BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2169
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 4, 2006
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY
Dave Jones, Chair
AB 2169 (Montanez) - As Introduced: February 21, 2006
PROPOSED CONSENT
SUBJECT : PUBLIC RECORDS: CONFIDENTIALITY
Key issue : SHOULD THE JANUARY 1, 2008, SUNSET DATE ON THE "SAFE
AT HOME" PILOT PROJECT, FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE VICTIMS AND
OTHERS, BE REMOVED, THEREBY MAKING THIS A PERMANENT PROGRAM?
SYNOPSIS
The Safe at Home project began in 1999 pursuant to SB 489
(Alpert). This project allowed victims of domestic violence to
apply to the Secretary of State for a designated substitute
address for use in public records, so that when state and local
agencies responded to requests for public records by third
parties they did not disclose the victim's actual residential
location. The program also provides that the Secretary of State
will forward any mail sent to the substitute address to the
victim's actual location. The program was extended to stalking
victims in 2000 and there is an existing proposal to expand it
to victims of sexual abuse. A 2002 measure extended the
original sunset date of January 1, 2005, to January 1, 2008.
Since its inception, the program has provided safety and peace
of mind to 2600 people. This bill deletes the existing sunset
provision, thereby making the pilot project a permanent program.
SUMMARY : Deletes the existing sunset date of January 1, 2008,
and makes the Safe at Home Project a permanent program
administered by the Secretary of State.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires that public records be open to inspection at all
times during the office hours of the state or local agency
that maintains those records and declares that every person
has a right to inspect any public record, except as otherwise
provided by statute. (Government Code section 6253(a).)
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2)Requires state and local agencies to make public records
available upon request, subject to duplication fees, unless
the disclosure of the records is expressly prohibited by law.
(Government Code section 6253(b).)
3)Permits a victim of domestic violence or stalking to apply,
through a community-based victims' assistance program, to the
Secretary of State for a designated address, other than the
victim's actual residence, for use in public records.
Requires local and state agencies to use the victim's
designated substitute address as the victim's official address
for the purposes of creating, maintaining, modifying, or
disseminating public records. (Government Code sections
6206-6207.)
4)Requires the Secretary of State to submit to the Legislature
an annual report detailing the total number of persons who
have applied to, and participated in, the Safe at Home
Project. (Government Code section 6210.)
5)Provides that the Safe at Home Project shall remain in effect
only until January 1, 2008, unless deleted or extended by
statute. (Government Code section 6211.)
FISCAL EFFECT : As currently in print this bill is keyed
fiscal.
COMMENTS : Persons attempting to escape domestic violence and
stalking frequently establish new names and addresses in order
to prevent the violent abuser or stalker from finding and
re-victimizing them. California's Safe at Home Project, created
as a pilot project in 1999, was modeled after a very successful
program in the state of Washington. According to the author,
the data collected by the Secretary of State's office shows that
the project "has provided 2,600 victims an opportunity to live a
new life without having to constantly move and live in fear of
being discovered." Because the project has proven its worth,
and the threat of domestic violence and stalking is an on-going
problem in California, the author believes that this successful
and worthwhile project should become a permanent program.
The letters of support submitted to the committee also stress
the success of the project and, sadly enough, the continuing
need for it. For example, the Family Law Section of the
California State Bar writes that "the program has been extremely
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effective in protecting [victims of domestic violence and
stalking] since its creation in [1999], and deserves to be made
permanent." The California Partnership to End Domestic Violence
supports making the program permanent: "When victims take the
extraordinary step to escape and relocate, they still face many
risks . . . . It is critical that victims have this type of tool
to stay as safe as possible because batterers can be extremely
unrelenting in their pursuit to find their victim."
The California Nurses Association adds that the program does
more than provide safety to thousands of victims; it eases the
burden on the law enforcement agencies who must respond to these
situations. Not surprisingly, given this eased burden on law
enforcement, the Committee has received letters of strong
support for AB 2169 from the California District Attorney's
Association and the Yuba County Probation Department.
Data compiled by the California Attorney General's Office and
the Secretary of State's Office lend persuasive support to the
claims of the author, sponsor, and supporters: domestic violence
and stalking are on-going problems in California, and the Safe
at Home Project has provided safety and peace of mind to
thousands of victims. (See California Attorney General's Crime
and Prevention Center, Domestic Violence - Facts available at
http://safestate.org/index-print.cfm?navid=42 .)
Prior Related Legislation : SB 489 (Alpert), Chapter 1005,
Statutes of 1998: Established the "Address Confidentiality for
Victims of Domestic Violence Program," now known as the "Safe at
Home" Project, to provide substitute addresses to domestic
violence victims and prevent state and local government agencies
from disclosing a victim's residential address to abusers.
SB 1318 (Alpert), Chapter 562, Statutes of 2000) and AB 205
(Leach), Chapter 33, Statutes of 2000: Extended the Safe at
Home Project to victims of stalking and provided for the
confidentiality of any name changes as well as residential
addresses.
AB 797 (Shelley), Chapter 360, Statutes of 2002: Extended the
sunset provision from January 1, 2005, to January 1, 2008.
Pending Related Legislation : SB 1062 (Bowen): Would extend the
Safe at Home Project to include victims of sexual assault.
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REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Calegislation (sponsor)
American Association of University Women
Asian and Pacific Islander Institute on Domestic Violence
California Attorney General's Office
California District Attorneys Association
California Nurses Association
California Partnership to End Domestic Violence
Family Law Section, California State Bar
Marjaree Mason Center
Planned Parenthood
Privacy Rights Clearing House
Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Center
WEAVE
Yuba County Probation Department
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Thomas Clark / JUD. / (916) 319-2334