Chico council accepts police's AB 481 military-equipment report after heated public hearing

The Chico City Council voted 4-3 to accept the Chico Police Department's annual Assembly Bill 481 military equipment use report on Tuesday after an extended public hearing featuring more than a dozen speakers.

Captain Omar Pena, presenting the department's annual report, told the council that in 2025 the department recorded 154 incidents involving military equipment and that the bulk of those involved drones: "144 were drone deployments" and "439 flights of the drones," he said, explaining how the department counts incidents and deployments. Pena said the department is transitioning to American-made drones (Skydio X10) and is seeking authority to pursue funding for proposed 2026 acquisitions, including three Skydio drones (about $20,000 each), consumable less-lethal munitions, seven patrol rifles and a request for three incident-command vehicles that critics estimated at roughly $1.2 million total.

Public commenters largely opposed the higher-cost vehicle purchases and urged the council to prioritize social services and de-escalation training. "I do not think Chico has enough crime to warrant these purchases," Madeline Manning said, adding that militarized equipment makes her "fear law enforcement." Laurel Yorkes of Chico Peace Alliance said the community should choose potholes and human services over $1.2 million in vehicles.

Supporters said some equipment reduces risk to officers and the public. A representative of a veterans group who attended the community engagement meeting praised the department's presentation and said the gear can reduce danger during critical incidents.

Council debate focused on the legal and budgetary limits of the AB 481 review. Council members repeatedly clarified that council action under AB 481 authorizes the department to seek funding for equipment but does not itself spend money. Councilmember Goldstein pushed for tighter scrutiny of high-ticket items: "I'm not supportive of the idea of the three incident command vehicles solely due to the cost," she said. Councilmember Hawley moved to approve the report and the policy but exclude the request for seven semiautomatic patrol rifles; that motion initially failed on a related amendment but the council ultimately accepted a motion to receive the annual report as submitted.

The vote did not fund purchases; department leadership said grant awards or the annual budget process would determine whether items are acquired. Captain Pena cautioned that blocking authority to seek grants could prevent the department from pursuing outside funding for equipment: "If we go down this path, you're also blocking our ability to seek grants that could fund these items," he told the council.

The council also directed staff to continue public engagement and noted that any purchases would be revisited during the 2026 budget process. The council's acceptance of the AB 481 report fulfilled the statutory review requirement but left open future budget and procurement decisions.

Ending: Councilmembers signaled the item would return as part of budget deliberations; the council took a 10-minute break after the vote.