Bail bonds.

(1) Existing law, the Bail Fugitive Recovery Persons Act, regulates bail fugitive recovery agents, defined as a person given written authorization by the bail or depositor of bail and contracted to investigate, surveil, locate, and arrest a bail fugitive and any person employed to assist the bail or depositor of bail to investigate, surveil, locate, and arrest a bail fugitive. Existing law prohibits an insurer from executing an undertaking of bail except by and through a person holding a bail license, as specified. Existing law provides for the issuance of bail licenses under the jurisdiction of the Insurance Commissioner. Under existing law, bail licenses include bail agent licenses, bail permittee licenses, and bail solicitor licenses. Existing law requires the commissioner to charge and collect specified fees for an application for a new or renewed bail license by a bail agent, bail permittee, or bail solicitor. This bill would, commencing July 1, 2023, include bail fugitive recovery agent licenses in the list of bail licenses and would prohibit a person from performing the activities of a bail fugitive recovery agent unless the person holds a license, as specified. The bill would exempt an individual holding a bail agent's, bail permittee's, or bail solicitor's license from a bail fugitive recovery agent's licensing requirements. (2) Existing law permits a bail agent licensee to solicit, negotiate, and effect undertakings of bail on behalf of any surety insurer while an unrevoked notice of appointment, as specified, has been filed. Existing law requires a bail agent licensee to file with the commissioner a surety bond of $1,000. This bill would, commencing July 1, 2023, require a bail fugitive recovery agent to file with the commissioner a surety bond of $1,000 and a policy of liability insurance with minimum limits of $1,000,000. The bill would require the Insurance Commissioner to delay the implementation of the liability insurance requirement, if there is either a reasonable lack of availability or affordability, or both, of liability insurance. The bill would exempt bail agents, bail permittees, and bail solicitors who are applying for a bail fugitive recovery agent license from these filing provisions if they have a current surety bond and liability insurance policy on file with the commissioner. (3) Existing law requires an applicant for a license to act as a bail agent to file with the commissioner a notice of appointment executed by a surety insurer or its authorized representative authorizing that applicant to execute undertakings of bail and to solicit and negotiate those undertakings on its behalf. Existing law allows a notice of appointment to continue in force until the occurrence of 3 specified events. This bill would, commencing July 1, 2023, also require an applicant for a bail fugitive recovery agent's license to file a notice of appointment with the commissioner, and would allow a notice of appointment to continue in force until the termination of a bail fugitive recovery agent's license, the end of the license term, as specified, or the filing of a notice of termination by the bail agent, the insurer, or the bail fugitive recovery agent. The bill would exempt bail agents and bail permittees, who apply for a bail fugitive recovery agent license, from these provisions if they have one or more surety appointments on file with the commissioner and the surety or sureties have authorized the bail agent or bail permittee to work as a bail fugitive recovery agent. The bill would require a bail fugitive recovery agent to disclose to the department that they are also a bail agent, permittee, or solicitor, on their license application and renewal and to carry specified identification cards. The bill would prohibit a person convicted of a felony from being a bail licensee, unless the person is licensed pursuant to statute. (4) Existing law allows the commissioner to issue a temporary license to the executor or administrator of a deceased holder of a bail agent's or bail permittee's license. This bill would, commencing July 1, 2023, allow the commissioner to issue a temporary license to the executor or administrator of the estate of a deceased holder of a bail fugitive recovery person's license. (5) Existing law requires the commissioner to charge and collect specified fees for an application for a new or renewed bail license by a bail agent, bail permittee, or bail solicitor. Under existing law, the fee for an application or request for a bail agent's or bail solicitor's license is $283. Existing law establishes the fee for a bail permittee's license at $567, and establishes other fees for renewal applications, fictitious name statements, bond filings, and amendments of applications, as specified. This bill would increase the application fee for a bail agent's or bail solicitor's license to $311. The bill would also increase the application fee for a bail permittee's license to $624. The bill would increase the fees to file other applications and documents, as specified. The bill would, commencing July 1, 2023, require the commissioner to collect an annual fee of $311 to file an application for a bail fugitive recovery person's license and an annual fee of $94 for a bail fugitive recovery agent's renewal application. (6) Existing law requires the commissioner to publish and maintain a list of holders of certain licenses, as specified. This bill would, commencing July 1, 2023, require the commissioner to publish and maintain a list of holders of bail fugitive recovery person's licenses on the department's internet website, along with the license numbers. (7) Existing law requires certain persons contracting their services as a bail fugitive recovery agent and certain licensees who engage in the arrest of a defendant to comply with various requirements, including being at least 18 years of age and completing various courses and classes. This bill would, commencing July 1, 2023, require a bail fugitive recovery agent, a bail agent, a bail permittee, or bail solicitor who contracts their services as a bail fugitive recovery person and a bail agent, bail permittee, or bail solicitor who engages in the arrest of a defendant to instead comply with specified provisions of the Insurance Code and any regulations promulgated by the commissioner. (8) Existing law requires an applicant, prior to taking an examination for a bail license, to complete a minimum of 20 hours of classroom education pertaining to the duties and responsibilities of a bail licensee. Existing law requires a licensee to complete in each 2-year license term not fewer than 12 hours of continuing education in these subjects prior to renewal of their license. The bill would, commencing July 1, 2023, include an additional requirement, prior to taking an examination for a bail license, of completing a 40-hour power of arrest course, and would clarify that the completion of the course would be for educational purposes only and not intended to confer the power of arrest unless the person is employed by a governmental agency to make arrests. The bill would require a bail fugitive recovery agent and a bail agent, who hires, trains, or designates assignments for bail fugitive recovery agents, to complete the 40-hour power of arrest course. (9) Existing law prohibits a person, other than a certified law enforcement officer, to apprehend, detain, or arrest a bail fugitive unless the person is a specified bail licensee, bail fugitive recovery agent, a private investigator licensed in this state, or holds a specified license in another state. Existing law makes a violation of the Bail Fugitive Recovery Persons Act a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of $5,000, or imprisonment in a county jail not to exceed one year, or both that fine and imprisonment. This bill would, commencing July 1, 2023, limit that authority to apprehend, detain, or arrest a bail fugitive to a specified bail licensee and a private investigator licensed in this state who are also bail fugitive recovery agents. The bill would prohibit a bail licensee and a private investigator who are licensed in another state from apprehending, arresting, or detaining a bail fugitive in this state, unless they obtain a bail fugitive recovery agent license in this state and comply with the laws of this state. By increasing the scope of an existing crime and by creating a new crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (10) 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 no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.