Bill Text: CA AB262 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

---

Bill Title: Local health officers: communicable diseases.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)

Status: (Passed) 2019-10-12 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 798, Statutes of 2019. [AB262 Detail]

Download: California-2019-AB262-Introduced.html

---

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 262

---

Introduced by Assembly Members Gloria and Gonzalez
(Coauthor: Assembly Member Boerner Horvath)

January 24, 2019

---

An act to add Section 120175.5 to the Health and Safety Code, relating to public health.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 262, as introduced, Gloria. Local health officers: communicable diseases.

Existing law requires the State Department of Public Health to examine into the causes of communicable disease in man and domestic animals occurring or likely to occur in this state, and to establish a list of reportable diseases and conditions. Existing law requires a health officer knowing or having reason to believe that any case of the diseases made reportable by regulation of the department, or any other contagious, infectious or communicable disease exists, or has recently existed, within the territory under the local health officer’s jurisdiction, to take measures to prevent the spread of the disease or occurrence of additional cases.

This bill would specifically require a local health officer to notify and update the local public entities within the health officer’s jurisdiction about communicable disease outbreaks that may affect them, and make relevant information available to those entities, as specified. The bill would authorize the local public health officer to issue directives to other governmental entities within the health officer’s jurisdiction to take any action the health officer deems necessary to control the spread of the communicable disease.

By imposing new requirements on local public health officers, this bill would create 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, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Digest Key

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: YES  

---

Bill Text

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

 Section 120175.5 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:

120175.5.

 (a) The local health officer shall do both of the following:

(1) Promptly notify and update the local public entities within the health officer’s jurisdiction about communicable disease outbreaks that may affect them.

(2)  Make relevant information available to the local public entities, including, but not limited to, the locations of concentrations of cases, the number of residents affected, and the measures that the local public entities should take to assist with outbreak response efforts.

(b) In addition to the actions required under subdivision (a), if the local health officer knows or has reason to believe that any case of the diseases made reportable by regulation of the department, or any other contagious, infectious or communicable disease exists, or has recently existed, within the territory under that health officer’s jurisdiction, the health officer may issue directives to other governmental entities within that jurisdiction to take any action the health officer deems necessary to control the spread of the communicable disease.

SEC. 2.

 If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.