Senate Bill No. 372

Introduced by Senator Galgiani

February 24, 2015

An act to amend Section 1808.4 of the Vehicle Code, relating to the Department of Motor Vehicles.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 372, as introduced, Galgiani. Department of Motor Vehicles: records: confidentiality.

Existing law prohibits the disclosure of the home addresses of certain public employees and officials that appear in records of the Department of Motor Vehicles, except to a court, a law enforcement agency, an attorney in a civil or criminal action under certain circumstances, and certain other official entities.

This bill would extend that prohibition, subject to those same exceptions, to the disclosure of the home addresses of code enforcement officers, as defined.

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

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

SECTION 1.  

Section 1808.4 of the Vehicle Code is amended
to read:

1808.4.  

(a) For all of the following persons, his or her home
address that appears in a record of the department is confidential
if the person requests the confidentiality of that information:

(1) Attorney General.

(2) State Public Defender.

(3) A Member of the Legislature.

(4) A judge or court commissioner.

(5) A district attorney.

(6) A public defender.

(7) An attorney employed by the Department of Justice, the
office of the State Public Defender, or a county office of the district
attorney or public defender.

(8) A city attorney and an attorney who submits verification
from his or her public employer that the attorney represents the
city in matters that routinely place the attorney in personal contact
with persons under investigation for, charged with, or convicted
of, committing criminal acts, if that attorney is employed by a city
attorney.

(9) A nonsworn police dispatcher.

(10) A child abuse investigator or social worker, working in
child protective services within a social services department.

(11) An active or retired peace officer, as defined in Chapter
4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2 of the Penal
Code.

(12) An employee of the Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Facilities, or the Prison
Industry Authority specified in Sections 20403 and 20405 of the
Government Code.

(13) A nonsworn employee of a city police department, a county
sheriff’s office, the Department of the California Highway Patrol,
a federal, state, or local detention facility, or a local juvenile hall,
camp, ranch, or home, who submits agency verification that, in
the normal course of his or her employment, he or she controls or
supervises inmates or is required to have a prisoner in his or her
care or custody.

(14) A county counsel assigned to child abuse cases.

(15) An investigator employed by the Department of Justice, a
county district attorney, or a county public defender.

(16) A member of a city council.

(17) A member of a board of supervisors.

(18) A federal prosecutor, criminal investigator, or National
Park Service Ranger working in this state.

(19) An active or retired city enforcement officer engaged in
the enforcement of the Vehicle Code or municipal parking
ordinances.

(20) An employee of a trial court.

(21) A psychiatric social worker employed by a county.

(22) A police or sheriff department employee designated by the
Chief of Police of the department or the sheriff of the county as
being in a sensitive position. A designation pursuant to this
paragraph shall, for purposes of this section, remain in effect for
three years subject to additional designations that, for purposes of
this section, shall remain in effect for additional three-year periods.

(23) A state employee in one of the following classifications:

(A) Licensing Registration Examiner, Department of Motor
Vehicles.

(B) Motor Carrier Specialist 1, Department of the California
Highway Patrol.

(C) Museum Security Officer and Supervising Museum Security
Officer.

(D)  Licensing Program Analyst, Department of Social Services.

begin insert

(24) A code enforcement officer, as defined in Section 829.5 of
the Penal Code.

end insert begin delete

(24)

end delete

begin insert (25) end insert  (A) The spouse or child of a person listed in paragraphs
(1) to begin delete (23) end delete begin insert (24) end insert , inclusive, regardless of the spouse’s or child’s
place of residence.

(B) The surviving spouse or child of a peace officer, as defined
in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part
2 of the Penal Code, if the peace officer died in the line of duty.

(C) (i) Subparagraphs (A) and (B) shall not apply if the person
listed in those subparagraphs was convicted of a crime and is on
active parole or probation.

(ii) For requests made on or after January 1, 2011, the person
requesting confidentiality for their spouse or child listed in
subparagraph (A) or (B) shall declare, at the time of the request
for confidentiality, whether the spouse or child has been convicted
of a crime and is on active parole or probation.

(iii) Neither the listed person’s employer nor the department
shall be required to verify, or be responsible for verifying, that a
person listed in subparagraph (A) or (B) was convicted of a crime
and is on active parole or probation.

(b) The confidential home address of a person listed in
subdivision (a) shall not be disclosed, except to any of the
following:

(1) A court.

(2) A law enforcement agency.

(3) The State Board of Equalization.

(4) An attorney in a civil or criminal action that demonstrates
to a court the need for the home address, if the disclosure is made
pursuant to a subpoena.

(5) A governmental agency to which, under any provision of
law, information is required to be furnished from records
maintained by the department.

(c) (1) A record of the department containing a confidential
home address shall be open to public inspection, as provided in
Section 1808, if the address is completely obliterated or otherwise
removed from the record.

(2) Following termination of office or employment, a
confidential home address shall be withheld from public inspection
for three years, unless the termination is the result of conviction
of a criminal offense. If the termination or separation is the result
of the filing of a criminal complaint, a confidential home address
shall be withheld from public inspection during the time in which
the terminated individual may file an appeal from termination,
while an appeal from termination is ongoing, and until the appeal
process is exhausted, after which confidentiality shall be at the
discretion of the employing agency if the termination or separation
is upheld. Upon reinstatement to an office or employment, the
protections of this section are available.

(3) With respect to a retired peace officer, his or her home
address shall be withheld from public inspection permanently upon
request of confidentiality at the time the information would
otherwise be opened. The home address of the surviving spouse
or child listed in subparagraph (B) of paragraph begin delete (24) end delete begin insert (25) end insert of
subdivision (a) shall be withheld from public inspection for three
years following the death of the peace officer.

(4) The department shall inform a person who requests a
confidential home address what agency the individual whose
address was requested is employed by or the court at which the
judge or court commissioner presides.

(d) A violation of subdivision (a) by the disclosure of the
confidential home address of a peace officer, as specified in
paragraph (11) of subdivision (a), a nonsworn employee of the
city police department or county sheriff’s office, or the spouses or
children of these persons, including, but not limited to, the
surviving spouse or child listed in subparagraph (B) of paragraph
begin delete (24) end delete begin insert (25) end insert of subdivision (a), that results in bodily injury to the
peace officer, employee of the city police department or county
sheriff’s office, or the spouses or children of these persons is a
felony.