--- type: "Bill" title: "Falsifying evidence." description: "Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for a person to willfully destroy or conceal any book, paper record, instrument in writing, or other matter or thing knowing that it is about to be produced in evidence in a trial, inquiry, or investigation." jurisdiction: "us/states/ca" legislature: "California Legislature" session: "20152016" identifier: "AB 256" citation: "California AB 256 (20152016)" classification: ["bill"] subjects: ["Falsifying evidence."] status: "enacted" primary_sponsors: ["Jones-Sawyer"] version_count: 7 action_count: 27 vote_count: 8 first_action: "2015-02-09" last_action: "2015-10-03" source: "openstates" source_identifier: "ocd-bill/31900334-93e8-4591-8fcb-bc8578249903" source_url: "http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB256" source_hash: "8014516b253533f3c7cc483dd4ea67484ded3fadd9320b2fcac1e8c78b52ff94" 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 256 (20152016) — Falsifying evidence. Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for a person to willfully destroy or conceal any book, paper record, instrument in writing, or other matter or thing knowing that it is about to be produced in evidence in a trial, inquiry, or investigation. ## Version chain The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment. 1. **02/09/15 - Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB256&version=20150AB25699INT) 2. **04/07/15 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB256&version=20150AB25698AMD) 3. **05/04/15 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB256&version=20150AB25697AMD) 4. **06/16/15 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB256&version=20150AB25696AMD) 5. **10/03/15 - Chaptered** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB256&version=20150AB25694CHP) 6. **AB256** (committee substitute) — [source](http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB256) 7. **09/09/15 - Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB256&version=20150AB25695ENR) ## Votes - Do pass. — **16–0** (pass) · lower - 3rd Reading AB256 Jones-Sawyer By Leyva — **40–0** (pass) · upper - Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] — **7–0** (pass) · upper - AB 256 JONES-SAWYER Assembly Third Reading — **79–0** (pass) · lower - Do pass — **7–0** (pass) · upper - Placed on suspense file — **7–0** (pass) · upper - Do pass as amended and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] — **7–0** (pass) · lower - AB 256 JONES-SAWYER Concurrence in Senate Amendments — **79–0** (pass) · lower ## Sponsors - Jones-Sawyer — primary (person) ## Timeline The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote. - **2015-02-09** Read first time. To print. `reading-1` - **2015-02-10** From printer. May be heard in committee March 12. - **2015-02-17** Referred to Com. on PUB. S. `referral-committee` - **2015-03-17** In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author. - **2015-04-06** From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (March 24). `amendment-introduction, committee-passage, amendment-passage` - **2015-04-07** Read second time and amended. `amendment-passage, reading-2, reading-1` - **2015-04-08** Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `referral-committee` - **2015-04-15** From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 16. Noes 0.) (April 15). `committee-passage-favorable, committee-passage` - **2015-04-16** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1` - **2015-05-04** Read third time and amended. Ordered to third reading. (Page 1256.) `reading-3, amendment-passage, reading-1` - **2015-05-11** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 79. Noes 0. Page 1374.) `reading-3, passage, reading-1` - **2015-05-11** In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. `reading-1` - **2015-05-21** Referred to Com. on PUB. S. `referral-committee` - **2015-06-10** In committee: Hearing postponed by committee. - **2015-06-16** In committee: Hearing postponed by committee. - **2015-06-16** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on PUB. S. `referral-committee, reading-2, amendment-introduction, amendment-passage, reading-1` - **2015-06-23** From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (June 23). Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `referral-committee, committee-passage-favorable, committee-passage` - **2015-07-06** In committee: Referred to APPR. suspense file. `referral-committee` - **2015-08-27** From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (August 27). `committee-passage-favorable, committee-passage` - **2015-08-31** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1` - **2015-09-02** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 40. Noes 0. Page 2396.). `reading-3, passage, reading-1` - **2015-09-02** In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending. May be considered on or after September 4 pursuant to Assembly Rule 77. - **2015-09-03** Assembly Rule 77 suspended. (Page 2859.) - **2015-09-04** Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 79. Noes 0. Page 2908.). `committee-passage-favorable, amendment-passage` - **2015-09-16** Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4 p.m. - **2015-10-03** Approved by the Governor. `executive-signature` - **2015-10-03** Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 463, Statutes of 2015. ## Source OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/31900334-93e8-4591-8fcb-bc8578249903`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official California legislature records).