LEGISLATIVE SWING
Cal Chiefs
at the Capitol
W
hile 2014 may be remembered by
many as the year that Cal Chiefs
sponsored a medical marijuana
regulatory bill, our actions at the Capitol expanded far beyond the realm of
medical marijuana. Our legislative team
was involved in legislation ranging from
unmanned aircraft systems and license
plate reader technology to legislation
entitled “Revenge Porn 2.0.” Needless to
say, breaks were few and far between.
Cal Chiefs was the first law enforcement organization in California to
address medical marijuana regulation in
a proactive manner. SB 1262, authored
by Senator Lou Correa, passed off the
Senate floor unopposed after passing
through two policy committees and the
Senate fiscal committee. Similarly, the bill
passed through two policy committees
in the Assembly before being held by the
Assembly Committee on Appropriations.
While the bill did not ultimately pass,
the impact of our action is impossible
to ignore. Cal Chiefs was able to pro-
vide the legislature with a responsible
medical marijuana regulatory model
that works for law enforcement, cities,
and legitimate patients. In doing so, we
were able to demonstrate that medical
marijuana regulation is not synonymous
with legalization. This bill was one of our
heaviest legislative lifts in recent history. The relative success of our effort is a
direct result of the active participation
of the Cal Chiefs Law and Legislative
Committee, the Cal Chiefs Executive
Board and all of the chiefs who provided feedback throughout the process. I
would be remiss to mention the impact
this measure had at the Capitol without
mentioning the excellent work done by
our Government Relations Manager, John
Lovell, and Legislative Analyst who both
worked tirelessly on this important piece
of legislation. We intend to carry
this torch again next year.
Medical marijuana was
not the only heavy lift of
2014. Two bills of excep-
By Chief David Swing,
Chair of the Law and
Legislation Committee
tional importance to Cal Chiefs now
sit on the Governor’s desk. AB 1439,
sponsored by Cal Chiefs, will shut down
the gambling operations that have been
conducted in internet cafes throughout
California. This bill, authored by Assemblymembers Rudy Salas, Rob Bonta and
Jim Frazier closes loopholes in current
law that enable these operators to evade
the present statutory prohibitions against
gambling operations. This legislation is a
direct response to the input we received
from chiefs last fall. When asked, chiefs
from up and down California reported
that internet café gambling was a substantial issue in need of a legislative fix.
We now await the Governor’s signature
on this measure.
AB 1147, sponsored by the League
of California Cities and authored by
Assemblymember Susan Bonilla, was
another bill of substantial importance
to Cal Chiefs. This measure restores
local control over massage businesses. AB 1147 also enables local
FALL 2014 | California Police Chief
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