AB 865

This bill makes certain changes to the address confidentiality program

administered by the Department of Justice.

Under current law, DOJ's address confidentiality program is available to a

person who is a victim of abuse or a parent or guardian of a victim of abuse, or who

resides in a household in which a victim of abuse also resides, and who fears for his

or her physical safety or the physical safety of his or her child or ward. A current

program participant provides his or her actual residential, school, or work address

to DOJ and DOJ assigns an alternative address to the program participant to use.

Under the program, DOJ forwards all mail received at the assigned address to the

program participant's actual address. In addition, the program participant may use

the assigned address for any official purpose, unless the use of the actual address is

required by statute, such as for voter registration. Any person or entity that has

knowledge of the actual address through the program is required to keep it

confidential. Under current law, a program participant's actual address is exempt

from the open records law.

This bill expands the confidentiality provisions of the program to include any

part of a program participant's actual address. In addition, the bill makes

intentional disclosure of confidential information under the program a

misdemeanor.

Under the bill, DOJ is authorized to act as the registered agent and office for

a single-member LLC if the member is enrolled in the address confidentiality

program.

This bill also provides that DOJ may promulgate rules governing a program

participant's consent to disclosure of his or her actual address by DOJ or another

entity if such a disclosure is required for a public assistance program or a real

property transaction.

This bill clarifies that DOJ may disenroll a program participant at any time

that DOJ determines that the program participant no longer meets the eligibility

criteria.