AB 1913: Licensure: emergency equipment.

Existing law prohibits a person from driving a motor vehicle upon a highway unless that person holds a valid drivers license to operate the type of vehicle that the person is driving.

Existing law requires the Department of Motor Vehicles to require an examination for issuance of a drivers license. The examination is required to be appropriate to the type of motor vehicle or combination of vehicles the applicant desires a license to drive or tow, in accordance with certain license classifications. A class C drivers license includes the operation of, among other vehicles, firefighting equipment, provided that the equipment is operated by a person who holds a firefighter endorsement, as specified.

This bill would include the operation of specified emergency equipment under a class C drivers license, provided the equipment is owned by a law enforcement agency and is operated by a person who has completed, or is currently participating in, completed the emergency equipment training described below.

Existing law establishes the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training to set minimum standards for the recruitment and training of peace officers and to develop training courses and curriculum.

This bill would require specified peace officers and volunteers registered with specified law enforcement agencies be permitted to operate emergency equipment, as specified. The bill would require the training to include both classroom and driver training components, as specified, and a written examination. The bill would impose certification, experience, and licensure requirements on instructors for the training program, including, among other things, a requirement that an instructor be certified as a qualified training instructor by the State of California, the federal government, or a county training officers association.

The bill would define emergency equipment as a motor vehicle operated under a class A or class B license that is used to travel to and from the scene of an emergency situation, to and from a place where the emergency equipment is repaired or positioned, or to transport equipment used in the control of an emergency situation and that is owned, leased, rented by, or under the exclusive control of specified law enforcement agencies.