---
type: "Bill"
title: "Nonprobate transfers: revocable transfer upon death deeds."
description: "(1) Existing law provides that a person may pass real property to a beneficiary at death by various methods including by will, intestate succession, trust, and titling the property in joint tenancy, among others."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ca"
legislature: "California Legislature"
session: "20152016"
identifier: "AB 139"
citation: "California AB 139 (20152016)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Nonprobate transfers: revocable transfer upon death deeds."]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Gatto"]
version_count: 8
action_count: 26
vote_count: 6
first_action: "2015-01-09"
last_action: "2015-09-21"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/bc8e7f61-7db6-4878-879e-20458f8e1b00"
source_url: "http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB139"
source_hash: "2fb413955f7cfd131144e187eb4f0099e5f2486c8dd8bf134b42e7ee2d607629"
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 139 (20152016) — Nonprobate transfers: revocable transfer upon death deeds.

(1) Existing law provides that a person may pass real property to a beneficiary at death by various methods including by will, intestate succession, trust, and titling the property in joint tenancy, among others.

## Version chain

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

1. **01/09/15 - Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB139&version=20150AB13999INT)
2. **03/05/15 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB139&version=20150AB13998AMD)
3. **06/29/15 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB139&version=20150AB13997AMD)
4. **07/15/15 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB139&version=20150AB13996AMD)
5. **08/26/15 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB139&version=20150AB13995AMD)
6. **09/21/15 - Chaptered** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB139&version=20150AB13993CHP)
7. **AB139** (committee substitute) — [source](http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB139)
8. **09/03/15 - Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB139&version=20150AB13994ENR)

## Votes

- Do pass. To Consent Calendar. — **16–0** (pass) · lower
- Do pass as amended, but first amend, and re-refer to the Committee on [Appropriations] — **6–0** (pass) · upper
- 3rd Reading AB139 Gatto By Leno — **40–0** (pass) · upper
- Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] — **10–0** (pass) · lower
- AB 139 GATTO Consent Calendar Second Day — **78–0** (pass) · lower
- AB 139 GATTO Concurrence in Senate Amendments — **78–0** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Gatto — primary (person)
- Chávez — coauthor (person)
- Mayes — coauthor (person)
- Waldron — coauthor (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2015-01-09** Introduced. To print. `introduction`
- **2015-01-12** Read first time. `reading-1`
- **2015-01-12** From printer. May be heard in committee February 11.
- **2015-01-26** Referred to Com. on JUD. `referral-committee`
- **2015-03-05** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on JUD. Read second time and amended. `reading-2, amendment-introduction, amendment-passage, reading-1`
- **2015-03-09** Re-referred to Com. on JUD. `referral-committee`
- **2015-03-17** From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 10. Noes 0.) (March 17). Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `referral-committee, committee-passage-favorable, committee-passage`
- **2015-03-25** From committee: Do pass. To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 16. Noes 0.) (March 25). `committee-passage-favorable, committee-passage`
- **2015-03-26** Read second time. Ordered to Consent Calendar. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **2015-04-09** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 78. Noes 0. Page 855.) `reading-3, passage, reading-1`
- **2015-04-09** In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. `reading-1`
- **2015-05-07** Referred to Com. on JUD. `referral-committee`
- **2015-06-29** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on JUD. `referral-committee, reading-2, amendment-introduction, amendment-passage, reading-1`
- **2015-07-14** From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 6. Noes 0.) (July 7). `amendment-introduction, committee-passage, amendment-passage`
- **2015-07-15** Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `referral-committee, reading-2, amendment-passage, reading-1`
- **2015-08-17** From committee: Be placed on second reading file pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8. `committee-passage`
- **2015-08-18** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **2015-08-26** Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading. `reading-3, amendment-passage, reading-1`
- **2015-08-27** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **2015-08-31** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 40. Noes 0. Page 2309.). `reading-3, passage, reading-1`
- **2015-08-31** In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending. May be considered on or after September 2 pursuant to Assembly Rule 77.
- **2015-09-01** Assembly Rule 77 suspended. (Page 2729.)
- **2015-09-01** Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 78. Noes 0. Page 2729.). `committee-passage-favorable, amendment-passage`
- **2015-09-09** Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4 p.m.
- **2015-09-21** Approved by the Governor. `executive-signature`
- **2015-09-21** Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 293, Statutes of 2015.

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/bc8e7f61-7db6-4878-879e-20458f8e1b00`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official California legislature records).