BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                       



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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                   AB 585|
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                                 THIRD READING


          Bill No:  AB 585
          Author:   Duvall (R)
          Amended:  As introduced
          Vote:     21

           
           SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE  :  5-0, 7/7/09
          AYES:  Corbett, Harman, Florez, Leno, Walters
           
          ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  75-0, 4/20/09 (Consent) - See last page  
            for vote


           SUBJECT  :    Deceased personalities

           SOURCE  :     Author


           DIGEST  :    This bill amends the definition of a deceased  
          personality to include a person whose name, voice,  
          signature, photograph, or likeness has commercial value  
          because of his/her death.

           ANALYSIS  :    Existing law prohibits the use of a deceased  
          personality's name, voice, signature, photograph, or  
          likeness, without consent, on merchandise or goods,  
          products, or services for 70 years after the death of the  
          deceased personality.  The right to consent is transferable  
          by contract, trust or testamentary instrument, and this  
          right is exercisable by those persons to whom the right was  
          transferred, or, if no such person exists, by the spouse or  
          other specifically listed heirs.  An exception to this  
          prohibition is the use of the personality's name, voice,  
                                                           CONTINUED





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          signature or photo or likeness in a play, book, magazines,  
          etc., or other material that is of political or newsworthy  
          value, or is a single work of fine art, or in an  
          advertisement or commercial announcement of any of these  
          uses.  Thus, use of a name, voice, signature, photograph,  
          or likeness of a deceased personality in connection with  
          any news, public affairs, or sports broadcast or account or  
          any political campaign does not constitute a use for which  
          consent is required under law.  (Sections 3344.1(a)(1),  
          3344.1(a)(2), and 3344.1(b) of the Civil Code)

          Existing law defines "deceased personality" as a person  
          whose name, voice, signature, photograph or likeness has  
          commercial value at the time of his/her death, whether or  
          not during his/her lifetime the name, voice, signature,  
          photo, or likeness was used on products, merchandise, goods  
          or for advertising or selling products, merchandise, or  
          services. (Section 3344.1(h) of the Civil Code) 

          This bill amends the definition of "deceased personality"  
          to include persons whose names, likenesses, or other  
          characteristics have commercial value because of their  
          death. 

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  No    
          Local:  No

           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  7/8/09)

          American Legion - Department of California
          California State Sheriffs' Association
          Sheriff-Coroner of Stanislaus County
          The Blue Star Moms
          Vietnam Veterans of America, California State Council

           OPPOSITION  :    (Verified  7/8/09)

          California Newspaper Publishers Association

           ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT  :    This bill is a response to the  
          Internet sale of T-shirts and other political merchandise  
          that contains the names of American soldiers killed in the  
          war in Iraq.  According to the author, out of respect to  
          both the soldiers and their families, the names of fallen  







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          soldiers should not be exploited for commercial use.  The  
          author states:  "After all, the law has been there to  
          protect Hollywood actors.  We are merely adding on to the  
          existing language in an attempt to offer the same  
          protection to our soldiers and their families that we  
          extend to actors."

          The American Legion and Vietnam Veterans of California  
          states:  "We believe this will protect our fallen soldiers  
          and their families from having the soldier's names or  
          likenesses abused by groups, particularly those groups who  
          protest the war by printing t-shirts with dead soldier's  
          names on them."  Other supporters, parents of soldiers who  
          had been lost in the war in Iraq, state that  
          "[e]xploitation because of death solely for monetary gain  
          is reprehensible and in complete disregard for the parents'  
          well-being."

           ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION  :    The California Newspaper  
          Publishers Association (CNPA) states that "?[T]his bill is  
          intended to create civil liability for those who have  
          printed the names of deceased soldiers on T-shirts for sale  
          to the public.  Without judging a particular factual  
          situation, there is strong argument that the creation and  
          distribution of T-shirts with the names of deceased  
          soldiers is political speech that is protected by the First  
          Amendment and the California Constitution, even if the  
          shirts are sold for a profit.  Because it appears the bill  
          is intended to chill this speech, rather than protect the  
          legitimate intellectual property interests of the heirs of  
          deceased personalities, CNPA must respectfully oppose  
          [this] bill."


           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  : 
          AYES:  Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Arambula, Beall, Bill  
            Berryhill, Tom Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Brownley,  
            Caballero, Carter, Conway, Cook, Coto, Davis, De La  
            Torre, De Leon, DeVore, Duvall, Emmerson, Eng, Evans,  
            Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani, Gaines,  
            Galgiani, Garrick, Gilmore, Hagman, Harkey, Hayashi,  
            Hernandez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Knight,  
            Krekorian, Lieu, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza,  
            Miller, Monning, Nava, Nestande, Niello, Nielsen, John A.  







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            Perez, V. Manuel Perez, Portantino, Price, Ruskin, Salas,  
            Saldana, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Audra  
            Strickland, Swanson, Torlakson, Torres, Torrico, Tran,  
            Villines, Yamada, Bass
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Blakeslee, Buchanan, Charles Calderon,  
            Chesbro, Hall


          RJG:mw  7/8/09   Senate Floor Analyses 

                         SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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