Amended in Assembly March 18, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2263

Introduced by Assembly Member Baker

(Coauthors: Assembly Members Brough, begin delete Gipson, Lackey, and Wilk end delete begin insert Gipson, and Lackey end insert )

begin delete (Coauthors: Senators Bates and Nielsen) end delete begin insert (Coauthor: Senator Galgiani) end insert

February 18, 2016

An act to amend begin delete Section 6207 end delete begin insert Sections 6207 and 6215.5 end insert of the Government Code, relating to the protection of victims.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2263, as amended, Baker. Protection of victims: address confidentiality.

The California Public Records Act requires state and local agencies to make public records available for inspection by the public, subject to specified criteria and with specified exceptions. The act prohibits a state or local agency from posting the home address or telephone number of any elected or appointed official on the Internet without first obtaining the written permission of that individual.

Existing law authorizes victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, or begin delete stalking end delete begin insert stalking, and reproductive health care services providers, employees, volunteers, and patients, end insert to complete an application to be approved by the Secretary of State for the purposes of enabling state and local agencies to respond to requests for public records without disclosing a program participant’s residence address contained in any public record and otherwise provides for confidentiality of identity for that person, subject to specified conditions. Existing law authorizes a program participant to request that state and local agencies use the address designated by the Secretary of State as his or her address, and requires state and local agencies, when creating, modifying, or maintaining a public record, to accept the address designated by the Secretary of State as a program participant’s substitute address except as specified.

This bill would, in addition, specifically require a county assessor to keep confidential, and prohibit a county assessor from publicly posting, publicly displaying on the Internet, or otherwise making available to the general public, the home address of any program participant without first obtaining the written permission of that individual, consistent with existing provisions of law applicable to the confidentiality of the home address and telephone number of an elected or appointed official. Because the bill would require local agencies to perform additional duties, it would impose a state-mandated local program.

Existing constitutional provisions require a statute that limits the right of public access to meetings or writings of public officials to be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest to be protected by that limitation and the need to protect that interest.

This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.

The California Constitution requires local agencies, for the purpose of ensuring public access to the meetings of public bodies and the writings of public officials and agencies, to comply with a statutory enactment that amends or enacts laws relating to public records or open meetings and contains findings demonstrating that the enactment furthers the constitutional requirements relating to this purpose.

This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 6207 of the Government Code is amended
to read:

6207.  

(a) A program participant may request that state and
local agencies use the address designated by the Secretary of State
as his or her address. When creating a public record, state and local
agencies shall accept the address designated by the Secretary of
State as a program participant’s substitute address, unless the
Secretary of State has determined both of the following:

(1) The agency has a bona fide statutory or administrative
requirement for the use of the address that would otherwise be
confidential under this chapter.

(2) This address will be used only for those statutory and
administrative purposes and shall not be publicly disseminated.

(b) A program participant may request that state and local
agencies use the address designated by the Secretary of State as
his or her address. When modifying or maintaining a public record,
excluding the record of any birth, fetal death, death, or marriage
registered under Division 102 (commencing with Section 102100)
of the Health and Safety Code, state and local agencies shall accept
the address designated by the Secretary of State as a program
participant’s substitute address, unless the Secretary of State has
determined both of the following:

(1) The agency has a bona fide statutory or administrative
requirement for the use of the address that would otherwise be
confidential under this chapter.

(2) This address will be used only for those statutory and
administrative purposes and shall not be publicly disseminated.

(c) A county assessor shall keep confidential, and shall not
publicly post, publicly display on the Internet, or otherwise make
available to the general public, the home address of any program
participant without first obtaining the written permission of that
individual, consistent with subdivision (a) of Section 6254.21.

(d) A program participant may use the address designated by
the Secretary of State as his or her work address.

(e) The office of the Secretary of State shall forward all
first-class mail and all mail sent by a governmental agency to the
appropriate program participants. The office of the Secretary of
State may, in its discretion, refuse to handle or forward packages
regardless of size or type of mailing.

(f) Notwithstanding subdivisions (a) and (b), program
participants shall comply with the provisions specified in
subdivision (d) of Section 1808.21 of the Vehicle Code if
requesting suppression of the records maintained by the Department
of Motor Vehicles. Program participants shall also comply with
all other provisions of the Vehicle Code relating to providing
current address information to the department.

