LEGISLATIVE SWING
Cal Chiefs
at the Capitol
This year Cal Chiefs strengthened its voice
at the capitol with the addition of Lauren Michaels, Cal Chiefs’ new legislative
coordinator. Working in conjunction with
John Lovell, Cal Chiefs’ government relations manager, the duo helped shepherd
two Cal Chiefs’ sponsored bills across the
finish line resulting in both being signed
by the governor into law. It is impossible to
overstate the impact both of these professionals have on our association’s ability to
advocate for the interests of front-line law
enforcement.
The Cal Chiefs Law and Legislative
Committee was directly involved in the
policymaking scene at the capitol. The
questions, contributions and dialogue that
defined the committee’s weekly conference calls had a direct impact on the passage, blockage and transformation of legislation. Indeed, many of the conclusions
reached during these calls transpired into
the language of public safety legislation.
Furthermore, committee members directly
reached out to members of the Legislature
to seek clarification on legislation, verify
legislative intent and discuss the public
safety impacts of proposed legislation.
Our Legislative Committee played
a substantial role in the development of
Assembly Bill 60, which permits undocumented persons to lawfully obtain a
driver’s license. It was during a Cal Chiefs
Legislative Committee call when the security features included in the final language
of the bill were proposed. Committee
members Chief Jim Leal and Chief Robert
Lehner played a huge role in ensuring
that this bill met the needs of public safety
professionals. Our involvement with AB
60 was publicly noted numerous times
within the Legislature and during signing
ceremonies. As exemplified by this bill,
Cal Chiefs has undoubtedly taken its legislative program to an entirely new level
this year.
In addition to Cal Chiefs’ unwavering and robust Legislative Committee,
John Lovell was the driving force behind
our successful year at the capitol. John’s
professionalism, incomparable legislative
insight, and amicable demeanor contribute to him being a welcomed and highly
respected figure at the capitol. John’s
undisputed legislative success has resulted in him being both highly respected by
Cal Chiefs’ allies and loathed by those
backing legislation that would adversely
impact public safety. John’s reputation is
so well regarded that Lauren has yet to
walk into a legislative office without being
told how wonderful John is and how
lucky Cal Chiefs is to have him! Under his
skilled and highly respected leadership,
Cal Chief’s witnessed two of its sponsored
bills signed into law.
Our first success was Assembly Bill
767, by Assembly Member Levine, that
will authorize every county to increase its
motor vehicle fee from $1.00 to $2.00 and
its commercial vehicles from $ 2.00 to $
4.00 upon action by the county board of
supervisors. These funds must be used
for vehicle theft task forces or for
DUI enforcement for some small
counties that do not have an auto
theft taskforce. Cal Chiefs was
joined in sponsoring this
legislation by the California
State Sheriffs’ Association.
The second bill
sponsored by Cal
Chiefs was Assembly
Bill 986, one of the few
By Chief David Swing,
Chair of the Law and
Legislation Committee
bills passed that made changes in California’s realignment law. This bill, authored
by Assembly Member Bradford, provides
that city jails, as well as county jails, may
be used for the purposes of flash incarceration of realignment felons ??\?H [?\??H ?\\??\?[?? Z\? ??][???X?\???H[\X?? \??[ ?[?H ?XZ?H?\??[??\??\?][?H ?X[ ?[??[???\??[? K??][????[? H?Z[ ??Z[???[Y ??\X?] K?\?[??\??\?][?\?H ?X?X?[X] \??\????Y[? \?Y ?] ??[\?^ [? ??\? YX\???]?\? ?\??? ?]?]] ??[[??\??[?]H?[
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