Bill > AB394

This bill expands legal protections for public transportation employees and contractors by modifying existing laws related to workplace violence and restraining orders. Specifically, the bill broadens the definition of battery against transportation workers to include public transportation providers, their employees, and contractors, making it a criminal offense to commit violence against these individuals while they are performing their duties. The bill also requires that temporary restraining orders related to such incidents be enforceable across an entire public transit system, including all vehicles, stations, stops, and facilities. Law enforcement agencies with jurisdiction over the transit system are now authorized to enforce these orders, and the transit system itself must assist in enforcement by notifying relevant law enforcement agencies about the order's issuance. Additionally, the bill mandates that if a battery occurs against a transportation worker and the perpetrator knows or should know the victim is working, the offense can be punished by a fine up to $10,000, imprisonment in county jail for up to one year, or both. If the battery results in injury, the penalties can include a fine up to $10,000 and imprisonment in county jail or state prison. The bill does not require state reimbursement for these changes, as they primarily relate to creating or modifying criminal penalties.

Budget and Finance, Justice

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB394