ARTICLE 2. Duties [12159. - 12179.1.]

Cal. Government Code - GOV 2.

in effect

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12159. Section 12159.

The Secretary of State shall keep a correct record of the official acts of the legislative and executive departments of the government, and shall, when required, lay the same and all matters relative thereto before either branch of the Legislature, and shall perform such other duties as may be assigned by law.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12160. Section 12160.

The Secretary of State is charged with custody of: (a) The enrolled copy of the Constitution. (b) All acts and resolutions passed by the Legislature. (c) The Journals of the Legislature. (d) The Great Seal. (e) All books, records, deeds, parchments, maps, and papers, kept or deposited in the Secretary of State’s office pursuant to law.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12161. Section 12161.

The Secretary of State shall attend at every session of the Legislature, for the purpose of receiving bills and resolutions and perform such other duties as may be devolved upon the Secretary of State by resolution of the two houses, or either of them.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12162. Section 12162.

The Secretary of State shall keep a register and attest the official acts of the Governor and shall affix the Great Seal, with the Secretary’s attestation, to commissions, pardons, and other public instruments, to which the official signature of the Governor is required.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12163. Section 12163.

The Secretary of State shall receive and record in proper books the official bonds of all officers whose bonds are required by law to be filed with the Secretary of State.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12164. Section 12164.

The Secretary of State shall record all conveyances made to the state, except (1) evidences of title acquired for state highway purposes and retained by the Department of Transportation, and (2) conveyances of tax-sold property.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12165. Section 12165.

The Secretary of State shall certify and declare the result of all elections upon a question submitted to the electors of the state by either initiative or referendum petition filed in the Secretary’s office and make official declaration of the vote upon each question.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12166. Section 12166.

Within 100 days after the final adjournment of each session of the Legislature, the Secretary of State shall deliver to the State Printing Office the Secretary’s certificate showing what acts, or sections, or parts of acts of the Legislature are delayed from going into effect by referendum petition properly certified and filed in the Secretary’s office.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12167. Section 12167.

Within 60 days after the day on which a general election is held throughout the State, the Secretary of State shall deliver to the State Printing Office the Secretary’s certificate showing: (a) What laws or constitutional amendments, proposed by initiative petition and approved by the people, have gone into operation, and the date of going into operation. (b) The result of all elections upon a question submitted to the electors of the State by initiative or referendum petition within the preceding two years.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12168. Section 12168.

On demand, the Secretary of State shall furnish, to a person paying the fees therefor, a certified copy of all or any part of a law, record, or other instrument filed, deposited, or recorded in the Secretary’s office.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12168.5. Section 12168.5.

(a) When not inconsistent with other provisions of law, in lieu of filing or recording documents presented in paper format, the Secretary of State may adopt rules and regulations to authorize the electronic filing, including filing by facsimile, of a document required to be filed with the Secretary of State under an act administered by the Secretary of State. The rules and regulations may set forth standards for the acceptance of a signature in a form other than the proper handwriting of the person filing a document that requires the person’s signature. A signature on a document electronically filed or filed by facsimile in accordance with those rules and regulations is prima facie evidence for all purposes that the document actually was signed by the person whose signature appears on the electronically filed document or facsimile. The filing or recording shall constitute a unique computerized informational record. The record need not be retained in the form in which it is received, if the technology used to retain the record results in a permanent record that does not permit additions, deletions, or changes in the original document and from which an accurate image may be created during the period for which the record is required to be retained. The filing officer may employ a system of microphotography, optical disk, or reproduction by other techniques that do not permit additions, deletions, or changes to the original document. (b) Notwithstanding Section 7550.5, the Secretary of State shall prepare and submit to the Legislature at the commencement of the public comment period required under Article 5 (commencing with Section 11346) of Chapter 3.5 of Part 1 a report of, and a copy of, rules and regulations proposed pursuant to subdivision (a) to authorize the electronic filing, including filing by facsimile, of documents required to be filed with the Secretary of State. (c) All film used in the microphotography process shall comply with minimum standards of quality approved by the United States Bureau of Standards and the American National Standards Institute. A true copy of the microfilm, optical disk, or other storage medium shall be kept in a safe and separate place for security purposes. A reproduction of a document filed, recorded, stored, or retained on microfilm, optical disk, or by other technology pursuant to this section shall be as admissible in a court as the original itself. The Secretary of State shall obtain the approval of the Fair Political Practices Commission before applying this section to a filing or recording under the Political Reform Act of 1974 (Title 9 (commencing with Section 81000)).

