BILL NUMBER: AB 1220	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 21, 2013

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Skinner

                        FEBRUARY 22, 2013

   An act to amend Section  51   1785.15 
of the Civil Code, relating to  civil rights  
consumer credit  .



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1220, as amended, Skinner.  Unruh Civil Rights Act.
  Consumer credit reporting: files: inspections. 

   Existing law requires a consumer credit reporting agency, upon
request and proper identification of any consumer, to allow the
consumer to visually inspect all files maintained regarding that
consumer at the time of the request. Existing law additionally grants
a consumer the right to request and receive a written copy of the
file.  
   This bill would require, if a consumer requests a written copy of
his or her file, that the consumer receive the same information that
is provided to a user of a consumer credit report, unless otherwise
specified.  
   The Unruh Civil Rights Act generally prohibits business
establishments from discriminating on the basis of sex, race, color,
religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, or medical
condition.  
   This bill would make a technical, nonsubstantive change to this
provision. 
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   SECTION 1.    Section 1785.15 of the   Civil
Code   is amended to read: 
   1785.15.  (a) A consumer credit reporting agency shall supply
files and information required under Section 1785.10 during normal
business hours and on reasonable notice.  If a consumer requests
a written copy of his or her file, the consumer shall receive the
same information that is provided to a user of a consumer credit
report unless the consumer specifies otherwise.  In addition to
the disclosure provided by this chapter and any disclosures received
by the consumer, the consumer has the right to request and receive
all of the following:
   (1) Either a decoded written version of the file or a written copy
of the file, including all information in the file at the time of
the request, with an explanation of any code used.
   (2) A credit score for the consumer, the key factors, and the
related information, as defined in and required by Section 1785.15.1.

