California Lawmakers Pass Bill To Hide Addresses Of Public Employees

California and 41 other states already have laws protecting the home addresses of victims of domestic violence and other crimes, according to the National Center for Victims of Crime, a nonprofit that advocates for victims’ rights. California’s program goes a bit further, also including abortion workers and public health workers. On Wednesday, the California Legislature voted to further expand the state law to include all employees of a federal, state or local government agency — notably election officials and code enforcement officers, both of whom have reported an increase violent threats in recent years. The bill would allow those workers to use a substitute address on public records, including the voter registration file. “It’s probably another manifestation of polarization,” said state Sen. Josh Newman, a Fullerton Democrat who authored the bill. “No one really imagined a time when you would have to protect so many public servants.” The bill now heads to Governor Gavin Newsom, who must decide by the end of September whether to sign the bill into law. It would not apply to state lawmakers or other elected officials, according to Newman’s office. Government officials are often the first to bear the brunt of public frustration over unpopular public policies and laws. Code enforcement officers—unarmed workers who enforce local property maintenance laws, health and safety ordinances and a host of other measures—are often confronted by angry business owners. Jamie Zeller, senior code enforcement officer for the city of Carlsbad, said a woman who had violated city policy by having too much trash on her property “posted on social media and told me to my face that she was going to blow my head off . ,” he said. Zeller said she ended up getting a restraining order against the woman. “Most of us in this profession have encountered it many times, where people have threatened to kill us or tried to chase you into a small area like a building or a room or apartment,” Zeller said. Zeller, who is also president of the California Association of Code Enforcement Officers, said threats have increased since the pandemic began in 2020 and many code enforcement officers have had to monitor businesses for compliance with pandemic restrictions, such as wearing masks. Santa Clara County Health Director Dr. Sarah Cody, had to have 24-hour security from the sheriff’s department in 2020 after a goal was set to issue strict pandemic restrictions. These types of threats continued into 2022. Last week, during a public hearing on this bill, a man identifying himself only as “Mike” spoke to lawmakers by phone to tell them the proposed bill was “outrageous.” . He said most government officials now work from home, saying “the only place you can find to redress a grievance with your government is their residence.” “You have to be afraid of people. And if you could listen to people, we wouldn’t have to come to your house,” he said. “But since you’re not there, we’re coming to your house. And guess what? We’ve got some postal workers on our side, we’ll figure out where you are.’ State Sen. Scott Wiener, a San Francisco Democrat who has threatened people to bomb his house in the past, said the man’s comments were “a criminal threat against members of the legislature” and called for an investigation. Capitol security officers are investigating.

title: “California Lawmakers Pass Bill To Hide Addresses Of Public Employees Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-25” author: “Mary Blakey”

California and 41 other states already have laws protecting the home addresses of victims of domestic violence and other crimes, according to the National Center for Victims of Crime, a nonprofit that advocates for victims’ rights. California’s program goes a bit further, also including abortion workers and public health workers. On Wednesday, the California Legislature voted to further expand the state law to include all employees of a federal, state or local government agency — notably election officials and code enforcement officers, both of whom have reported an increase violent threats in recent years. The bill would allow those workers to use a substitute address on public records, including the voter registration file. “It’s probably another manifestation of polarization,” said state Sen. Josh Newman, a Fullerton Democrat who authored the bill. “No one really imagined a time when you would have to protect so many public servants.” The bill now heads to Governor Gavin Newsom, who must decide by the end of September whether to sign the bill into law. It would not apply to state lawmakers or other elected officials, according to Newman’s office. Government officials are often the first to bear the brunt of public frustration over unpopular public policies and laws. Code enforcement officers—unarmed workers who enforce local property maintenance laws, health and safety ordinances and a host of other measures—are often confronted by angry business owners. Jamie Zeller, senior code enforcement officer for the city of Carlsbad, said a woman who had violated city policy by having too much trash on her property “posted on social media and told me to my face that she was going to blow my head off . ,” he said. Zeller said she ended up getting a restraining order against the woman. “Most of us in this profession have encountered it many times, where people have threatened to kill us or tried to chase you into a small area like a building or a room or apartment,” Zeller said. Zeller, who is also president of the California Association of Code Enforcement Officers, said threats have increased since the pandemic began in 2020 and many code enforcement officers have had to monitor businesses for compliance with pandemic restrictions, such as wearing masks. Santa Clara County Health Director Dr. Sarah Cody, had to have 24-hour security from the sheriff’s department in 2020 after a goal was set to issue strict pandemic restrictions. These types of threats continued into 2022. Last week, during a public hearing on this bill, a man identifying himself only as “Mike” spoke to lawmakers by phone to tell them the proposed bill was “outrageous.” . He said most government officials now work from home, saying “the only place you can find to redress a grievance with your government is their residence.” “You have to be afraid of people. And if you could listen to people, we wouldn’t have to come to your house,” he said. “But since you’re not there, we’re coming to your house. And guess what? We’ve got some postal workers on our side, we’ll figure out where you are.’ State Sen. Scott Wiener, a San Francisco Democrat who has threatened people to bomb his house in the past, said the man’s comments were “a criminal threat against members of the legislature” and called for an investigation. Capitol security officers are investigating.

