Public safety dispatchers: mental health training.

Existing law requires specified categories of law enforcement officers to meet training standards pursuant to courses of training certified by the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training. Existing law also requires the commission to adopt rules establishing minimum standards relating to the recruitment and training of local public safety dispatchers having a primary responsibility for providing dispatching services for local law enforcement agencies. Existing law requires the commission to adopt certain mental health training to better prepare law enforcement officers to recognize, deescalate, and appropriately respond to persons with mental illness, intellectual disabilities, or substance use disorders, consisting of 15 hours, and a continuing training course, consisting of 3 consecutive hours, relating to behavioral health and law enforcement interaction with those persons. This bill would additionally require the commission, on or before January 1, 2021, to develop mental health training courses for state and local public safety dispatchers, incorporated in the dispatchers' basic training course and as a continuing training course, that cover specified topics, including recognizing indicators of mental illness, intellectual disabilities, or substance use disorders, and conflict resolution and deescalation techniques. The bill would require the commission to develop these courses in consultation with specified groups and individuals.