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 6215.5 of the end insert begin insert Government Code end insert begin insert is amended
to read: end insert

6215.5.  

(a) A program participant may request that state and
local agencies use the address designated by the Secretary of State
as his or her address. When creating a public record, state and local
agencies shall accept the address designated by the Secretary of
State as a program participant’s substitute address, unless the
Secretary of State has determined both of the following:

(1) The agency has a bona fide statutory or administrative
requirement for the use of the address that would otherwise be
confidential under this chapter.

(2) This address will be used only for those statutory and
administrative purposes and shall not be publicly disseminated.

(b) A program participant may request that state and local
agencies use the address designated by the Secretary of State as
his or her address. When modifying or maintaining a public record,
excluding the record of any birth, fetal death, death, or marriage
registered under Division 102 (commencing with Section 102100)
of the Health and Safety Code, state and local agencies shall accept
the address designated by the Secretary of State as a program
participant’s substitute address, unless the Secretary of State has
determined both of the following:

(1) The agency has a bona fide statutory or administrative
requirement for the use of the address that would otherwise be
confidential under this chapter.

(2) This address will be used only for those statutory and
administrative purposes and shall not be publicly disseminated.

begin insert

(c) A county assessor shall keep confidential, and shall not
publicly post, publicly display on the Internet, or otherwise make
available to the general public, the home address of any program
participant without first obtaining the written permission of that
individual, consistent with subdivision (a) of Section 6254.21.

end insert begin delete

(c)

end delete

begin insert (d) end insert  A program participant may use the address designated by
the Secretary of State as his or her work address.

begin delete

(d)

end delete

begin insert (e) end insert  The office of the Secretary of State shall forward all
first-class mail and all mail sent by a governmental agency to the
appropriate program participants. The office of the Secretary of
State may, in its discretion, refuse to handle or forward packages
regardless of size or type of mailing.

begin delete

(e)

end delete

begin insert (f) end insert  Notwithstanding subdivision (a), program participants shall
comply with the provisions specified in subdivision (d) of Section
1808.21 of the Vehicle Code if requesting suppression of the
records maintained by the Department of Motor Vehicles. Program
participants shall also comply with all other provisions of the
Vehicle Code relating to providing current address information to
the department.

begin delete SEC. 2. end delete
begin insert SEC. 3. end insert   

The Legislature finds and declares that begin delete Section 1 of
this act limits end delete begin insert Sections 1 and 2 of this act limit end insert the public’s right
of access to public documents within the meaning of paragraph
(2) of subdivision (b) of Section 3 of Article I of the California
Constitution. Pursuant to that constitutional provision, the
Legislature makes the following findings to demonstrate the interest
and the need for protecting that interest:

(a) The interest protected by this limitation is the privacy and
security of victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, or begin delete stalking. end delete
begin insert stalking, and reproductive health care services providers,
employees, volunteers, and patients. end insert

(b) The need for protecting that interest is that home address
and telephone numbers of victims of domestic violence, sexual
assault, or stalking, begin insert and reproductive health care services
providers, employees, volunteers, and patients, end insert if released to the
public, could result in negative consequences.

begin delete SEC. 3. end delete
begin insert SEC. 4. end insert   

The Legislature finds and declares that begin delete Section 1 of
this act, which amends Section 6207 end delete begin insert Sections 1 and 2 of this act,
which amend Sections 6207 and 6215.5 end insert of the Government Code,
begin delete furthers, end delete begin insert further, end insert within the meaning of paragraph (7) of
subdivision (b) of Section 3 of Article I of the California
Constitution, the purposes of that constitutional section as it relates
to the right of public access to the meetings of local public bodies
or the writings of local public officials and local agencies. Pursuant
to paragraph (7) of subdivision (b) of Section 3 of Article I of the
California Constitution, the Legislature makes the following
findings:

Because the act appropriately balances the right to public access
to local records with the need for the privacy and safety of victims
of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, begin insert and reproductive
health care services providers, employees, volunteers, and patients, end insert
the act furthers the purpose of Section 3 of Article I of the
California Constitution.

begin delete SEC. 4. end delete
begin insert SEC. 5. end insert   

If the Commission on State Mandates determines that
this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division
4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.