volumes from
cellular phone 911 calls. AB 865 was ultimately vetoed due to
the concerns associated with potential violations of the Ralph
C. Dills Act. AB 1038 (Hertzberg) Chapter 786, Statutes of
2001, was a similar bill, however addressed the Governor's
concerns by including permissive language to authorize DPA to
"consider" the compensation of communications officers in major
California cities when determining compensation for CHP's
communications officers.
CHP employs over 800 public safety operators and dispatchers.
These safety operators and dispatchers dispatch CHP officers
throughout the state and also answer several million 911 calls
placed from cellular phones annually. Currently, CHP is
SB 1025
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experiencing a staff shortage with a 20% vacancy rate in CHP
public safety dispatchers and operators. Additionally, this
specific group has not received a compensation increase in eight
years. The provisions in this particular section of statute
provide the State Department of Human Resources with the ability
to review similar staff positions in comparable cities in order
to determine a competitive salary for CHP public safety
dispatchers and operators when necessary.
The author notes that this bill will bring existing law up to
date with the employee title currently used for CHP dispatchers
and operators. While their working title changed from
communications operator over a decade ago as the result of
collective bargaining agreements, legislation has never updated
references in state statute. CHP began using "public safety
dispatchers" and "public safety operators" in 2009.
Writing in support of this bill, the California Statewide Law
Enforcement Association notes, previous collective bargaining
agreements changed CHP dispatcher's titles to "public safety
dispatchers and public safety operators." Thus, this bill will
bring the state's statutory description of these specific CHP
employees in line with their current working titles.
Previous legislation :
AB 1038 (Hertzberg), Chapter 786, Statutes of 2001, authorizes
DPA, when determining compensation for communications operators
with CHP, to consider the total compensation for communications
operators in comparable positions in the police departments in
the Cities of Los Angeles, Oakland, San Diego, and San Jose, and
the City and County of San Francisco. Specifies, the intent
provisions contained in the bill do not is not in violation of
the Ralph C. Dills Act.
AB 865 (Honda) of 1999, similar legislation, authorizes DPA,
when determining compensation for communications operators with
CHP, to consider the total compensation for communications
operators in comparable positions in the police departments in
the Cities of Los Angeles, Oakland, San Diego, and San Jose, and
the City and County of San Francisco. That bill was vetoed by
Governor Wilson.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
SB 1025
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Support
California Statewide Law Enforcement Association (sponsor)
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Manny Leon / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093