SECTIONS 8593-8594.5 - California Statutes

GOVERNMENT CODE

SECTION 8593-8594.5

8593. The California Emergency Management Agency shall work with
advocacy groups representing the deaf and hearing impaired,
including, but not limited to, the California Association of the Deaf
and the Coalition of Deaf Access Providers, California television
broadcasters, city and county emergency services coordinators, and,
as appropriate, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the
Federal Communications Commission, to improve communication with deaf
and hearing-impaired persons during emergencies, including the use
of open captioning by California television broadcasters when
transmitting emergency information.

8593.1. The California Emergency Management Agency shall
investigate the feasibility of, and the funding requirements for,
establishing a "Digital Emergency Broadcast System" network, to be
used by local and state government agencies for the provision of
warnings and instructions in digital or printed form to California
broadcast outlets for relay to the public both orally and visually,
through television, and orally, through radio, during emergencies.

8593.2. The California Emergency Management Agency shall
investigate the feasibility of establishing a toll-free 800 telephone
hotline, including TDD (telecommunications device for the deaf)
accessibility, which would be accessible to the public, including
deaf, hearing-impaired, and non-English speaking persons, for use
during nonemergency and emergency periods to respond to inquiries
about emergency preparedness and disaster status.

8593.6. (a) No later than six months after securing funding for the
purposes of this section, the Secretary of Emergency Management
shall convene a working group for the purpose of assessing existing
and future technologies available in the public and private sectors
for the expansion of transmission of emergency alerts to the public
through a public-private partnership. The working group shall advise
the secretary and assist in the development of policies, procedures,
and protocols that will lay the framework for an improved warning
system for the public.
(b) (1) The working group shall consist of the following
membership, to be appointed by the secretary:
(A) A representative of the California Emergency Management
Agency.
(B) A representative of the Attorney General's office.
(C) A representative of the State Department of Public Health.
(D) A representative of the State Emergency Communications
Committee.
(E) A representative of the Los Angeles County Office of Emergency
Management, at the option of that agency.
(F) A representative or representatives of local government, at
the option of the local government or governments.
(G) Representatives of the private sector who possess technology,
experience, or insight that will aid in the development of a
public-private partnership to expand an alert system to the public,
including, but not limited to, representatives of providers of mass
communication systems, first responders, and broadcasters.
(H) Additional representatives of any public or private entity as
deemed appropriate by the Secretary of Emergency Management.
(2) In performing its duties, the working group shall consult with
the Federal Communications Commission, and with respect to grants
and fiscal matters, the California Emergency Management Agency.
(c) The working group shall consider and make recommendations with
respect to all of the following:
(1) Private and public programs, including pilot projects that
attempt to integrate a public-private partnership to expand an alert
system.
(2) Protocols, including formats, source or originator
identification, threat severity, hazard description, and response
requirements or recommendations, for alerts to be transmitted via an
alert system that ensures that alerts are capable of being utilized
across the broadest variety of communication technologies, at state
and local levels.
(3) Protocols and guidelines to prioritize assurance of the
greatest level of interoperability for first responders and families
of first responders.
(4) Procedures for verifying, initiating, modifying, and canceling
alerts transmitted via an alert system.
(5) Guidelines for the technical capabilities of an alert system.
(6) Guidelines for technical capability that provides for the
priority transmission of alerts.
(7) Guidelines for other capabilities of an alert system.
(8) Standards for equipment and technologies used by an alert
system.
(9) Cost estimates.
(10) Standards and protocols in accordance with, or in
anticipation of, Federal Communications Commission requirements and
federal statutes or regulations.
(11) Liability issues.
(d) The secretary may accept private monetary or in-kind donations
for the purposes of this section.

