Police Department
AB 481 Military Equipment
1 City Council Meeting
April 7, 2026
J ohn Cregan, Chief of Police
Christopher Mahurin, Lieutenant
AB 481
• September 30, 2021- Assembly Bill 481 signed
into law.
• Codified by Government Code sections § 7070-
7075
• 481: Military Equipment Funding, Acquisition
and Use
• Help with transparency, accountability, oversight of
acquisition and use of equipment
• Safeguards to protect public welfare, safety, civil
rights and liberties
2 AB 481 Requirements
• Post a draft policy and equipment inventory
online within 30 days of a public meeting
• Seek Government body approval of a Policy and
Ordinance as well as prepare an Annual report
which includes:
• How the equipment is used
• Maintenance use and costs
• Quantity possessed
• Internal Audits
• Community input and questions on use and complaints
• Requires council approval for the acquisition of funds associated with military equipment
3 Categories of Equipment
• AB 481 has 15 categories of equipment that fall
under the law
• The Santa Rosa Police Department has
equipment that qualifies for 8 of those
categories
4 SRPD Categories of Equipment
1. Projectile Launchers
2. “Flashbang” grenades, “tear gas” and “pepper balls”
(Chemical Agents/Diversionary Devices)
3. Command and Control Vehicles
4. Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD)
5. Specialized Firearms and Ammunition of less than .50 caliber
6. Armored Personnel Carriers (Armored Rescue Vehicles)
7. Battering Rams, Slugs, and Breaching Apparatuses that are Explosive in Nature
8. Unmanned Aerial or Ground Vehicles 5
Projectile Launchers
• Allows officers to use chemical agents or kinetic
energy projectiles
• Officers can deploy these from a greater
distance, which provides an alternative option
for a higher-level use of force
• This category includes 40mm less-lethal
launchers and sponge rounds
6 40MM Launcher
7 Chemical Munitions
Diversionary Devices
• Includes items such as Flashbangs and CS gas.
• Flashbangs are a distraction device used by the SWAT
team during high-risk situations
• SWAT team uses chemical agents to help extract a
subject from a fixed location, deny an area to a suspect, or safely detain a suspect who poses a risk of violence • Mobile Field Force uses chemical agents in a riotous
situation
• This category includes CS gas and flashbangs. SRPD has disposed of chemical agent munitions we no longer have
a need for and continues to evaluate our munitions.
8 9
CTS 9230 CTS 7290
CTS 9230 Deftech 1032 Deftech 56854
Command and Control Vehicles
• Vehicles with radio communication and technology to
facilitate the command and control of units in the field • For special events, critical and non-critical incidents, and natural disasters
• Allows for mobile command and dispatching by being
near the actual incident location, allowing for better
decision-making
• This category includes a mobile command vehicle and
Hostage Negotiations/Command and Control Vehicle
10 Mobile Hostage Negotiations, Command and
Control
11 Long Range Acoustic Device
• A communication system to relay critical
information during situations such as:
• Natural disasters, evacuations, protests, high-
risk search or arrest warrants,
hostage/barricade situations, search and
rescues
• The warning tone on the SRPD LRAD has been
disabled
12 LRAD 100X
13 Specialized Firearms and
Ammunition
• SRPD has specialized rifles and ammunition
(includes 5.56mm and .308 caliber) used by the
SWAT Team
• They allow for more precision and accuracy than
handguns as well as provide longer distances
• This minimizes the risk to the public and officers
instead of the use of a standard handgun
• SRPD has launching cartridges that allow the
option for deploying chemical munitions
14 FN Rifle 5.56mm and SAKO Tikka .308 Rifle
15 Armored Rescue Vehicles
• Used to provide ballistic protection to citizens
and officers during rescues, critical incidents, or
other hazardous situations
• Used as a rescue vehicle in the event a victim or
an officer is in dire need of rescue
• These are reinforced civilian vehicles
16 Lenco Bearcat - SRPD
17 Breaching Apparatuses
• Breaching shotgun rounds are used in high-risk
entries or barricade/hostage situations where
entry needs to be made quickly
• The KBT breaching tool is a self-contained impact
ram with powder-actuated cartridges that go
directly into a door or entryway.
• In less urgent or high-risk situations, officers
have access to handheld battering rams
18 Royal Arms TESCR
19 Kinetic Breaching Technologies (KBT)
20 Unmanned Aerial or Ground
Systems (Drones & Robots)
Allows officers to view areas from locations they would not normally be able to or would need to be in a heightened risk of danger to obtain the same information
• This allows for a better view and greater ability to gather more information
• Used for things such as searching for missing individuals, looking for suspects, documenting crime scenes
• SRPD would like to purchase four drones for interior
buildings and small/tight area outdoor searches
21 22
Autel EVO II Robotex
Avatar 2
The policy, inventory, and ordinance is available
online at:
https://srcity.org/3217/Policies
Questions or concerns related to the policy can be
sent to:
[email protected]
23 • SRPD will continue to have access to the resources and items deemed military equipment that were available
prior to AB 481
• SRPD will be able to purchase additional drones to assist with searches of missing people and clearing buildings. • SRPD will track the usage of items and prepare an annual report detailing that usage and any future purchases
• These tools and items will continue to give SRPD options to help safely resolve violent and volatile incidents to maintain the safety of the community
24 If Approved
• The Department will not have access to and will cease using any items listed in AB 481
• SRPD will no longer have the tools to effectively respond and minimize risk to critical incidents
• SRPD will rely on outside agencies to help resolve certain critical incidents; although, there are legal barriers which might not allow this
25 Without Approval
Recommendation
It is recommended by the Police Department that
the Council introduce an ordinance to (1) amend
Title 2 of the Santa Rosa City Code by adding
Chapter 2-38, Military Equipment Use Ordinance,
and (2) approve Santa Rosa Police Department
Policy 707 – Military Equipment.
26 Questions?
27