Status of Public Safety-Related Bills
AB 47 (Gatto D) Emergency telephone system: abuse.
Summary: Would make any person who calls the 911 telephone system to dispatch a police, sheriff, fire department, or emergency medical service personnel response to a residence or place of business where there is no emergency, with the intent to annoy or harass another person, and police, sheriff, fire department, or emergency medical service personnel are dispatched as a result of the call, guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not exceeding $2,000, by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year, or by both that fine and imprisonment. This bill contains other related provisions and other existing laws.
Status: 4/22/2013-Re-referred to Committee on Appropriations.
AB 162 (Holden D) Wireless telecommunications facilities.
Summary: Would prohibit a local government from denying an eligible facilities request, as defined, for a modification of an existing wireless telecommunications facility or structure that does not substantially change the physical dimensions of the wireless telecommunications facility or structure, as specified. The bill would require a local government to act on an eligible facilities request within 90 days of receipt of a request, as specified. By adding to the duties of a local government, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill contains other related provisions and other existing laws.
Status: 4/24/2013-Re-referred to Committee on Local Government.
AB 218 (Dickinson D) Employment applications: criminal history.
Summary: Would prohibit a state or local agency from asking an applicant to disclose information regarding a criminal conviction, except as specified, until the agency has determined the applicant meets the minimum employment qualifications for the position. This bill would include specified findings and declarations of the Legislature in support of this policy. This bill contains other related provisions and other existing laws.
Status: 4/11/2013-Re-referred to Committee on Appropriations.
AB 300 (Perea D) Telecommunications: prepaid mobile telephony services: state surcharge and fees: local charges collection.
Summary: The existing Emergency Telephone Users Surcharge Act generally imposes a surcharge on amounts paid by every person in the state for intrastate telephone service to provide revenues sufficient to fund “911” emergency telephone system costs. Amounts are determined annually by the Department of Technology, and upon collection are paid to the State Board of Equalization on a monthly basis by the telephone service supplier and are deposited into the State Treasury to the credit of the State Emergency Telephone Number Account in the General Fund, to be expended for limited purposes, including to pay the Department of General Services for its costs in administration of the “911” emergency telephone number system. This bill would enact the Prepaid Mobile Telephony Service Surcharge and Collection Act. The bill would establish a prepaid MTS surcharge, as defined, based upon a percentage of the sales price of each retail transaction that occurs in this state for prepaid mobile telephony services, as defined. The prepaid MTS surcharge would include the emergency telephone users surcharge, as defined, and PUC surcharges, as defined. The bill would require a seller, as defined, to collect the prepaid MTS surcharge, as provided, from a prepaid consumer, as defined, and remit the amounts collected to the State Board of Equalization pursuant to the Fee Collection Procedures Law. The bill would require the board, after deducting its administrative expenses, to deposit the amounts collected for the emergency telephone users surcharge into the Prepaid MTS 911 Account and to deposit the amounts collected for PUC surcharges into the Prepaid MTS PUC Account in the Prepaid Mobile Telephony Services Surcharge Fund, which the bill would establish in the State Treasury. The bill would require the PUC to annually compute the PUC’s reimbursement fee and 6 universal service program fees, to post notice of those fees on its Internet Web site and to notify the State Board of Equalization of the amounts, which would be adjusted, as specified, and together would be the PUC surcharges. The bill would require the Department of Technology to annually compute, as specified, the intrastate portion of the 911 surcharge to be collected on prepaid mobile telephony services to post notice of those charges and to notify the State Board of Equalization of the amount, which would be the emergency telephone users surcharge. Local charges would be computed pursuant to the Local Prepaid Mobile Telephony Services Collection Act, discussed below. This bill contains other related provisions and other existing laws. (Based on text date 6/3/2013)
AB 911 (Bloom D) Telephone systems: 911.
Summary: Would, commencing January 1, 2019, establish various requirements regarding 911 emergency call technology that would be applicable to multiline telephone systems (MLTS), providers of shared telecommunication services, and businesses with MLTS. The bill would requirean MLTS operator, as defined, in an area that has enhanced 911 capability to maintain and operate the MLTS, as specified, to ensure that each emergency call placed from any telephone station on the MLTS is routed to a public safety answering point and provides either automatic location information or automation number identification to the 911 network that connects to the public safety answering point.
Status: 4/25/2013-Re-referred to Committee on Utilities and Commerce
SB 135 (Padilla D) Earthquake early warning system.
Summary: Would require the Office of Emergency Services, in collaboration with various entities, including the United States Geological Survey, to develop a comprehensive statewide earthquake early warning system in California.
Status: 4/23/2013-From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 9. Noes 0.) (April 23). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
SB 333 (Lieu D) Crimes: emergencies: false reporting.
Summary: Current law provides that any individual who reports, or causes any report to be made, to any city, county, city and county, or state department, district, agency, division, commission, or board, that an emergency exists, knowing that the report is false, is guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for a period not exceeding one year, or by a fine not exceeding $1,000, or by both that imprisonment and fine. This bill would provide that any person convicted of violating these provisions, based upon a report that resulted in an emergency response, would be liable to a public agency for the reasonable costs of the emergency response by the public agency. This bill contains other existing laws.
Status: 4/19/2013-Set for hearing April 29.
SB 433 (Lara D) Emergencies: the State 911 Advisory Board.
Summary: Current law provides that members of the State 911 Advisory Board may not serve more than 2 consecutive 2-year terms except for (1) the presiding Chief of the California 911 Emergency Communications Office, who is required to serve for the duration of his or her tenure; and (2) 4 of the members who are required to serve an initial term of 3 years. This bill would delete this second exception.
Status: 3/11/2013-Referred to Committee on Energy, Utilities & Commerce.