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12168.7. Section 12168.7.

(a) The Legislature hereby recognizes the need to adopt uniform statewide standards for the purpose of storing and recording public records in electronic media or in a cloud computing storage service. (b) In order to ensure that uniform statewide standards remain current and relevant, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Department of Technology, shall approve and adopt appropriate uniform statewide standards by using standards that are accredited by the American National Standards Institute or other applicable industry-recognized standards making body, including the International Organization for Standardization TR 15801:2017 or successor standard, for storing and recording public records in electronic media or in a cloud computing storage service. (c) (1) The standards specified in subdivision (b) shall include a requirement that a trusted system be utilized. For this purpose and for purposes of Sections 25105, 26205, 26205.1, 26205.5, 26907, 27001, 27322.2, 34090.5, and 60203, Section 102235 of the Health and Safety Code, and Section 10851 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, “trusted system” means a combination of technologies, policies, and procedures for which there is no plausible scenario in which a public record retrieved from or reproduced by the system could differ substantially from the public record that is originally stored. (2) For a state agency that stores and records public records pursuant to this section, the uniform statewide standards specified in subdivision (b) shall include a definition of “trusted system” that combines the various elements of trusted systems specified in this section. (d) (1) A cloud computing storage service that complies with International Organization for Standardization ISO/IEC 27001:2013, or other applicable industry-recognized standards relating to techniques and information security management, and that provides administrative users with controls to prevent stored public records from being overwritten, deleted, or altered, shall be considered a trusted system. (2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), all public records stored or recorded in electronic media or in a cloud computing service by a state agency shall comply with a trusted system as defined in the uniform statewide standards adopted pursuant to subdivision (b). (e) A trusted system using cloud computing storage service shall also comply with applicable standards articulated in the State Administrative Manual and the Statewide Information Management Manual. This requirement applies to state agencies and does not apply to local government entities, except to local government entities that have a system interconnection or data exchange with a state agency, or that contract with a state agency, for the development, use, or maintenance of an information system, product, solution, or service. (f) (1) A state agency, prior to establishing an information technology system interconnection or data exchange with a local government entity or otherwise partnering with a local government entity for the development, use, or maintenance of an information technology system, product, or service, shall first enter into a written agreement with that local government entity for the purpose of establishing mutually agreeable terms that protect relevant public records. (2) The requirements of paragraph (1) shall apply prospectively, after the effective date of this subdivision, to new agreements of the types specified and to existing agreements of the types specified when they are considered for renewal. (g) For the purposes of this section, the following definitions shall apply: (1) “Cloud computing” has the same definition as the term is defined by the National Institute of Standards and Technology Special Publication 800-145, or a successor publication, and includes the service and deployment models referenced therein. (2) “Public records” includes permanent and nonpermanent documents. (3) “State agency” has the same meaning as that term is defined in Section 11000. (h) The Secretary of State shall ensure that microfilming, electronic data imaging, and photographic reproduction are done in compliance with the minimum standards or guidelines, or both, as recommended by the American National Standards Institute for recording of public records or any other applicable and comparable industry standard. (i) Nothing in this section shall prohibit a local government entity from adopting applicable standards articulated in the Secretary of State’s uniform statewide standards for Trustworthy Electronic Document or Record Preservation, the State Administrative Manual, or the Statewide Information Management Manual for purposes of utilizing a trusted system as defined in subdivision (c). (j) This section shall take effect on January 1, 2026.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12169. Section 12169.

