Bill Text: CA SB918 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Law enforcement contact process: search warrants.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Passed) 2024-09-29 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 985, Statutes of 2024. [SB918 Detail]

Download: California-2023-SB918-Amended.html

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Amended  IN  Senate  May 02, 2024

Amended  IN  Senate  March 18, 2024

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill

No. 918

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Introduced by Senator Umberg

January 10, 2024

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An act to add Chapter 31.6 (commencing with Section 22946) to Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code, relating to social media platforms.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

SB 918, as amended, Umberg. Law enforcement liaisons: search warrants.

Existing law generally regulates a social media platform, including by requiring a social media platform to clearly and conspicuously state whether it has a mechanism for reporting violent posts that is available to users and nonusers of the social media platform and to include a link to that reporting mechanism, as prescribed.

This bill would require a social media platform to, at all times, make available by telephone to a law enforcement agency a law enforcement liaison for the purpose of receiving, and responding to, requests for information. The bill would would, except as prescribed, also require a social media platform to immediately comply with a search warrant provided to the social media platform by a law enforcement agency if the subject of the search warrant is an account on the social media platform owned by a user of the social media platform.

This bill would not apply to a social media platform with fewer than 1,000,000 discrete monthly users.

Digest Key

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: NO   Local Program: NO  

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Bill Text

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

SECTION 1.

 Chapter 31.6 (commencing with Section 22946) is added to Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code, to read:

CHAPTER  31.6. Social Media Platforms and Law Enforcement

22946.

 As used in this chapter:

(a) “Law enforcement agency” means a law enforcement agency in the state.

(b) “Law enforcement liaison” means a natural person employed by a social media platform who serves as a point of contact with law enforcement agencies.

(c) “Social media platform” has the same meaning as defined in Section 22945.

22946.1.

 (a) A social media platform shall, at all times, make available by telephone to a law enforcement agency a law enforcement liaison for the purpose of receiving, and responding to, requests for information.

(b) A Except as provided by any other law, a social media platform shall immediately comply with a search warrant provided to the social media platform by a law enforcement agency if the subject of the search warrant is an account on the social media platform owned by a user of the social media platform.

22946.2.

 This chapter does not apply to a social media platform with fewer than 1,000,000 discrete monthly users.