BILL ANALYSIS SB 1233 Page 1 Date of Hearing: June 30, 2010 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Felipe Fuentes, Chair SB 1233 (Oropeza) - As Amended: May 17, 2010 Policy Committee: JudiciaryVote:10-0 (Consent) Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: Yes Reimbursable: No SUMMARY This bill: 1)Eliminates the January 1, 2013 sunset dates on the Safe at Home address confidentiality program and the Safe at Home voter confidentiality program. 2)Requires that change of name records pertaining to a Safe at Home program participant be retained permanently rather than being destroyed three years after participation ends in the program. FISCAL EFFECT Permanent extension of annual program administrative costs-currently about $300,000 (General Fund)-in 2012-13 and beyond. COMMENTS Background and Purpose . The Safe at Home program, which was established by SB 489 (Alpert)/Chapter 1005 of 1998, allows victims of domestic violence or stalking to apply to the Secretary of State (SOS) to request an alternate address to be used in public records. The program is intended to allow public agencies to respond to requests for public records without disclosing the changed name or location of a victim of domestic violence or stalking. The SOS provides a substitute, publicly accessible address for these victims while protecting their actual residences or locations. The SOS also acts as the program participants' agent for service of process and forwards SB 1233 Page 2 mail received at the substitute address provided. A program participant, once certified, may stay in the program for four years, after which re-certification is required. In 2002, the Safe at Home program was expanded to include reproductive health care services providers, employees, volunteers, and patients to prevent potential acts of violence. In 2006, the program was expanded to include victims of sexual assault. According to the 2009 program report, there are 2,437 active participants in the program, and 4,974 participants have been served since the program's inception. The original 2005 sunset date for the program has been extended twice, most recently by AB 2169 (Montanez)/Chapter 475 of 2006. This bill, sponsored by the SOS, removes the sunset, thereby making the program permanent, and requires that the SOS permanently retain name change records for program participants. No concerns have been raised about the administration or cost of the Safe at Home Program. Permanently establishing this address confidentiality program will assure participants that their anonymity, and thus some measure of their safety, is not in jeopardy. Analysis Prepared by : Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081