---
type: "Bill"
title: "Accessibility standards: blind and visually impaired."
description: "Accessibility standards: blind and visually impaired."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ca"
legislature: "California Legislature"
session: "19992000"
identifier: "AB 685"
citation: "California AB 685 (19992000)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Accessibility standards: blind and visually impaired."]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Thomson"]
version_count: 9
action_count: 26
vote_count: 7
first_action: "1999-02-23"
last_action: "1999-09-15"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/67e7745e-bb6e-46d2-ac1a-628a8f24ba6b"
source_url: "http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=199920000AB685"
source_hash: "ea816efeb831611b6c17dce24bc50eb734690e49a756843c642723c64fb38356"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-ca"]
---

# California AB 685 (19992000) — Accessibility standards: blind and visually impaired.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **02/23/99 - Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=199920000AB685&version=19990AB68599INT)
2. **04/27/99 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=199920000AB685&version=19990AB68598AMD)
3. **05/25/99 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=199920000AB685&version=19990AB68597AMD)
4. **06/14/99 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=199920000AB685&version=19990AB68596AMD)
5. **06/24/99 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=199920000AB685&version=19990AB68595AMD)
6. **08/23/99 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=199920000AB685&version=19990AB68594AMD)
7. **09/15/99 - Chaptered** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=199920000AB685&version=19990AB68592CHP)
8. **AB685** (committee substitute) — [source](http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=199920000AB685)
9. **08/30/99 - Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=199920000AB685&version=19990AB68593ENR)

## Votes

- Do pass as amended. — **pass** (pass) · lower
- Do pass. — **pass** (pass) · upper
- Do pass as amended, and re-refer to the Committee on Appropriations. — **pass** (pass) · legislature
- AB 685 THOMSON CONCURRENCE — **pass** (pass) · lower
- Do pass as amended and be re-referred to the Committee on Appropriations. — **pass** (pass) · legislature
- Assembly 3rd Reading AB685 Thomson By Ortiz — **pass** (pass) · upper
- AB 685 THOMSON THIRD READING — **pass** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Thomson — primary (person)
- Aroner — author (person)
- Wesson — author (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **1999-09-15** Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 386, Statutes of 1999.
- **1999-09-15** Approved by the Governor. `executive-signature`
- **1999-09-07** Enrolled and to the Governor at 3 p.m.
- **1999-08-30** Senate amendments concurred in. To enrollment. (Ayes 65. Noes 10. Page 3614.) `committee-passage-favorable, amendment-passage`
- **1999-08-26** In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending. May be considered on or after August 28 pursuant to Assembly Rule 77.
- **1999-08-26** Read third time, passed, and to Assembly. (Ayes 23. Noes 11. Page 2676.) `passage, reading-3, reading-1`
- **1999-08-24** Read second time. To third reading. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **1999-08-23** Read third time, amended. To second reading. `reading-3, amendment-passage, reading-1`
- **1999-07-14** Read second time. To third reading. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **1999-07-13** From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 13. Noes 0.). `committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **1999-06-24** Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Standing Committee on Appropriations. `amendment-passage, reading-2, reading-1, referral-committee`
- **1999-06-23** From committee: Amend, do pass as amended, and re-refer to Standing Committee on Appropriations (Ayes 6. Noes 0.). `committee-passage, amendment-introduction, amendment-passage, referral-committee`
- **1999-06-14** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Standing Committee on Housing and Community Development. `amendment-introduction, amendment-passage, reading-2, reading-1, referral-committee`
- **1999-06-07** Referred to Standing Committee on Housing and Community Development. `referral-committee`
- **1999-05-28** In Senate. Read first time. To Standing Committee on Rules for assignment. `reading-1`
- **1999-05-27** Read third time, passed, and to Senate. (Ayes 60. Noes 19. Page 1985.) `passage, reading-3, reading-1`
- **1999-05-26** Read second time. To third reading. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **1999-05-25** Read second time and amended. Ordered returned to second reading. `amendment-passage, reading-2, reading-1`
- **1999-05-24** From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended. (Ayes 17. Noes 3.) (May 19). `committee-passage, amendment-introduction, amendment-passage`
- **1999-04-29** Re-referred to Standing Committee on Appropriations. `referral-committee`
- **1999-04-27** Read second time and amended. `amendment-passage, reading-2, reading-1`
- **1999-04-26** From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended, and re-refer to Standing Committee on Appropriations (Ayes 7. Noes 1.) (April 20). `committee-passage, amendment-introduction, amendment-passage, referral-committee`
- **1999-04-06** In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.
- **1999-03-08** Referred to Com. on C.P.,G.E. & E.D. `referral-committee`
- **1999-02-24** From printer. May be heard in committee March 26.
- **1999-02-23** Read first time. To print. `reading-1`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/67e7745e-bb6e-46d2-ac1a-628a8f24ba6b`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official California legislature records).