BILL ANALYSIS �
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 2383
Author: Ammiano (D)
Amended: 5/14/12 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE : 6-0, 6/12/12
AYES: Hancock, Anderson, Harman, Liu, Price, Steinberg
NO VOTE RECORDED: Calderon
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 75-0, 5/17/12 (Consent) - See last page
for vote
SUBJECT : Vehicles: confidential records: access by
certain public
officials
SOURCE : City and County of San Francisco
DIGEST : This bill allows the City Attorney of San
Francisco to obtain copies of full-face engraved pictures
or photographs of individuals directly from the Department
of Motor Vehicles (DMV) for the purposes of performing
functions related to city and county operations.
ANALYSIS : Existing law provides except where a specific
provisions of law prohibits the disclosure of records or
information or provides for confidentiality, all records of
the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) relating to the
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AB 2383
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registration of vehicles, other information contained on an
application for a driver's license, abstracts of
convictions and abstracts of accident reports required to
be sent to DMV in Sacramento, except for abstracts of
accidents where, in the opinion of a reporting officer,
another individual was at fault, shall be open to public
inspection during office hours. All abstracts of accident
reports shall be available to law enforcement agencies and
courts of competent jurisdiction (Vehicle �VEH] Code �1808)
Under existing law the residential addresses of certain
public employees and their families are confidential. (VEH
Code �� 1808.4 and 1808.6 - began 1977.)
Existing law states that all residence addresses in any
record of the DMV are confidential and shall not be
disclosed to any person, except a court, law enforcement
agency, or other governmental agency, or as authorized in
VEH Code Section 1808.22. (VEH Code �� 1808.21 - added in
1989.)
Existing law states that any person may seek suppression of
any DMV registration or driver's license record if he/she
can show that he/she is the subject of stalking or a threat
of death or great bodily injury. The suppression will be
for a period of one year renewable for two more one year
periods. (VEH Code � 1808.21(d).)
Existing law provides that the release of such confidential
information, for all other persons specified, is a
misdemeanor and punishable by a fine of up to $5,000 and/or
by up to one year in a county jail. (VEH Code � 1808.45.)
Existing law provides that a record of DMV containing a
confidential home address shall be open to public
inspection as provided in VEH Code Section 1808 if the
address is completely obliterated or otherwise removed from
the record. The home address shall be withheld from public
inspection for three years following the termination of
office or employment except with respect to a retired peace
officer, his/her home address shall be withheld from public
inspection permanently upon request of confidentiality at
the time the information would otherwise be hoped. (VEH
Code � 1808.4 (c).)
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AB 2383
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Existing law provides that the Attorney General, district
attorneys, law enforcement agencies, city attorneys
prosecuting misdemeanors, public defenders and public
defender investigator shall have access, including, but not
limited to, telephone access, to DMV records. (VEH Code �
1810.5.)
Existing law provides that a license shall bear a full-face
engraved picture or photograph of the licensee. The DMV
shall not, unless requested by the license distribute or
sell the licensee's picture or photograph or any
information pertaining to the licensee's picture or
physical characteristics to any private individual, other
than the licensee, or to any firm, co-partnership,
association, or corporation. (VEH Code � 12800.5.)
Existing law provides that all DMV records relating to the
physical or mental condition of any person and convictions
of any offense involving the use or possession of
controlled substance not arising from circumstances
involving a motor vehicle, is confidential and not opened
to public inspection. (VEH Code � 1808.5.)
Existing law provides that the Department of Real Estate,
as a department individually, or through its staff, may
obtain copies of full-face engraved picture or photograph
of individuals directly form DMV for the purposes of
enforcing the Real Estate Law or the Subdivided Lands Law.
(VEH Code � 1808.51.)
This bill provides that the city attorney of a city and
county and his/her investigators for the purposes of
performing functions related to city and county operations
may also obtain copies of full-face engraved pictures or
photographs of individuals directly form DMV.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 6/25/12)
City and County of San Francisco
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ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author:
The San Francisco City Attorney's Office had been
classified by the DMV to have full access to records at
the law enforcement level. This level of access was in
effect since 1990 without incident or challenge. The
City Attorney's Office operated with this level of
access for twenty-one years and strictly complied with
all DMV security protocols. In 2011, the DMV
reclassified the City Attorney's Office access to an
access level limited to address and phone data.
Prior to 2011, the San Francisco City Attorney's Office
utilized DMV records in a number of ways to fulfill
their role as legal counsel for all city departments
and agencies. The San Francisco City Attorney's Office
serves as legal counsel for all city departments and
agencies, including those that operate with county
functions.
In the course of executing duties in its unique role,
the city attorney's Office accesses DMV records to more
effectively personally serve parents in child
dependency cases as required by state law (see Welfare
and Institutions Code sec. 300 et. seq.) for the County
Human Services Agency, establish security protocols for
threatened employees, and identify individuals in fraud
cases. AB 2383 restores the San Francisco City
Attorney's access to DMV records. This bill will
authorize the San Francisco City Attorney's Office to
have the same access to DMV records as the Department
of Real Estate.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 75-0, 5/17/12
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall,
Bill Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford,
Brownley, Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos,
Carter, Cedillo, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Davis, Dickinson,
Donnelly, Eng, Feuer, Fong, Fuentes, Furutani, Beth
Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gatto, Gordon, Gorell, Grove,
Hagman, Halderman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Roger
Hern�ndez, Hill, Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones,
Knight, Lara, Logue, Ma, Mansoor, Mendoza, Miller,
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Mitchell, Monning, Morrell, Nestande, Nielsen, Norby,
Olsen, Pan, V. Manuel P�rez, Portantino, Silva, Smyth,
Solorio, Swanson, Torres, Valadao, Wagner, Wieckowski,
Williams, John A. P�rez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Fletcher, Bonnie Lowenthal, Perea,
Skinner, Yamada
RJG:d 6/25/12 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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