Criminal history information: animal control officers.

Existing law requires the Department of Justice to maintain state summary criminal history information, including the identification and criminal history of any person, which may include his or her name, date of birth, physical description, fingerprints, photographs, dates of arrest, arresting agencies and booking numbers, charges, dispositions, and similar data about the person. Existing law authorizes the department, upon a showing of compelling need, to furnish this information in response to a request from certain authorized agencies, organizations, or individuals, including a public utility. Existing law similarly provides for the disclosure of local summary criminal history information by a local criminal justice agency, upon a showing of compelling need, to certain authorized agencies, organizations, or individuals. Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for a person authorized by law to receive state summary criminal history information to knowingly furnish it to a person not authorized by law to receive it. This bill would authorize an animal control officer, when necessary for the performance of his or her official duties, to obtain state summary criminal history information from a criminal justice agency. The bill would require the criminal justice agency, upon a showing of compelling need, to provide the animal control officer with state summary criminal history information obtained from the California Law Enforcement Telecommunication Systems (CLETS) . The bill would require the criminal justice agency to provide this information to the animal control officer in a timely manner and would permit the criminal justice agency to charge a reasonable fee sufficient to cover the costs of providing that information. The bill would prohibit an animal control officer who receives that information from using it for any purpose other than the performance of his or her official duties. By requiring local criminal justice agencies to provide this information and by expanding the scope of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would also authorize local criminal justice agencies to provide local summary criminal history information to an animal control officer for the purposes of performing his or her official duties. The bill would permit a local agency to charge a reasonable fee sufficient to cover the costs of providing that information. By requiring local criminal justice agencies to provide this information and by expanding the scope of a crime, the 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 specified reasons.