8594. (a) If an abduction has been reported to a law enforcement
agency and the agency determines that a child 17 years of age or
younger, or an individual with a proven mental or physical
disability, has been abducted and is in imminent danger of serious
bodily injury or death, and there is information available that, if
disseminated to the general public, could assist in the safe recovery
of the victim, the agency, through a person authorized to activate
the Emergency Alert System, shall, absent extenuating investigative
needs, request activation of the Emergency Alert System within the
appropriate local area. Law enforcement agencies shall only request
activation of the Emergency Alert System for an abduction if these
requirements are met. The Emergency Alert System is not intended to
be used for abductions resulting from custody disputes that are not
reasonably believed to endanger the life or physical health of a
child.
The California Highway Patrol, if requested by a law enforcement
agency, shall activate the system.
(b) The California Highway Patrol, in consultation with the
Department of Justice, as well as a representative from the
California State Sheriffs' Association, the California Police Chiefs'
Association, and the California Peace Officers' Association, shall
develop policies and procedures providing instruction specifying how
law enforcement agencies, broadcasters participating in the Emergency
Alert System, and any other intermediate emergency agencies that may
institute activation of the Emergency Alert System, and, where
appropriate, other supplemental warning systems, shall proceed after
a qualifying abduction has been reported to a law enforcement agency.
Those policies and procedures shall include, but not be limited to:
(1) Procedures for transfer of information regarding the abducted
victim and abduction from the law enforcement agency to the
broadcasters;
(2) Specification of the event code or codes that should be used
if the Emergency Alert System is activated to report a qualifying
child abduction;
(3) Recommended language for an abduction alert;
(4) Specification of information that must be included by the
reporting law enforcement agency, including which agency a person
with information relating to the abduction should contact and how the
person should contact the agency; and
(5) Recommendations on the extent of the geographical area to
which a child abduction emergency alert should be broadcast.
(c) The California Highway Patrol, in consultation with the
Department of Justice, shall review the Amber Plan as adopted by
other states and Orange County's Child Abduction Regional Emergency
Alert Program for guidance in developing appropriate policies and
procedures for use of the Emergency Alert System and, where
appropriate, other supplemental warning systems to report qualifying
abductions.
(d) The California Highway Patrol, in conjunction with the
Department of Justice, shall develop a comprehensive child abduction
education system to educate children in the state on the appropriate
behavior to deter abduction. The California Highway Patrol shall
convene a group consisting of a representative from the California
State Sheriffs' Association, the California Police Chiefs'
Association, and the California Peace Officers' Association,
representatives of advocacy groups, and the Department of Education
to assist in the development of a plan.

8594.5. (a) For purposes of this section, "blue alert" means a
quick response system designed to issue and coordinate alerts
following an attack upon a law enforcement officer as described in
subdivision (b).
(b) In addition to the circumstances described in Section 8594,
upon the request of an authorized person at a law enforcement agency
that is investigating an offense described in paragraph (1), the
California Highway Patrol shall activate the Emergency Alert System
and issue a blue alert if all of the following conditions are met:
(1) A law enforcement officer has been killed, suffers serious
bodily injury, or is assaulted with a deadly weapon, and the suspect
has fled the scene of the offense.
(2) A law enforcement agency investigating the offense has
determined that the suspect poses an imminent threat to the public or
other law enforcement personnel.
(3) A detailed description of the suspect's vehicle or license
plate is available for broadcast.
(4) Public dissemination of available information may help avert
further harm or accelerate apprehension of the suspect.
(5) The California Highway Patrol has been designated to use the
federally authorized Emergency Alert System for the issuance of blue
alerts.
(c) The blue alert system incorporates a variety of notification
resources and developing technologies that may be tailored to the
circumstances and geography of the underlying attack. The blue alert
system shall utilize the state-controlled Emergency Digital
Information System, local digital signs, focused text, or other
technologies, as appropriate, in addition to the federal Emergency
Alert System, if authorized and under conditions permitted by the
federal government.
(d) On or before December 31, 2011, the California Highway Patrol
shall augment the department's public Internet Web site to include a
blue alert link that describes the "blue alert" process, objectives,
and available quick responses. The Internet Web site shall explain
that the term blue alert will communicate that a law enforcement
officer has been attacked or killed and that the scope of an alert
will be tailored to the circumstances of the offense and available
technologies.