Amended in Assembly March 30, 2016

Amended in Assembly March 18, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2263

Introduced by Assembly Member Baker

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

(Coauthor: Senator Galgiani)

February 18, 2016

An act to begin delete amend Sections 6207 and 6215.5 of end delete begin insert add Section 6215.10 to end insert the Government Code, relating to begin delete the protection of victims. end delete begin insert address confidentiality. end insert

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2263, as amended, Baker. Protection of begin delete victims: end delete begin insert reproductive health care service providers: end insert address confidentiality.

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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.

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Existing law authorizes victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, and reproductive health care services providers, employees, volunteers, and patients, 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.

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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.

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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.

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This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.

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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.

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This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.

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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.

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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.

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This bill would prohibit a person, business, or association from publicly posting or displaying on the Internet the home address of a program participant who has made a written demand to not disclose his or her address, and would prohibit a person, business, or association from knowingly posting the home address of a program participant, or of the program participant’s residing spouse or child, on the Internet knowing that person is a program participant and intending to cause imminent great bodily harm that is likely to occur or threatening to cause imminent great bodily harm to that individual.

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Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  begin delete yes end delete begin insert no end insert . State-mandated local program:  begin delete yes end delete begin insert no end insert .

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

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begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

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begin insert Section 6215.10 is added to the end insert begin insert Government Code end insert begin insert ,
to read: end insert

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begin insert 6215.10. end insert   

(a) A person, business, or association shall not
publicly post or publicly display on the Internet the home address
of a program participant who has made a written demand of that
person, business, or association to not disclose the home address
of the program participant.

(b) A person, business, or association shall not knowingly post
the home address of a program participant, or of the program
participant’s residing spouse or child, on the Internet knowing
that person is a program participant and intending to cause
imminent great bodily harm that is likely to occur or threatening
to cause imminent great bodily harm to that individual.

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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.

SEC. 2.  

Section 6215.5 of the Government Code is amended
to read:

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.

(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 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.

SEC. 3.  

The Legislature finds and declares that Sections 1 and
2 of this act limit 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 stalking,
and reproductive health care services providers, employees,
volunteers, and patients.

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

SEC. 4.  

The Legislature finds and declares that Sections 1 and
2 of this act, which amend Sections 6207 and 6215.5 of the
Government Code, further, 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, and reproductive
health care services providers, employees, volunteers, and patients,
the act furthers the purpose of Section 3 of Article I of the
California Constitution.

SEC. 5.  

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.

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