Existing law establishes the Board of State and Community Corrections and requires the board to, among other things, establish minimum standards for local correctional facilities, as specified.

This bill would require the board to administer a grant program for the purposes of constructing, renovating, or relocating police departments. The bill would require that grants be awarded to communities that meet specified requirements, including a population of 30,000 or less and have 25% or more of their census tracts with lower median household incomes, as specified, or areas disproportionately affected by environmental pollution or other hazards, as specified.

Date of Hearing: April 11, 2018

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 2412

Author:(Arambula) – As Introduced Ver:February 14, 2018

Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: No Reimbursable: No

SUMMARY:

This bill establishes, upon appropriation, a grant program to fund the construction of new police stations in rural underserved cities. The grant program will be administered by the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC).

FISCAL EFFECT:

1. GF cost pressure in the millions of dollars annually, or tens of millions of dollars if funding is provided on a one-time basis, to provide funding for grants to cities for capital improvements at police stations.
2. Potential GF costs for BSCC to establish and administer the grant program, depending on the type of grants awarded. For example, competitive grants will target funding to the highest priorities, but will have higher administrative costs.

COMMENTS:

1. Background. Cities are responsible for providing municipal police services. Police departments are generally funded with local funds, although federal and state funding is sometimes available. For example, the Budget Act of 2015 appropriated $8 million to specified cities for construction or capital improvements at police stations, and the Budget Act of 2016 appropriated $10.2 million for these purposes.
2. Purpose. According to the author:

Many communities in the Central Valley and other rural parts of California do not have adequate facilities for their police forces. The poverty rate in the Valley communities is extremely high, with an average unemployment rate of roughly 10%. As a result, there is limited local funding available for capital improvement projects. In these areas, public safety agencies do not have the necessary space for personnel and equipment. Many lack the space for training, evidence storage, dispatch operations, booking, holding cells and other spaces required by Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST). Some are forced to use mobile units in parking lots while others share their space with the City Council. Many of the existing buildings were built in the 1970s and face serious safety concern. These substandard police stations also do not have private interview rooms or space to gather witness reports. The men and women who protect our communities need safe and secure places to work and serve the public. This measure will establish a competitive grant program at the BSCC that, upon appropriation by the Legislature, will give cities the opportunity to seek funding for desperately need public safety infrastructure.

1. Prior legislation.

SB 826 (Leno), Chapter 23, Statutes of 2016, appropriated $10.2 million to specified cities for the purposes of constructing, renovating, or relocating police department facilities.

AB 93 (Weber), Chapter 10, Statutes of 2015, appropriated approximately $8 million to specified cities for the purposes of constructing, renovating, or relocating police department facilities.

Analysis Prepared by: Jessica Peters / APPR. / (916) 319-2081

Date of Hearing:

Consultant: Mureed Rasool

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY

Reginald Byron Jones-Sawyer, Sr., Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 2412

Author:(Arambula) – As Introduced Ver:

SUMMARY:

Provides that, upon appropriation by the Legislature, the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) shall award grants to rural underserved cities for the purposes of constructing, renovating, or relocating police department facilities. Specifically, this bill:

1. Mandates that the BSCC shall award grants to cities for the purposes of constructing, renovating, or relocating police department facilities.
   
2. States that grants must be awarded to communities with population concentrations with high unemployment rates, low incomes, low levels of homeownership, high rent burdens, sensitive populations, or low levels of attainment.
   
3. Establishes eligibility criteria requiring grants to be awarded only to cities with a population of under 30,000 and that have 25 percent or more of its census tracts with either:
   
   1. Household incomes at or below 80 percent of the statewide median income or with median household incomes at or below the Department of Housing and Community Development’s designation of “low income;” or
      
   2. Areas identified by the California Environmental Protection Agency as disproportionately affected by environmental pollution or other hazards.

EXISTING LAW:

1. Establishes the BSCC. (Pen. Code, § 6024, subd. (a).)
   
2. Requires the BSCC to collect and maintain available information and data about state and community correctional policies, practices, capacities, and needs, including, but not limited to, prevention, intervention, suppression, supervision, and incapacitation, as they relate to both adult corrections, juvenile justice, and gang problems. BSCC shall seek to collect and make publicly available up-to-date data and information reflecting the impact of state and community correctional, juvenile justice, and gang-related policies and practices enacted in the state, as well as information and data concerning promising and evidence-based practices from other jurisdictions. (Pen. Code, § 6027, subd. (a).)
   