   (3) A record of all inquiries, by recipient, that result in the
provision of information concerning the consumer in connection with a
credit transaction not initiated by the consumer and that were
received by the consumer credit reporting agency in the 12-month
period immediately preceding the request for disclosure under this
section.
   (4) The recipients, including end users specified in Section
1785.22, of any consumer credit report on the consumer which the
consumer credit reporting agency has furnished:
   (A) For employment purposes within the two-year period preceding
the request.
   (B) For any other purpose within the 12-month period preceding the
request.
   Identification for purposes of this paragraph shall include the
name of the recipient or, if applicable, the fictitious business name
under which the recipient does business disclosed in full. If
requested by the consumer, the identification shall also include the
address of the recipient.
   (b) Files maintained on a consumer shall be disclosed promptly as
follows:
   (1) In person, at the location where the consumer credit reporting
agency maintains the trained personnel required by subdivision (d),
if he or she appears in person and furnishes proper identification.
   (2) By mail, if the consumer makes a written request with proper
identification for a copy of the file or a decoded written version of
that file to be sent to the consumer at a specified address. A
disclosure pursuant to this paragraph shall be deposited in the
United States mail, postage prepaid, within five business days after
the consumer's written request for the disclosure is received by the
consumer credit reporting agency. Consumer credit reporting agencies
complying with requests for mailings under this section shall not be
liable for disclosures to third parties caused by mishandling of mail
after the mailings leave the consumer credit reporting agencies.
   (3) A summary of all information contained in files on a consumer
and required to be provided by Section 1785.10 shall be provided by
telephone, if the consumer has made a written request, with proper
identification for telephone disclosure.
   (4) Information in a consumer's file required to be provided in
writing under this section may also be disclosed in another form if
authorized by the consumer and if available from the consumer credit
reporting agency. For this purpose, a consumer may request disclosure
in person pursuant to Section 1785.10, by telephone upon disclosure
of proper identification by the consumer, by electronic means if
available from the consumer credit reporting agency, or by any other
reasonable means that is available from the consumer credit reporting
agency.
   (c) "Proper identification," as used in subdivision (b) means that
information generally deemed sufficient to identify a person. Only
if the consumer is unable to reasonably identify himself or herself
with the information described above may a consumer credit reporting
agency require additional information concerning the consumer's
employment and personal or family history in order to verify his or
her identity.
   (d) The consumer credit reporting agency shall provide trained
personnel to explain to the consumer any information furnished him or
her pursuant to Section 1785.10.
   (e) The consumer shall be permitted to be accompanied by one other
person of his or her choosing, who shall furnish reasonable
identification. A consumer credit reporting agency may require the
consumer to furnish a written statement granting permission to the
consumer credit reporting agency to discuss the consumer's file in
that person's presence.
   (f) Any written disclosure by a consumer credit reporting agency
to any consumer pursuant to this section shall include a written
summary of all rights the consumer has under this title and, in the
case of a consumer credit reporting agency that compiles and
maintains consumer credit reports on a nationwide basis, a toll-free
telephone number that the consumer can use to communicate with the
consumer credit reporting agency. The written summary of rights
required under this subdivision is sufficient if in substantially the
following form:
   "You have a right to obtain a copy of your credit file from a
consumer credit reporting agency. You may be charged a reasonable fee
not exceeding eight dollars ($8). There is no fee, however, if you
have been turned down for credit, employment, insurance, or a rental
dwelling because of information in your credit report within the
preceding 60 days. The consumer credit reporting agency must provide
someone to help you interpret the information in your credit file.
   You have a right to dispute inaccurate information by contacting
the consumer credit reporting agency directly. However, neither you
nor any credit repair company or credit service organization has the
right to have accurate, current, and verifiable information removed
from your credit report. Under the Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act,
the consumer credit reporting agency must remove accurate, negative
information from your report only if it is over seven years old.
Bankruptcy information can be reported for 10 years.
   If you have notified a consumer credit reporting agency in writing
that you dispute the accuracy of information in your file, the
consumer credit reporting agency must then, within 30 business days,
reinvestigate and modify or remove inaccurate information. The
consumer credit reporting agency may not charge a fee for this
service. Any pertinent information and copies of all documents you
have concerning an error should be given to the consumer credit
reporting agency.
   If reinvestigation does not resolve the dispute to your
satisfaction, you may send a brief statement to the consumer credit
reporting agency to keep in your file, explaining why you think the
record is inaccurate. The consumer credit reporting agency must
include your statement about disputed information in a report it
issues about you.
   You have a right to receive a record of all inquiries relating to
a credit transaction initiated in 12 months preceding your request.
This record shall include the recipients of any consumer credit
report.
   You may request in writing that the information contained in your
file not be provided to a third party for marketing purposes.
   You have a right to place a "security alert" in your credit
report, which will warn anyone who receives information in your
credit report that your identity may have been used without your
consent. Recipients of your credit report are required to take
reasonable steps, including contacting you at the telephone number
you may provide with your security alert, to verify your identity
prior to lending money, extending credit, or completing the purchase,
lease, or rental of goods or services. The security alert may
prevent credit, loans, and services from being approved in your name
without your consent. However, you should be aware that taking
advantage of this right may delay or interfere with the timely
approval of any subsequent request or application you make regarding
a new loan, credit, mortgage, or cellular phone or other new account,
including an extension of credit at point of sale. If you place a
security alert on your credit report, you have a right to obtain a
free copy of your credit report at the time the 90-day security alert
period expires. A security alert may be requested by calling the
following toll-free telephone number: (Insert applicable toll-free
telephone number). California consumers also have the right to obtain
a "security freeze."
