BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 625
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 625 (Quirk)
As Amended June 26, 2013
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |76-0 |(April 11, |SENATE: |33-0 |(July 8, 2013) |
| | |2013) | | | |
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Original Committee Reference: JUD.
SUMMARY : Seeks to authorize notaries public to reasonably rely
on the presentation of an inmate identification card issued by
the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), if the
inmate is in custody, to establish the identity of the inmate
described in and executing a written instrument. Specifically,
this bill :
1)Authorizes a notary public to take acknowledgement of a
written instrument in reasonable reliance upon the
presentation of an inmate identification card issued by the
CDCR, if the inmate is in custody in prison, requiring the
identification card to be current or have been issued within
the past five years, but without certain additional
identifying information, including a photograph and
description of the person named on it, or signed by the
person, or a serial or other identifying number.
2)Makes the following findings and declarations:
a) The state and its counties have a financial and public
safety interest in ensuring the children of people
convicted of felonies and sentenced to state prison time
have access to appropriate schooling and medical treatment.
Eighty percent of imprisoned women are mothers and the
vast majority were the primary care provider of minor
children at the time of their arrest and imprisonment.
These minor children's access to school and medical
treatment may be unnecessarily interrupted should their
incarcerated parent lack timely and affordable access to a
notary public necessary for them to complete paperwork to
establish temporary guardianship for their children.
b) The state and its counties have a financial and public
AB 625
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safety interest in ensuring people convicted of felonies
and sentenced to state prison time are able to successfully
reenter their communities upon completion of their
sentences and live a crime-free life. Evidence-based
research demonstrates a clear connection between decreased
recidivism rates and strength of familial bonds during
periods of incarceration. These bonds are weakened when
minor children are unnecessarily prevented from visiting
incarcerated parents due merely to the incarcerated
parents' lack of timely and affordable access to a notary
public required to complete required visitation forms.
c) The state has taken significant measures to ensure due
process and accuracy in determining the identity of people
convicted of felonies and held in control of the CDCR, and
in tracking these individuals' appropriate identity through
issuance and monitoring of state inmate identification
cards.
The Senate amendments simply clarify that the inmate
identification card can be relied upon as long as it is current
or has been issued in the past five years and the inmate is in
custody in prison and deletes the provision of the bill relating
to executing a jurat.
FISCAL EFFECT : None
COMMENTS : This bill, sponsored by Justice Now, seeks to
authorize notaries public to reasonably rely on the presentation
of an inmate identification card issued by the CDCR, if the
inmate is in custody, to establish the identity of the inmate
described in and executing a written instrument. According to
the sponsor, a legal services and human rights organization that
works with people inside California women's prisons:
In California, roughly 195,000 children have a parent
in state prison. Eighty percent of people in women's
prisons are mothers. According to the California
Research Bureau, approximately two-thirds of mothers
in prison were the primary care provider for their
children before imprisonment. In order for parents in
prison to arrange temporary guardianship, approve
visits for their children, and take care of a wide
range of family matters, access to notary services is
absolutely necessary. All people in prison have the
right to access notary services.
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According to a report published in 2008 by the CDCR, titled The
Master Plan for Female Offenders, incarcerated women, who are
mothers, are less likely to have a partner on the outside that
can help care for and raise their children. This is in stark
contrast to incarcerated fathers who are more likely to have a
partner that can care for and raise their children. The
incarceration of a parent can be traumatic and life altering for
children. Uninterrupted access to guardianship, school and
medical treatment are necessary in order for a child of an
incarcerated parent to retain a sense of "normalcy" in their
lives. Once a parent is incarcerated, these arrangements can be
legally made through a notary public.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, more than half of mothers and fathers in state
prisons report having received no in-person visits from their
children since their admission. In addition, parents with
multiple children may receive visits from some children, but not
from others.
Currently, under Title 15 of the California Code of Regulations,
Section 3019, inmates must carry on their person any
identification or privilege card issued for identification
purposes. Under the current statutory scheme, an inmate
identification card that is current or issued within the
previous five years by the CDCR if the inmate is in custody is
an allowable form of identification only if it contains certain
identifying information, including a photograph and description
of the person named on it, is signed by the person, and has a
serial or other identifying number. This bill would make an
inmate identification card presumptively an allowable form of
identification, without the additional identifying information,
for a credible witness to prove the identity of an individual
who executes a written instrument.
According to the sponsor, as it currently stands, CDCR issues a
separate form of identification to inmates for notary purposes.
CDCR has taken significant measures to ensure due process and
accuracy in determining the identity of people sentenced to
prison. "As such, the process of creating and issuing
additional specialized IDs is costly, unnecessary and delays
access to service. By removing an unnecessary step and
streamlining the process through which people in prison seek
important notary services, this bill will help reduce barriers
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to maintaining family bonds as well as save the state money and
resources."
Supporters emphasize that this bill will ensure timely access to
valuable notary services, while incarcerated, by allowing use of
a CDCR inmate identification card. This bill will help
incarcerated parents visit with their children by authorizing
notaries public to reasonably rely on the presentation of an
inmate identification card, which is already issued by the CDCR,
if the inmate is in custody, to establish the identity of the
inmate described in and executing the written instrument. This
bill will also benefit all state prisoners who must rely upon
notary services.
Analysis Prepared by : Drew Liebert / JUD. / (916) 319-2334
FN: 0001523