The Secretary of State shall file in the Secretary’s office descriptions of seals in use by the different state officers and furnish those officers with new seals whenever required.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12170. Section 12170.

On or before the 15th day of September in each even numbered year, the Secretary of State shall report to the Governor a detailed account of all of the Secretary of State’s official actions since the Secretary’s previous report. The report shall be accompanied with a detailed statement, under oath, of the manner in which all appropriations for the Secretary’s office have been expended.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12171. Section 12171.

The Secretary of State shall compile and maintain a complete list of all districts for which certificates or copies of orders, ordinances or resolutions declaring districts formed or organized have been filed. This list shall contain the name of each district, the date of formation, and the county or counties in which the district is located. The list of districts, and all certificates, maps, or copies of orders, ordinances or resolutions filed with the Secretary of State in connection with the formation, change of boundaries, merger, consolidation, or dissolution of districts, shall be open to inspection by the public.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12172. Section 12172.

The Secretary of State shall, upon the request of the proponents of an initiative measure which is to be submitted to the voters of the state, review the provisions of the initiative measure after it is prepared prior to its circulation. In conducting the review, the Secretary of State shall do both of the following: (a) Analyze and comment on the provisions of the measure with respect to form and language clarity. (b) Request and obtain a statement of fiscal impact from the Legislative Analyst. The Legislative Analyst shall furnish the Secretary of State with a statement of fiscal impact with respect to the initiative measure within 25 working days after being requested to do so by the Secretary of State pursuant to subdivision (b). In the preparation of the statement of fiscal impact, the Legislative Analyst may use the fiscal estimate or the opinion prepared pursuant to Section 9005 of the Elections Code. The review performed pursuant to this section shall be for the purpose of suggestion only and shall not have any binding effect on the proponents of the initiative measure.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12172.3. Section 12172.3.

The Secretary of State shall post on the Secretary’s Internet Web site and include in the pamphlet developed pursuant to Section 9018 of the Elections Code, information describing the following services that are available to the proponents of a proposed initiative measure. (a) The Legislative Counsel’s cooperation in preparing an initiative measure pursuant to Section 10243. (b) The Secretary’s review of prepared initiatives prior to circulation pursuant to Section 12172.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12172.5. Section 12172.5.

(a) The Secretary of State is the chief elections officer of the state, and shall administer the provisions of the Elections Code. The Secretary of State shall see that elections are efficiently conducted and that state election laws are enforced. The Secretary of State may require elections officers to make reports concerning elections in their jurisdictions, which may include information about the identity of, and contact information for, the elections official who is responsible for conducting elections in the jurisdiction. (b) If, at any time, the Secretary of State concludes that state election laws are not being enforced, the Secretary of State shall call the violation to the attention of the district attorney of the county or to the Attorney General. In these instances, the Secretary of State may assist the county elections officer in discharging the officer’s duties. (c) In order to determine whether an elections law violation has occurred, the Secretary of State may examine voted, unvoted, spoiled, and canceled ballots, vote-counting computer programs, vote by mail ballot envelopes and applications, and supplies referred to in Section 14432 of the Elections Code. The Secretary of State may also examine any other records of elections officials as the Secretary of State finds necessary in making a determination under this subdivision, subject to the restrictions set forth in Article 2 (commencing with Section 7924.100) of Chapter 2 of Part 5 of Division 10 of Title 1. (d) The Secretary of State may adopt regulations to ensure the uniform application and administration of state election laws.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12172.6. Section 12172.6.

Beginning in the year before the federal decennial census and continuing through the completion of the enumeration activities for that census, the Secretary of State shall include on the secretary’s Internet Web site information designed to educate the public regarding, and encourage participation in, the federal decennial census.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12172.8. Section 12172.8.

