AB 522: State departments: investigations and hearings: administrative subpoenas.

Existing law authorizes the head of a department in state government to make investigations and prosecute actions concerning all matters relating to the business activities and subjects under the jurisdiction of the department, violations of any law or rule or order of the department, and other matters as may be provided by law. Existing law requires the head of a department, in any hearing in any part of the state or in any investigation conducted pursuant to the law described above, to issue process and subpoenas in a manner consistent with the California Constitution and the United States Constitution. Existing law requires the process and subpoenas to be served in the same manner as provided for the service of a summons, as prescribed.

Existing law, the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, prohibits a government entity from compelling the production of, or access to, electronic communication information from a service provider, subject to certain exceptions, including by authorizing a government entity to compel the production of, or access to, electronic communication information from a service provider pursuant to a subpoena if the information is not sought for the purpose of investigating or prosecuting a criminal offense and compelling the production of, or access to, the information via the subpoena is not otherwise prohibited by state or federal law.

This bill would authorize a department to use an administrative subpoena to obtain electronic communication information from a service provider only if certain conditions are met, including that the department has served notice of the administrative subpoena on the customer, as prescribed, and a copy of the administrative subpoena is attached to the notice.

This bill would require a service provider to make a copy of any electronic communication information within the scope of the subpoena and to retain it only until the information is disclosed pursuant to the subpoena, or the subpoena is quashed or modified. The bill would require a service provider to maintain, for a period of 5 years, a record of any disclosure pursuant to the bill. The bill would require a service provider to provide to a customer, upon request and the payment of the reasonable cost of reproduction and delivery, any part of the record maintained pursuant to the bill that relates to the customer.