Sacramento – Assembly Member Betty Karnette (D – Long Beach) has gained solid, bipartisan support for her legislative proposal to speed up allocation of existing antiterrorism funds provided by patriotic, safety-conscious California drivers. 

Assembly Bill 587, which allocates five million dollars to train police and firefighters on terrorism prevention and response, has received final legislative approval and now proceeds to the Governor for final action. 

“Nearly 70,000 California drivers have tried to put the brakes on terrorism by collectively investing millions of their own hard-earned dollars,” said Karnette.  “We need to put their investment to work by directing these funds to meaningful antiterrorism programs that deliver public value by helping to improve public safety.”

The California Memorial License Plate fund was created by AB 1759 (2002).  This program allows California drivers to purchase patriotic automobile license plates.  Proceeds of that fund are almost exclusively intended for antiterrorism purposes. 

Karnette believes that the five year delay in programming those funds for antiterrorism purposes must come to an end, and amended her bill to provide the type of training programs authorized in statute.  AB 587 reflects negotiations with Governor Schwarzenegger’s administration on efficient, productive methods to make an immediate impact in state efforts to curb terrorism. 

“We get the best bang for our buck by using these funds to help train first responders, our first line of defense against domestic terrorism,” Karnette said.  “Terrorist threats and tactics change rapidly, and the success of first responders depends on quality training.”

Writing in support of the bill, the state’s Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training states that AB 587 is necessary to address “topics requiring additional preparation and training for response to acts of terrorism…that will prepare California law enforcement personnel for protecting our communities.”