(a) It is the intent of the Legislature to affirm and inform every Californian of their right and obligation to participate in the federal decennial census freely and without fear of fraud, intimidation, or harm. (b) The Secretary of State may work with the California Census Office and the California Complete Count Committee to promulgate a California Census Bill of Rights and Responsibilities no later than February 1, 2020. The Census Bill of Rights and Responsibilities shall affirm the rights of all Californians to all of the following: (1) To participate in the federal decennial census free of threat or intimidation. (2) To confidentiality of the information provided in the census form. (3) To respond to the census by means of the their chosen modality, either electronically, on paper, or by telephone. (4) To request language assistance. (5) To verify the identity of a census worker. (c) The Secretary of State shall translate the California Census Bill of Rights in languages other than English, consistent with the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. Sec. 10503). (d) The California Census Office may make the California Census Bill of Rights available on its internet website and available for inclusion on city and county census internet websites and census questionnaire assistance center internet websites.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12173. Section 12173.

(a) The Secretary of State’s office shall develop a program to utilize electronic communications and enhance the availability and accessibility of information on statewide candidates and ballot initiatives. This includes making information available online as well as through other information processing technology. (b) The Secretary of State may electronically send all of the following election information to a voter: (1) The date of the election. (2) The voter registration deadline. (3) Other information that assists the voter in registering to vote or casting a ballot. (4) Information contained within the state voter information guide pursuant to Section 9082.7. (c) The Secretary of State may send the information identified in subdivision (b) using one or both of the following methods: (1) By electronic mail if the Secretary of State has the voter’s email address and provides the voter with an opportunity to opt out of receiving communications. (2) By text message to the voter’s electronic device if the voter has consented to receiving text messages and the voter has been provided with an opportunity to opt out of receiving communications.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12174. Section 12174.

(a) The Secretary of State shall administer, protect, develop, and interpret the Secretary of State and State Archives Building Complex located in Sacramento in the area bounded by 10th, 11th, O, and P Streets for the use, education, and enjoyment of the public, including uses to advance civic education and civic engagement by all Californians. (b) The Secretary of State may enter into an operating agreement with the California Museum for History, Women and the Arts, an existing California nonprofit public benefit corporation, tax exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the United States Internal Revenue Code, or its successor. Under the operating agreement with the Secretary of State, the corporation shall operate a museum located in the Secretary of State and State Archives Building Complex, including development, administration, interpretation, and management of the museum and related public services, and acquiring and managing funding for the museum’s programs and services. The operating agreement shall provide for support by the Secretary of State, consistent with subdivision (a) and Section 12221, including integration of State Archives artifacts, collections, and programs in museum exhibits and programs. (c) The governing board of the corporation shall include the Secretary of State or an Assistant Secretary of State designated by the Secretary of State and the Director of Parks and Recreation or the Director of Parks and Recreation’s designee as ex officio voting members of the board. The board shall be the governing authority for operations funded through moneys received by the museum. The board shall submit an audit report annually to the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State shall submit copies of the annual audit reports to the Director of Finance, the Chair of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, and the Chair of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee. No funds raised or assets acquired by the corporation shall be used for purposes inconsistent with support of the museum and the operating agreement. (d) No later than January 10 of each year, the corporation shall submit the corporation business plan for the following fiscal year to the Director of Finance and the Chair of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee for review and comment. The executive director of the corporation shall also submit, not less than 30 days prior to adoption by the governing board of the corporation, proposed formal amendments to the corporation business plan to the Director of Finance and the Chair of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee for review and comment. (e) Fees charged to members of the public for copying, reproduction, and other services provided by the Secretary of State shall be at a level consistent with the costs of providing these services. The Secretary of State may establish an agreement with the corporation to provide these services and collect moneys for providing these services. (f) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the California Museum for History, Women and the Arts, or its successor, is a private nonprofit corporation and shall not be considered a state, local, or other public body for any purpose. (g) The Legislature encourages the governing board of the corporation to conduct its meetings in an open manner, establish a board membership that is representative and reflective of California’s rich history, and work cooperatively with the Secretary of State to ensure public input, confidence, and accountability in the museum’s use of its resources and the protection of California’s priceless archives, collections, and artifacts.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12175. Section 12175.

