Bill Text: CA AB2220 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: Private security services: private patrol operators.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2014-09-18 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 423, Statutes of 2014. [AB2220 Detail]
Download: California-2013-AB2220-Chaptered.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 2220 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 423
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 18, 2014
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR SEPTEMBER 18, 2014
PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 25, 2014
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY AUGUST 27, 2014
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 21, 2014
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 19, 2014
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 5, 2014
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 5, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 10, 2014
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Daly
FEBRUARY 20, 2014
An act to amend Sections 7583.32 and 7583.40 of, to add Section
7587.16 to, and to repeal and add Section 7583.39 of, the Business
and Professions Code, and to amend Section 28235 of, and to add
Chapter 4.1 (commencing with Section 28010) to Division 6 of Title 4
of Part 6 of, the Penal Code, relating to private security services.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2220, Daly. Private security services: private patrol
operators.
The Private Security Services Act provides for the licensure and
regulation of private patrol operators by the Bureau of Security and
Investigative Services in the Department of Consumer Affairs. The act
requires a private patrol operator employing a security guard who
carries a firearm to maintain an insurance policy that provides
minimum limits of insurance of $500,000 for any one loss due to
bodily injury or death and $500,000 for any one loss due to injury or
destruction of property.
This bill would instead require the bureau to require a private
patrol operator or applicant for licensure, as a condition precedent
to licensure or continued licensure, to file or have on file with the
bureau an insurance policy that provides minimum limits of insurance
of $1,000,000 for any one loss due to bodily injury, including
death, or property damage, or both, as specified. The bill would
provide that if a licensee fails to maintain sufficient insurance or
provide proof of insurance as required, the license shall be
automatically suspended.
The act requires a private patrol operator licensee, qualified
manager of a licensee, or security guard who, in the course of his or
her employment, may be required to carry a firearm, to satisfy
specified requirements prior to carrying a firearm, including the
completion of a course of training in the carrying and use of
firearms. Existing law exempts from this requirement a duly appointed
peace officer, as defined, who has successfully completed a course
of study in the use of firearms. The act prohibits the bureau from
renewing an expired firearms qualification card unless, among other
requirements, the applicant has requalified on the range and
successfully passed a written examination, as specified.
This bill would exempt a duly appointed peace officer, as defined,
who is authorized to carry a firearm in the course of his or her
duties and has successfully completed requalification training from
the requirements of requalifying on the range and passing the written
examination.
Existing law generally requires a transfer of a firearm to be
conducted by a firearms dealer, and requires specified information
about the purchaser and the firearm in the transaction to be
submitted to the Department of Justice. The department has created a
form for this purpose known as the Dealers' Record of Sale form or
DROS form. Existing law authorizes the department to charge a fee for
the costs associated with the submission of the DROS form. Existing
law does not authorize a business entity to own or register a
firearm.
This bill would establish procedures, operative July 1, 2016,
allowing a Private Patrol Operator (PPO) business entity to be the
registered owner of a firearm. The bill would state findings and
declarations of the Legislature, and express the intent of the
Legislature in connection with these procedures. The bill would
direct the Department of Justice to modify the DROS form and create a
certificate of assignment (COA), and to charge a reasonable fee for
the filing and processing of the COA for these purposes and for
enforcement of these provisions. Among other things, the bill would
allow a security guard to be assigned a firearm by the PPO through a
COA, as specified, and for a firearm custodian to be designated by
the PPO. The bill would require submission to the Department of
Justice of information pertaining to the ownership of a firearm by a
PPO, the assignment of a firearm by a PPO, and the identity of a PPO
firearms custodian, as specified. The bill would require PPO-owned
firearms acquired prior to July 1, 2016, to be registered, as
specified. The bill would provide that an assignment of a firearm by
a PPO to a security guard employee for purposes of employment duties
would not constitute a loan, sale, or transfer of a firearm. The bill
would authorize the Director of the Department of Consumer Affairs,
through his or her designee, to assess an administrative fine of up
to $1,000 against a PPO or a security guard for each willful
violation of these and other provisions of the bill relating to
firearms. The bill would require a security guard, upon request by
the PPO, or upon separation of employment or revocation of the
security guard's firearm qualification card, and within 48 hours, to
return the assigned firearm to the PPO. The bill would provide that
the failure of a security guard to return an assigned firearm as
required would be a misdemeanor. By creating a new crime, this bill
would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 7583.32 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:
7583.32. (a) A firearms qualification card expires two years from
the date of issuance, if not renewed. A person who wishes to renew a
firearms qualification card shall file an application for renewal at
least 60 days prior to the card's expiration. A person whose card
has expired shall not carry a firearm until he or she has been issued
a renewal card by the bureau.
