Senate committee advances bill letting local emergency offices seek code‑3 vehicle permits

The California State Senate Transportation Committee advanced Assembly Bill 438 on a committee vote, sending the measure to the Committee on Appropriations. Assemblymember Hadwick, the bill’s author, told the committee the measure would let city and county offices of emergency services apply to the California Highway Patrol for an authorized emergency vehicle permit so local OES personnel can use lights and sirens when situations warrant.

Hadwick said local emergency offices are often the first line of defense in fires, floods, hazardous‑materials incidents and other disasters and that current law treats police, fire and state Office of Emergency Services vehicles as authorized emergency vehicles while local OES vehicles lack that authorization. “If 9‑1‑1 dispatchers are considered the first responders, office of emergency services personnel are the First responders in fires, floods, hazardous waste spells, and other disasters,” Hadwick told the committee.

Why it matters: committee witnesses and the author said the change is intended to speed evacuations and coordination in rural and dispersed counties where OES staff are few and distances are large. Hadwick, who identified herself as a former emergency operations manager in Modoc County, said some counties have only one or two OES staff for an entire county and must travel many miles to reach affected communities, citing her county’s 4,200‑square‑mile area and trips of “60 miles, 70 miles to evacuate.”

Sutter County emergency operations manager Zachary Hamill, a witness in support, described the operational need. “This is not about routine use or adding sirens to every county vehicle. It's about enabling trained emergency management staff to respond rapidly during time sensitive life safety situations,” Hamill said, adding that in at least one Northern California county OES personnel had to drive code‑3 out of a cellular dead zone to reach internet access to issue an evacuation order.

Committee procedure and vote: Vice Chair Strickland moved the measure. The committee vote was recorded as 12 yes, 0 no; the motion directs the bill to the Committee on Appropriations and was left on call. The committee clerk and members recorded the aye votes during roll call; the vice chair made the motion.

What the bill would do: AB 438 would allow—but would not require—local jurisdictions to apply for an authorized emergency vehicle permit from the California Highway Patrol for their OES vehicles. Supporters said the change is optional and local agencies would likely authorize only a small number of vehicles and use them only when necessary.

Next steps: AB 438 will be considered by the Senate Committee on Appropriations.