The Secretary of State shall keep a fee book. There shall be entered in the book all fees, commissions, and compensation of whatever nature or kind that are earned, collected, or charged, with the date, name of payer, paid or not paid, and the nature of the service in each case. The book shall be verified annually by the Secretary of State’s affidavit entered therein.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12176. Section 12176.

(a) Commencing July 1, 1992, all fees collected by the Secretary of State’s office pursuant to the Business and Professions Code, Civil Code, Code of Civil Procedure, Commercial Code, Corporations Code, Food and Agricultural Code, Harbors and Navigation Code, and this code, excluding Section 81008 of this code, shall be paid into the Secretary of State’s Business Fees Fund which was created by former Section 12181 and is hereby continued in existence in the State Treasury for the administration of that portion of the Secretary of State’s functions under these codes. (b) It is the intent of the Legislature that moneys deposited into the Secretary of State’s Business Fees Fund shall be used to support the programs from which fees are collected. It is further the intent of the Legislature that fees shall be sufficient to cover the costs of these programs and shall be expended, commencing in the 1992-93 fiscal year, to the extent that appropriations are made in the annual Budget Act. Of the fees collected, and any interest earned thereon, in excess of the authority of the Secretary of State to expend pursuant to the annual Budget Act, up to one million dollars ($1,000,000) may remain in the Secretary of State’s Business Fee Fund. Any additional excess fees and interest earned shall be transferred to the General Fund at the end of each fiscal year. At least weekly, all fees collected by the Secretary of State shall be paid into the State Treasury.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12177. Section 12177.

For services performed in the Secretary’s office, the Secretary of State shall charge and collect the fees fixed in this article.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12178. Section 12178.

No Member of the Legislature or state officer shall be charged for a search relative to matters appertaining to the duties of the Member’s or officer’s office, nor shall a Member of the Legislature or state officer be charged a fee for a certified copy of a law or resolution passed by the Legislature relative to the Member’s or officer’s official duties.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12178.1. Section 12178.1.

(a) Except for copies of documents on file prepared pursuant to Section 12182, the fee for preparing a copy of any law, resolution, record, or other document on file in the office of the Secretary of State, is one dollar ($1) for the first page, and fifty cents ($0.50) for each additional page. (b) Except for copies of documents on file prepared pursuant to subdivision (a), the Secretary of State shall provide compilations, indexes, extracts, or summaries of information, including computer information, contained in the public records of the Secretary of State at a charge sufficient to recover costs. Except where a fee or charge is prescribed by statute, the fee or charge imposed pursuant to this subdivision shall not exceed ten dollars ($10) per inquiry. (c) The Secretary of State may enter into contracts to provide information and copies and access to information, including direct access to computer information. The contracts may include reasonable conditions for access to information. The amounts payable pursuant to these contracts shall be sufficient to recover costs. (d) The Secretary of State may require persons and firms regularly using the research facilities of the Secretary of State to use those research facilities only pursuant to a contract under subdivision (c). (e) All fees, reimbursements, and contract amounts pursuant to this section shall be accounted as Secretary of State expenditure reimbursements. (f) Fees for special handling pursuant to Section 12182 are in addition to amounts pursuant to this section.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12179. Section 12179.

The fee for attesting each patent for land issued by the Governor is one dollar ($1) for each 160 acres, or fraction thereof.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 12179.1. Section 12179.1.

The fee for attesting each commission, passport, or other document signed by the Governor is ten dollars ($10). A fee shall not be charged for attesting pardons, extradition papers, military commissions, and commissions issued to nonsalaried state officers other than notaries public.

Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026