(b) The bureau shall not renew a firearms qualification card
unless all of the following conditions are satisfied:
(1) The cardholder has filed with the bureau a completed
application for renewal of a firearms qualification card, on a form
prescribed by the director, dated and signed by the applicant under
penalty of perjury certifying that the information on the application
is true and correct.
(2) The applicant has requalified on the range and has
successfully passed a written examination based on course content as
specified in the firearms training manual approved by the department
and taught at a training facility approved by the bureau.
(3) The application is accompanied by a firearms requalification
fee as prescribed in this chapter.
(4) The applicant has produced evidence to the firearm training
facility, either upon receiving his or her original qualification
card or upon filing for renewal of that card, that he or she is a
citizen of the United States or has permanent legal alien status in
the United States. Evidence of citizenship or permanent legal alien
status is that deemed sufficient by the bureau to ensure compliance
with federal laws prohibiting possession of firearms by persons
unlawfully in the United States and may include, but not be limited
to, Department of Justice, Immigration and Naturalization Service
Form I-151 or I-551, Alien Registration Receipt Card, naturalization
documents, or birth certificates evidencing lawful residence or
status in the United States.
(c) An expired firearms qualification card may not be renewed. A
person with an expired registration is required to apply for a new
firearms qualification in the manner required of persons not
previously registered. A person whose card has expired shall not
carry a firearm until he or she has been issued a new firearms
qualification card by the bureau.
(d) Paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) shall not apply to a duly
appointed peace officer, as defined in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with
Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2 of the Penal Code who is authorized
to carry a firearm in the course of his or her duties and who has
successfully completed requalification training.
SEC. 2. Section 7583.39 of the Business and Professions Code is
repealed.
SEC. 3. Section 7583.39 is added to the Business and Professions
Code, to read:
7583.39. (a) The bureau shall require, as a condition precedent
to the issuance, reinstatement, reactivation, renewal, or continued
maintenance of a license, that the applicant or licensee file or have
on file with the bureau, an insurance policy, as defined in Section
7583.40.
(b) If a licensee fails to maintain sufficient insurance, as
required by this section, or fails to provide proof of the required
insurance policy upon request by the bureau, the license shall be
automatically suspended by operation of law until the date that the
licensee provides proof to the bureau of compliance with the
insurance coverage requirement. Prior to an automatic suspension, the
bureau shall notify the licensee, in writing, that it has 30 days to
provide proof to the bureau of having the required insurance policy
or the license shall be automatically suspended.
(c) (1) A Certificate of Liability Insurance issued by an
authorized agent or employee of the insurer shall be submitted to the
bureau electronically, or in a manner authorized by the bureau, for
an insurance policy secured by a licensee in satisfaction of this
section.
(2) An insurer issuing a Certificate of Liability Insurance
pursuant to paragraph (1) shall report the following information to
the bureau for an insurance policy required by this section:
(A) The name of the insured.
(B) The licensee's license number.
(C) The policy number.
(D) The dates that coverage is scheduled to commence and end.
(E) The cancellation date, if applicable.
SEC. 4. Section 7583.40 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:
7583.40. "Insurance policy," as used in this article, means a
commercial general liability policy of insurance issued by an
insurance company authorized to transact business in this state that
provides minimum limits of insurance of one million dollars
($1,000,000) for any one loss or occurrence due to bodily injury,
including death, or property damage, or both.
