Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

We receive many questions, requests and comments regarding the Legislature and legislative information. We have listed the most Frequently Asked Questions and our responses for your convenience.

How can I obtain Legislators' mailing addresses and/or e-mail addresses?

The U.S. Postal Service mailing address for each Legislator's Capitol and District Office as listed in the Daily File publication of each House is available by going to the Legislators page of this website. If a Legislator chooses to have a listed e-mail address, it can be found on the home page of his/her website. If you wish, you can also contact State Senators through the Senate Web Site at www.sen.ca.gov or Assembly members through the Assembly Web Site at www.assembly.ca.gov.

Why aren't there email addresses for all Legislators?

Legislators have the OPTION of establishing email accounts accessible by the public. Email addresses for all legislators who wish to have email addresses can be found by following the procedure outlined in the question above.

How can I find out if a hearing is starting on time?

Hearings generally do not start exactly on time, as they commence after Floor Sessions are over. Information regarding Senate hearings may be found at ftp://leginfo.public.ca.gov/pub/dailyfile/sen/senate_comm_hearings

Information regarding Assembly hearings may be found at ftp://leginfo.public.ca.gov/pub/dailyfile/asm/assembly_comm_hearings.

How can I receive periodic information regarding legislative action? (Subscribe to a Bill)

By using our subscription service, you can receive automatic email updates regarding specific bills. We will email information to you whenever there is legislative action taken on a bill. The subscription service is available only for information on bills in the current legislative session. We do not provide information by subject matter. You can subscribe to more than one bill, however you must subscribe to each bill individually.

To subscribe to a bill:

Click the Bill Search Link
Select the correct Legislative Session
Select the correct Legislative House
Select whether you want the search to be based on Bill Number, Author, or keyword
Select the specific bill of interest from the list displayed.
To get periodic email updates on the status of the Bill that you select, scroll to the bottom of the Bill Document screen and click the "Subscribe" button.
Enter your email address in the box, then click the "OK" button.

How can I see all the bills I have subscribed to?

Click the Bill Search Link
Scroll to the bottom of the screen.
Click the "Subscription List" button.
Enter your email address in the box then click "OK" button.
Your list of Bill subscriptions will be displayed.

How can I unsubscribe to a bill?

Do a Bill Search for the the bill to which you no longer wish to subscribe.
Click the link for that particular Bill
Scroll to the bottom of the Bill Document screen and click the "Unsubscribe" link.
Enter your email address then click the "OK" button.
Follow the directions on the Subscription list page.

Why didn't I receive the Bill information that I requested?

The present configuration of our system allows only 50 bill subscriptions per email address. If you have subscribed to over 50 bills at one email address, a new subscription must be set up at a different email address in order to receive information on additional bills.

How do I access California legislative information over the Internet?

"A Guide for Accessing California Legislative Information on the Internet" is available at http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/guide.html.

How current is the Bill information on this web site?

The Bill information on our web site is updated nightly after the Legislature has completed its work for the day. Information found in legislative rosters, etc. is also updated automatically as changes occur.

Can I access legislation prior to 1993 from this web site?

This site contains legislation from the 1993-1994 Regular Session of the Legislature to the current time only. Information on older legislation may be obtained by contacting the State Law Library at 916-654-0185.

How can I find what bills have had legislative action taken on the previous day?

The Daily Updates (Assembly or Senate) links displayed on the Bill Information page at http://www.leginfo.ca.gov contain a list of bills that have had legislative action taken on the previous day. You can display information on any bill on the list by clicking on the underlined item.

How can I find a current bill or bills from previous legislative sessions?

Click the Bill Search Link.
Next to "SESSION", click the down arrow to select the session year from the drop down list.
Enter the number in the "Bill Number" box, then click search.
Click the specific bill of interest from the list displayed.

How can I find bills from an extraordinary session?

Click the Bill Search Link.
Next to "SESSION," click the down arrow to select the session year from the drop down list.
Select "Bill Number" or the "Keyword(s)."
Enter either the corresponding bill number or corresponding keywords in the box. (i.e., sbx1 for Senate bills in the 1st extraordinary session, or abx2 for Assembly bills in the 2nd extraordinary session.)
Click the specific bill of interest from the list displayed.

To search for other measures in extraordinary sessions:

Click the Bill Search Link.
Next to "SESSION", click the down arrow to select the session year from the drop down list.
Select "Bill Number" or the "Keyword(s)."
Enter either the corresponding bill number or corresponding keywords in the box. (i.e., acrx3 for Assembly Concurrent Resolution in the 3rd extraordinary session.)
Select the specific bill of interest from the list displayed.

How can I view a California code section?

Click the "California Law" button on the home page of the LegInfo (Official California Legislative Information) website.
Click the box by the specific code you wish to search.
Click the "Search" button. The Table of Contents for that code will display.
Scroll through the Table of Contents until you find the section (within the range of sections listed) that you wish to view.
Click on the underlined numbers to display the text of the California code section.
Scroll through the text until you find the desired section.

How can I obtain a copy of the entire California codes?

The full text of all 29 codes are available at the LegInfo web site. You can download the entire California codes by using the FTP process by using groups of individual code sections based on the Table of Contents structure. See "File Transfer Protocol (FTP)" for assistance with the FTP process.

How can I obtain a printed copy of California codes?

We do not provide printed copies of the California codes. To obtain a copy of the codes in printed form, contact any of the legal publishing companies.

How can I view a chaptered version of a bill?

There are two ways to find a chaptered bill:
OPTION 1:

Click the "California Law" button on the home page of the LegInfo website.
Click on the "Statutes" link.
Enter the chapter number and year in the boxes then click the "Search" button.

OPTION 2:

If you know the bill number for the chaptered bill, click the Bill Search Link.
Next to "SESSION", click the down arrow to select the correct session year from the drop down list.
Enter the specific "Bill Number" in the bill number box. Click search.
Select the specific bill of interest from the list displayed.
Click on the chaptered bill to display its text.

Do you have forms on your web site?

We do not have forms available on our web site. Check the Judicial Council's web site, or use any of the internet search sites to find other legal sites where forms may be available.

Where can I go for "Help"?

We cannot give legal advice or offer opinions from this web site. If you have a problem or question related to the operations of a state or local agency, you should contact your Senator or Assemblymember's district office.

How can I access the California Code of Regulations?

The California Code of Regulations is available on a web site maintained by the Office of Administrative Law.