BILL NUMBER: SB 2072	CHAPTERED  09/30/00

	CHAPTER   1008
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE   SEPTEMBER 30, 2000
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR   SEPTEMBER 29, 2000
	PASSED THE SENATE   AUGUST 30, 2000
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY   AUGUST 28, 2000
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   JULY 6, 2000
	AMENDED IN SENATE   MAY 26, 2000
	AMENDED IN SENATE   MAY 2, 2000
	AMENDED IN SENATE   APRIL 24, 2000

INTRODUCED BY   Senator Speier

                        FEBRUARY 25, 2000

   An act to amend Section 1808.21 of the Vehicle Code, relating to
information practices.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 2072, Speier.    Department of Motor Vehicles:  records.
   Under existing law, any registration or driver's license record of
a person may be suppressed from any other person, except as
specified, if the person requesting the suppression submits
verification acceptable to the Department of Motor Vehicle that he or
she has reasonable cause to believe that he or she is the subject of
stalking, or that there exists a threat of death or great bodily
injury to his or her person involving domestic violence.
   Under existing law, suppression of a record occurs for one year
after approval by the department and, not less than 60 days prior to
that one year date, the department is required to notify the person
of the expiration.  Existing law allows the suppression to be
continued for a period determined by the department if the person
submits verification acceptable to the department that the person
continues to have reasonable cause to believe that he or she is the
subject of stalking.
   This bill would provide that the suppression of records may be
continued for 2 additional periods of one year each if a letter is
submitted to the department stating that the person continues to have
a reasonable cause to believe that he or she is the subject of
stalking or that there exists a threat of death or great bodily
injury.  The bill would further allow the suppression of the record
to be continued at the end of the second one-year period by
submitting verification acceptable to the department.


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


  SECTION 1.  Section 1808.21 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read:

   1808.21.  (a) Any residence address in any record of the
department is confidential and shall not be disclosed to any person,
except a court, law enforcement agency, or other government agency,
or as authorized in Section 1808.22 or 1808.23.
   (b) Release of any mailing address or part thereof in any record
of the department may be restricted to a release for purposes related
to the reasons for which the information was collected, including,
but not limited to, the assessment of driver risk, or ownership of
vehicles or vessels.  This restriction does not apply to a release to
a court, a law enforcement agency, or other governmental agency, or
a person who has been issued a requester code pursuant to Section
1810.2.
   (c) Any person providing the department with a mailing address
shall declare, under penalty of perjury, that the mailing address is
a valid, existing, and accurate mailing address and shall consent to
receive service of process pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section
415.20, subdivision (a) of Section 415.30, and Section 416.90 of the
Code of Civil Procedure at the mailing address.
   (d) (1) Any registration or driver's license record of a person
may be suppressed from any other person, except those persons
specified in subdivision (a), if the person requesting the
suppression submits verification acceptable to the department that he
or she has reasonable cause to believe either of the following:
   (A) That he or she is the subject of stalking, as specified in
Section 1708.7 of the Civil Code or Section 646.9 of the Penal Code.

   (B) That there exists a threat of death or great bodily injury to
his or her person, as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 12022.7
of the Penal Code.
   (2) Upon suppression of a record, each request for information
about that record shall be authorized by the subject of the record or
verified as legitimate by other investigative means by the
department before the information is released.
   (e) Suppression of a record pursuant to subdivision (d) shall
occur for one year after approval by the department.  Not less than
60 days prior to the date the suppression of the record would
otherwise expire, the department shall notify the subject of the
record of its impending expiration.  The suppression may be continued
for two additional periods of one year each if a letter is submitted
to the department stating that the person continues to have a
reasonable cause to believe that he or she is the subject of stalking
or that there exists a threat of death or great bodily injury as
described in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (d).
The suppression may be additionally continued at the end of the
second one-year period by submitting verification acceptable to the
department.  The notification described in this subdivision shall
instruct the person of the method to reapply for record suppression.

   (f) For the purposes of subdivisions (d) and (e), "verification
acceptable to the department" means recent police reports, court
documentation, or other documentation from a law enforcement agency.