SEC. 5. Section 7587.16 is added to the Business and Professions
Code, to read:
7587.16. (a) The director, through his or her designee, may
assess an administrative fine pursuant to Section 28022 of the Penal
Code.
(b) An assessment imposed pursuant to that section may be
appealed pursuant to Section 7581.3.
SEC. 6. Chapter 4.1 (commencing with Section 28010) is added to
Division 6 of Title 4 of Part 6 of the Penal Code, to read:
CHAPTER 4.1. REGISTRATION AND ASSIGNMENT OF FIREARMS BY
PRIVATE PATROL OPERATORS
28010. (a) The Legislature finds and declares that current
practices and statutes authorize the purchase, registration, and
ownership of firearms by an individual, but not by a business entity.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this chapter
to allow business ownership and registration of firearms in the case
of licensed Private Patrol Operators (PPOs) who are actively
providing armed private contract security services. It is further the
intent of the Legislature to establish procedures whereby a PPO may
assign firearms it owns to its employees who are licensed to carry
firearms and that assignment of a firearm by a PPO to that employee
would not constitute a loan, sale, or transfer of a firearm.
(c) It is the intent of the Legislature to require notification of
the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services any time a
security guard is listed on the Prohibited Armed Persons File so that
the bureau may proceed with appropriate action regarding the
licensing of the employee.
(d) For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply:
(1) "Bureau" means the Bureau of Security and Investigative
Services within the Department of Consumer Affairs.
(2) "Department" means the Department of Justice.
(3) "Director" means the Director of the Department of Consumer
Affairs.
(4) "Private patrol operator" or "PPO" means a private patrol
operator licensed pursuant to Chapter 11.5 (commencing with Section
7580) of Division 3 of the Business and Professions Code whose
license is not suspended, revoked, expired, inactive, delinquent, or
canceled.
(5) "Security guard" means a security guard registered pursuant to
Chapter 11.5 (commencing with Section 7580) of Division 3 of the
Business and Professions Code whose registration is not suspended,
revoked, expired, inactive, delinquent, or canceled.
28012. (a) A PPO may be the registered owner of a firearm if the
PPO is registered with the department pursuant to procedures
established by the department.
(b) The department shall modify the department's Dealers' Record
of Sale (DROS) form to allow a PPO to be listed as the purchaser and
registered owner of a firearm. The form shall also require the PPO to
identify its type of business formation and to include any tax
identification number or other identifying number of the PPO that may
be required by the department.
(c) (1) The department shall modify the department's DROS form to
require the PPO to designate a "firearms custodian" for the firearm
owned by the PPO that is listed in the DROS. A firearms custodian
shall possess a valid firearms qualification permit issued by the
bureau. A firearms custodian is responsible for the tracking,
safekeeping, and inventory of those firearms of the PPO for which the
custodian is designated, and shall serve as a point of contact for
the department regarding the firearms for which the custodian is
designated.
(2) If a firearms custodian is no longer employed by the PPO in
that capacity, or otherwise becomes ineligible to be the firearms
custodian, the PPO shall notify the department of that fact within
seven days in a manner prescribed by the department, and the PPO
shall notify the department of the designated replacement firearms
custodian within 20 days of the original notice.
(d) A security guard shall possess a valid firearm qualification
permit issued by the bureau prior to receiving a firearm from a PPO
pursuant to a Certificate of Assignment (COA). A firearm shall be
assigned by a PPO to a security guard who is employed to work for the
PPO only when that employment requires the security guard to be
armed.
(e) (1) (A) The department shall prescribe a "Certificate of
Assignment" or "COA." The COA may include fields that are in the DROS
form, and shall be used to identify the employee of the PPO who has
been assigned a PPO-owned firearm by the PPO pursuant to this
chapter.
(B) The COA shall also be used to identify an employee of the PPO
who will use his or her own firearm in the course of his or her
duties as a security guard. The COA shall not require specific
information regarding an employee-owned firearm.