   You have a right to place a "security freeze" on your credit
report, which will prohibit a consumer credit reporting agency from
releasing any information in your credit report without your express
authorization. A security freeze must be requested in writing by
mail. The security freeze is designed to prevent credit, loans, and
services from being approved in your name without your consent.
However, you should be aware that using a security freeze to take
control over who gets access to the personal and financial
information in your credit report may delay, interfere with, or
prohibit the timely approval of any subsequent request or application
you make regarding a new loan, credit, mortgage, or cellular phone
or other new account, including an extension of credit at point of
sale. When you place a security freeze on your credit report, you
will be provided a personal identification number or password to use
if you choose to remove the freeze on your credit report or authorize
the release of your credit report for a specific party or period of
time after the freeze is in place. To provide that authorization you
must contact the consumer credit reporting agency and provide all of
the following:
   (1) The personal identification number or password.
   (2) Proper identification to verify your identity.
   (3) The proper information regarding the third party who is to
receive the credit report or the period of time for which the report
shall be available to users of the credit report.
   A consumer credit reporting agency must authorize the release of
your credit report no later than three business days after receiving
the above information.
   A security freeze does not apply when you have an existing account
and a copy of your report is requested by your existing creditor or
its agents or affiliates for certain types of account review,
collection, fraud control, or similar activities.
   If you are actively seeking credit, you should understand that the
procedures involved in lifting a security freeze may slow your
application for credit. You should plan ahead and lift a freeze,
either completely if you are shopping around, or specifically for a
certain creditor, before applying for new credit.
   A consumer credit reporting agency may not charge a fee to a
consumer for placing or removing a security freeze if the consumer is
a victim of identity theft and submits a copy of a valid police
report or valid Department of Motor Vehicles investigative report. A
person 65 years of age or older with proper identification shall not
be charged a fee for placing an initial security freeze, but may be
charged a fee of no more than five dollars ($5) for lifting,
removing, or replacing a security freeze. All other consumers may be
charged a fee of no more than ten dollars ($10) for each of these
steps.
   You have a right to bring civil action against anyone, including a
consumer credit reporting agency, who improperly obtains access to a
file, knowingly or willfully misuses file data, or fails to correct
inaccurate file data.
   If you are a victim of identity theft and provide to a consumer
credit reporting agency a copy of a valid police report or a valid
investigative report made by a Department of Motor Vehicles
investigator with peace officer status describing your circumstances,
the following shall apply:
   (1) You have a right to have any information you list on the
report as allegedly fraudulent promptly blocked so that the
information cannot be reported. The information will be unblocked
only if (A) the information you provide is a material
misrepresentation of the facts, (B) you agree that the information is
blocked in error, or (C) you knowingly obtained possession of goods,
services, or moneys as a result of the blocked transactions. If
blocked information is unblocked, you will be promptly notified.
   (2) You have a right to receive, free of charge and upon request,
one copy of your credit report each month for up to 12 consecutive
months." 
  SECTION 1.    Section 51 of the Civil Code is
amended to read:
   51.  (a) This section shall be known, and may be cited, as the
Unruh Civil Rights Act.
   (b) All persons within the jurisdiction of this state are free and
equal, and no matter what their sex, race, color, religion,
ancestry, national origin, disability, medical condition, genetic
information, marital status, or sexual orientation are entitled to
the full and equal accommodations, advantages, facilities,
privileges, or services in all business establishments of every kind
whatsoever.
   (c) This section shall not be construed to confer any right or
privilege on a person that is conditioned or limited by law or that
is applicable alike to persons of every sex, color, race, religion,
ancestry, national origin, disability, medical condition, marital
status, or sexual orientation or to persons regardless of their
genetic information.
   (d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require any
construction, alteration, repair, structural or otherwise, or
modification of any sort whatsoever, beyond that construction,
alteration, repair, or modification that is otherwise required by
other provisions of law, to any new or existing establishment,
facility, building, improvement, or any other structure, nor shall
anything in this section be construed to augment, restrict, or alter
in any way the authority of the State Architect to require
construction, alteration, repair, or modifications that the State
Architect otherwise possesses pursuant to other laws.
   (e) For purposes of this section:
   (1) "Disability" means any mental or physical disability as
defined in Sections 12926 and 12926.1 of the Government Code.
   (2) (A) "Genetic information" means, with respect to any
individual, information about any of the following:
   (i) The individual's genetic tests.
   (ii) The genetic tests of family members of the individual.
   (iii) The manifestation of a disease or disorder in family members
of the individual.
   (B) "Genetic information" includes any request for, or receipt of,
genetic services, or participation in clinical research that
includes genetic services, by an individual or any family member of
the individual.
   (C) "Genetic information" does not include information about the
sex or age of any individual.
   (3) "Medical condition" has the same meaning as defined in
subdivision (i) of Section 12926 of the Government Code.
   (4) "Religion" includes all aspects of religious belief,
observance, and practice.
   (5) "Sex" includes, but is not limited to, pregnancy, childbirth,
or medical conditions related to pregnancy or childbirth. "Sex" also
includes, but is not limited to, a person's gender. "Gender" means
sex, and includes a person's gender identity and gender expression.
"Gender expression" means a person's gender-related appearance and
behavior whether or not stereotypically associated with the person's
assigned sex at birth.
   (6) "Sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin,
disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status,
or sexual orientation" includes a perception that the person has any
particular characteristic or characteristics within the listed
categories or that the person is associated with a person who has, or
is perceived to have, any particular characteristic or
characteristics within the listed categories.
   (7) "Sexual orientation" has the same meaning as defined in
subdivision (r) of Section 12926 of the Government Code.
   (f) A violation of the right of any individual under the federal
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-336) shall also
constitute a violation of this section.