3. Requires the BSCC to also do the following, among other things:
   
   1. Develop recommendations for the improvement of criminal justice and delinquency and gang prevention activity throughout the state;
      
   2. Identify, promote, and provide technical assistance relating to evidence-based programs, practices, and promising and innovative projects consistent with the mission of the board;
      
   3. Receive and disburse federal funds, and perform all necessary and appropriate services in the performance of its duties as established by federal acts;
      
   4. Develop procedures to ensure that applications for grants are processed fairly, efficiently, and in a manner consistent with the mission of the board;
      
   5. Identify delinquency and gang intervention and prevention grants that have the same or similar program purpose, are allocated to the same entities, serve the same target populations, and have the same desired outcomes for the purpose of consolidating grant funds and programs and moving toward a unified single delinquency intervention and prevention grant application process in adherence with all applicable federal guidelines and mandates;
      
   6. Cooperate with, and render technical assistance, to the Legislature, state agencies, local governments, or other public or private agencies, organizations, or institutions in matters relating to criminal justice and delinquency prevention;
      
   7. Develop incentives for units of local government to develop comprehensive regional partnerships whereby adjacent jurisdictions pool grant funds in order to deliver services, to a broader target population and maximize the impact of state funds at the local level;
      
   8. Conduct evaluation studies of the programs and activities assisted by the federal acts. (Pen. Code, § 6027, subd. (b).)

FISCAL EFFECT:

Unknown

COMMENTS:

1. Author's Statement: According to the author, “Many communities in the Central Valley and other rural parts of California do not have adequate facilities for their police forces. The poverty rate in the Valley communities is extremely high, with an average unemployment rate of roughly 10%. As a result, there is limited local funding available for capital improvement projects. In these areas, public safety agencies do not have the necessary space for personnel and equipment. Many lack the space for training, evidence storage, dispatch operations, booking, holding cells and other spaces required by Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST). Some are forced to use mobile units in parking lots while others share their space with the City Council. Many of the existing buildings were built in the 1970s and face serious safety concern. These substandard police stations also do not have private interview rooms or space to gather witness reports. The men and women who protect our communities need safe and secure places to work and serve the public. This measure will establish a competitive grant program at the BSCC that, upon appropriation by the Legislature, will give cities the opportunity to seek funding for desperately need public safety infrastructure.”
   
2. Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC): The BSCC is responsible for administering various criminal justice grant programs and ensuring compliance with state and federal standards in the operation of local correctional facilities. It is also responsible for providing technical assistance to local authorities and collecting data related to the outcomes of criminal justice policies and practices." (Legislative Analyst’s Office. (2013). The 2013-14 Budget: The Governor's Criminal Justice Proposals. <http://www.lao.ca.gov/analysis/2013/crim_justice/criminal-justice-proposals/criminal-justice-proposals-021513.pdf> [Mar. 28, 2018].) The criminal justice grant programs currently administered by the BSCC include the Evidence-Based Practices Program, Strengthening Law Enforcement and Community Relations Grant, and the Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion program.
   
3. Police Department Facilities: In general, local governments fund and administer police services. (Legislative Analyst’s Office. (2015). The 2015-2016 Budget: Governor’s Criminal Justice Proposals. <http://www.lao.ca.gov/reports/2015/budget/Criminal-Justice/cj-budget-analysis-022015.pdf> [Mar. 28, 2018].) Most funds come from revenue generated by local taxes and fees. (Id.)
   
   Based on the material provided by the author, many small communities lack the resources needed to properly fund their police departments. As a result, many departments have trouble providing training, storing evidence, dispatching operations, booking criminals, and providing holding cells as is required by the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST).
   
   This bill would provide funding for these small communities so that they could renovate or construct police departments.
   
4. Argument in Support: According to the California Police Chiefs Association, “Our members recognize that some of our agencies require additional funding to carry out day-to-day operations in their respective jurisdictions. AB 2412 focuses funding towards disadvantaged jurisdictions in need of additional support by requiring grants to be awarded to communities that meet specified requirements, including a population of 30,000 or less and have 25% or more of their census tracts with lower median household incomes, or areas disproportionately affected by environmental pollution, or other hazards.”
   
5. Prior Legislation:
   
   1. SB 826 (Leno), Chapter 23, Statutes of 2016, allocated $10.15 million to specified cities for the purposes of constructing, renovating, or relocating police department facilities.
      
   2. AB 93 (Weber), Chapter 10, Statutes of 2015, allocated approximately $8 million to specified cities for the purposes of constructing, renovating, or relocating police department facilities.
      

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

California Police Chiefs Association

Opposition

None

Analysis Prepared by:

Mureed Rasool / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744