(2) A PPO shall register a PPO-owned firearm acquired prior to
July 1, 2016, as a PPO-owned firearm in a manner prescribed by the
department prior to filing a COA for that firearm.
(3) Upon the PPO assigning a firearm to an employee who is a
security guard, the PPO shall complete the COA and file it with the
department in a timely manner as prescribed by the department.
(f) The department shall cause the information contained on the
COA to be entered into the Automated Firearms System in a timely
manner. Upon termination of the employment assignment that requires
the security guard to be armed and the transfer of the firearm from
the security guard back to the PPO, the PPO shall complete a COA
indicating that the firearm is no longer assigned to the employee and
that the firearm is in the possession of the PPO and shall file the
COA with the department in a timely manner, as prescribed.
(g) If a security guard becomes listed on the Prohibited Armed
Persons File, the department shall immediately notify the bureau of
the listing by secured electronic delivery. Upon that notification,
the bureau shall take appropriate action regarding the security
guard. In addition, the department shall notify the PPO, in the
manner the department deems appropriate, that the PPO employee is
prohibited from being armed. This chapter does not prohibit the
department from also notifying the bureau if a security guard has
been arrested and charged with an offense that, upon conviction,
would constitute a basis for revocation of a firearms qualification
permit or security guard registration.
28014. The department shall charge a fee not to exceed the
reasonable costs to the department for filing and processing a COA,
and for the costs incurred in the implementation and administration
of this chapter, including, but not limited to, entering information
obtained pursuant to this chapter into the Automated Firearms System
and other databases as deemed necessary by the department. The fee
shall be deposited in the Dealers' Record of Sale Special Account.
28016. (a) If the PPO ceases to do business, ceases to possess a
valid PPO license issued by the bureau that is not suspended,
revoked, expired, inactive, delinquent, or canceled, ceases as a
business entity, or changes its type of business formation, the PPO
shall, within 30 days and unless otherwise prohibited by law,
lawfully sell or transfer all PPO-owned firearms.
(b) A PPO shall notify the department of the sale or transfer of a
PPO-owned firearm within five business days of the transaction in a
manner prescribed by the department. This subdivision shall not apply
if the sale or transfer was made to or through a licensed firearms
dealer pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 28050).
28018. Notwithstanding any other law, an assignment of a firearm
pursuant to this chapter shall not constitute a loan, sale, or
transfer of a firearm.
28020. (a) Within 48 hours of the PPO's request, for any reason,
or within 48 hours of separation of employment or revocation of the
firearm qualification card, the security guard shall return to the
PPO the firearm owned by the PPO and listed on a COA.
(b) The failure of a security guard to comply with subdivision (a)
is a misdemeanor.
(c) If a security guard employed by a PPO does not comply with
subdivision (a), the PPO shall notify the bureau within seven
business days from the date that the security guard was required to
return the firearm to the PPO.
(d) This chapter does not limit the right of a security guard to
use, possess, or otherwise lawfully carry a firearm owned by that
security guard.
28022. (a) The director, through his or her designee, may assess
an administrative fine of up to one thousand dollars ($1,000) against
a PPO or a security guard for each willful violation of this
chapter. All fines collected pursuant to this chapter shall be
deposited in the Private Security Services Fund.
(b) An assessment imposed pursuant to this section may be appealed
pursuant to Section 7581.3 of the Business and Professions Code.
28024. This chapter shall become operative on July 1, 2016.
SEC. 7. Section 28235 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
28235. All moneys received by the department pursuant to this
article shall be deposited in the Dealers' Record of Sale Special
Account of the General Fund, which is hereby created, to be
available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for expenditure by
the department to offset the costs incurred pursuant to any of the
following:
(a) This article.
(b) Section 18910.
(c) Section 27555.
(d) Subdivisions (d) and (e) of Section 27560.
(e) Chapter 4.1 (commencing with Section 28010).
(f) Article 6 (commencing with Section 28450).
(g) Section 31110.
(h) Section 31115.
(i) Subdivision (a) of Section 32020.
(j) Section 32670.
(k) Section 33320.
SEC. 8. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.
