---
type: "Bill"
title: "Search warrants: tracking devices."
description: "Existing law prohibits, with exceptions, the use of an electronic tracking device to determine the location or movement of a person. Under existing law a violation of these provisions is a misdemeanor. Existing law states that these provisions do not apply to the lawful use of an electronic tracking device by a law enforcement agency. Existing decisional law, in the case of U.S. v. Jones, holds that the attachment of a Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking device to a vehicle and the use of the device to track the vehicle is a search within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ca"
legislature: "California Legislature"
session: "20112012"
identifier: "AB 2055"
citation: "California AB 2055 (20112012)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Search warrants: tracking devices."]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Fuentes"]
version_count: 8
action_count: 25
vote_count: 5
first_action: "2012-02-23"
last_action: "2012-09-30"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/225fdbcb-b1d3-4318-b29c-20f578b7634d"
source_url: "http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB2055"
source_hash: "03d51dab759f6e6137abcae23b585ebb103ff3122d155dfbe6c0e7351a816eaf"
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 2055 (20112012) — Search warrants: tracking devices.

Existing law prohibits, with exceptions, the use of an electronic tracking device to determine the location or movement of a person. Under existing law a violation of these provisions is a misdemeanor. Existing law states that these provisions do not apply to the lawful use of an electronic tracking device by a law enforcement agency. Existing decisional law, in the case of U.S. v. Jones, holds that the attachment of a Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking device to a vehicle and the use of the device to track the vehicle is a search within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

## Version chain

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

1. **02/23/12 - Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB2055&version=20110AB205599INT)
2. **03/29/12 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB2055&version=20110AB205598AMD)
3. **04/25/12 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB2055&version=20110AB205597AMD)
4. **08/07/12 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB2055&version=20110AB205596AMD)
5. **08/22/12 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB2055&version=20110AB205595AMD)
6. **09/30/12 - Chaptered** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB2055&version=20110AB205593CHP)
7. **AB2055** (committee substitute) — [source](http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB2055)
8. **09/11/12 - Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201120120AB2055&version=20110AB205594ENR)

## Votes

- Do pass as amended, to Consent Calendar. — **6–0** (pass) · lower
- 3rd Reading AB2055 Fuentes By Padilla — **36–0** (pass) · upper
- AB 2055 FUENTES Consent Calendar Second Day — **72–0** (pass) · lower
- AB 2055 FUENTES Concurrence in Senate Amendments — **79–0** (pass) · lower
- Do pass as amended. — **7–0** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Fuentes — primary (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2012-02-23** Read first time. To print. `reading-1`
- **2012-02-24** From printer. May be heard in committee March 25.
- **2012-03-29** Referred to Com. on PUB. S. `referral-committee`
- **2012-03-29** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on PUB. S. Read second time and amended. `reading-2, amendment-introduction, reading-1, amendment-passage`
- **2012-04-09** Re-referred to Com. on PUB. S. `referral-committee`
- **2012-04-24** From committee: Do pass as amended. To consent calendar. (Ayes 6. Noes 0.) (April 17). `amendment-passage, committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2012-04-25** Read second time and amended. Ordered to second reading. `reading-2, reading-1, amendment-passage`
- **2012-04-26** Read second time. Ordered to consent calendar. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **2012-05-03** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 72. Noes 0. Page 4674.) `reading-3, reading-1, passage`
- **2012-05-03** In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. `reading-1`
- **2012-05-17** Referred to Com. on PUB. S. `referral-committee`
- **2012-08-06** From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (July 3). `amendment-passage, committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2012-08-07** Read second time and amended. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1, amendment-passage`
- **2012-08-15** Ordered to special consent calendar.
- **2012-08-20** From consent calendar.
- **2012-08-20** Ordered to third reading.
- **2012-08-22** Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading. `reading-3, reading-1, amendment-passage`
- **2012-08-23** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **2012-08-28** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 36. Noes 0. Page 4886.). `reading-3, reading-1, passage`
- **2012-08-28** In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending. May be considered on or after August 30 pursuant to Assembly Rule 77.
- **2012-08-29** Assembly Rule 77 suspended. (Page 6488.)
- **2012-08-29** Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 79. Noes 0. Page 6545.). `committee-passage-favorable, amendment-passage`
- **2012-09-13** Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 3:30 p.m.
- **2012-09-30** Approved by the Governor. `executive-signature`
- **2012-09-30** Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 818, Statutes of 2012.

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/225fdbcb-b1d3-4318-b29c-20f578b7634d`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official California legislature records).