title: “California Lawmakers Pass Bill To Hide Addresses Of Public Employees Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-10-29” author: “Scott Hartman”

California and 41 other states already have laws protecting the home addresses of victims of domestic violence and other crimes, according to the National Center for Victims of Crime, a nonprofit that advocates for victims’ rights. California’s program goes a bit further, also including abortion workers and public health workers. On Wednesday, the California Legislature voted to further expand the state law to include all employees of a federal, state or local government agency — notably election officials and code enforcement officers, both of whom have reported an increase violent threats in recent years. The bill would allow those workers to use a substitute address on public records, including the voter registration file. “It’s probably another manifestation of polarization,” said state Sen. Josh Newman, a Fullerton Democrat who authored the bill. “No one really imagined a time when you would have to protect so many public servants.” The bill now heads to Governor Gavin Newsom, who must decide by the end of September whether to sign the bill into law. It would not apply to state lawmakers or other elected officials, according to Newman’s office. Government officials are often the first to bear the brunt of public frustration over unpopular public policies and laws. Code enforcement officers—unarmed workers who enforce local property maintenance laws, health and safety ordinances and a host of other measures—are often confronted by angry business owners. Jamie Zeller, senior code enforcement officer for the city of Carlsbad, said a woman who had violated city policy by having too much trash on her property “posted on social media and told me to my face that she was going to blow my head off . ,” he said. Zeller said she ended up getting a restraining order against the woman. “Most of us in this profession have encountered it many times, where people have threatened to kill us or tried to chase you into a small area like a building or a room or apartment,” Zeller said. Zeller, who is also president of the California Association of Code Enforcement Officers, said threats have increased since the pandemic began in 2020 and many code enforcement officers have had to monitor businesses for compliance with pandemic restrictions, such as wearing masks. Santa Clara County Health Director Dr. Sarah Cody, had to have 24-hour security from the sheriff’s department in 2020 after a goal was set to issue strict pandemic restrictions. These types of threats continued into 2022. Last week, during a public hearing on this bill, a man identifying himself only as “Mike” spoke to lawmakers by phone to tell them the proposed bill was “outrageous.” . He said most government officials now work from home, saying “the only place you can find to redress a grievance with your government is their residence.” “You have to be afraid of people. And if you could listen to people, we wouldn’t have to come to your house,” he said. “But since you’re not there, we’re coming to your house. And guess what? We’ve got some postal workers on our side, we’ll figure out where you are.’ State Sen. Scott Wiener, a San Francisco Democrat who has threatened people to bomb his house in the past, said the man’s comments were “a criminal threat against members of the legislature” and called for an investigation. Capitol security officers are investigating.

title: “California Lawmakers Pass Bill To Hide Addresses Of Public Employees Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-04” author: “Cathy Poland”

California and 41 other states already have laws protecting the home addresses of victims of domestic violence and other crimes, according to the National Center for Victims of Crime, a nonprofit that advocates for victims’ rights. California’s program goes a bit further, also including abortion workers and public health workers. On Wednesday, the California Legislature voted to further expand the state law to include all employees of a federal, state or local government agency — notably election officials and code enforcement officers, both of whom have reported an increase violent threats in recent years. The bill would allow those workers to use a substitute address on public records, including the voter registration file. “It’s probably another manifestation of polarization,” said state Sen. Josh Newman, a Fullerton Democrat who authored the bill. “No one really imagined a time when you would have to protect so many public servants.” The bill now heads to Governor Gavin Newsom, who must decide by the end of September whether to sign the bill into law. It would not apply to state lawmakers or other elected officials, according to Newman’s office. Government officials are often the first to bear the brunt of public frustration over unpopular public policies and laws. Code enforcement officers—unarmed workers who enforce local property maintenance laws, health and safety ordinances and a host of other measures—are often confronted by angry business owners. Jamie Zeller, senior code enforcement officer for the city of Carlsbad, said a woman who had violated city policy by having too much trash on her property “posted on social media and told me to my face that she was going to blow my head off . ,” he said. Zeller said she ended up getting a restraining order against the woman. “Most of us in this profession have encountered it many times, where people have threatened to kill us or tried to chase you into a small area like a building or a room or apartment,” Zeller said. Zeller, who is also president of the California Association of Code Enforcement Officers, said threats have increased since the pandemic began in 2020 and many code enforcement officers have had to monitor businesses for compliance with pandemic restrictions, such as wearing masks. Santa Clara County Health Director Dr. Sarah Cody, had to have 24-hour security from the sheriff’s department in 2020 after a goal was set to issue strict pandemic restrictions. These types of threats continued into 2022. Last week, during a public hearing on this bill, a man identifying himself only as “Mike” spoke to lawmakers by phone to tell them the proposed bill was “outrageous.” . He said most government officials now work from home, saying “the only place you can find to redress a grievance with your government is their residence.” “You have to be afraid of people. And if you could listen to people, we wouldn’t have to come to your house,” he said. “But since you’re not there, we’re coming to your house. And guess what? We’ve got some postal workers on our side, we’ll figure out where you are.’ State Sen. Scott Wiener, a San Francisco Democrat who has threatened people to bomb his house in the past, said the man’s comments were “a criminal threat against members of the legislature” and called for an investigation. Capitol security officers are investigating.