republic-os/legislation/us/states/ca/20192020/ab-201.md

---
type: "Bill"
title: "Political Reform Act of 1974: campaign disclosure: text messages."
description: "The Political Reform Act of 1974 provides for the comprehensive regulation of campaign financing and activities. The act defines \"mass mailing\" to mean over two hundred substantially similar pieces of mail, and defines \"mass electronic mailing\" to mean sending more than 200 substantially similar pieces of electronic mail within a calendar month. The act prohibits a candidate or committee from sending a mass mailing or mass electronic mailing unless certain information regarding the source of the mailing is shown in or on the mailing, as specified. The act also regulates political advertisements. The act requires certain advertisements paid for by a committee to include the words \"Ad paid for by\" in the advertisement. The act requires electronic media advertisements, other than email messages or internet websites, paid for by a committee, other than a political party committee or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate, to comply with certain disclosure requirements. The act requires certain committees to include a hyperlink to an internet website disclosing, among other things, the committee's \"top contributors,\" as defined, in an electronic media advertisement."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ca"
legislature: "California Legislature"
session: "20192020"
identifier: "AB 201"
citation: "California AB 201 (20192020)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Political Reform Act of 1974: campaign disclosure: text messages."]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Cervantes"]
version_count: 11
action_count: 35
vote_count: 7
first_action: "2019-01-14"
last_action: "2019-10-08"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/97ccee36-71dc-424e-8afd-c07d11e4e84f"
source_url: "http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB201"
source_hash: "4708327222c19478da42f92f515cb55bc37e63a1cf29f72c8a630a356fc023ed"
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 201 (20192020) — Political Reform Act of 1974: campaign disclosure: text messages.

The Political Reform Act of 1974 provides for the comprehensive regulation of campaign financing and activities. The act defines "mass mailing" to mean over two hundred substantially similar pieces of mail, and defines "mass electronic mailing" to mean sending more than 200 substantially similar pieces of electronic mail within a calendar month. The act prohibits a candidate or committee from sending a mass mailing or mass electronic mailing unless certain information regarding the source of the mailing is shown in or on the mailing, as specified. The act also regulates political advertisements. The act requires certain advertisements paid for by a committee to include the words "Ad paid for by" in the advertisement. The act requires electronic media advertisements, other than email messages or internet websites, paid for by a committee, other than a political party committee or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate, to comply with certain disclosure requirements. The act requires certain committees to include a hyperlink to an internet website disclosing, among other things, the committee's "top contributors," as defined, in an electronic media advertisement.

## Version chain

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

1. **01/14/19 - Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB201&version=20190AB20199INT)
2. **03/14/19 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB201&version=20190AB20198AMD)
3. **04/22/19 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB201&version=20190AB20197AMD)
4. **05/06/19 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB201&version=20190AB20196AMD)
5. **06/11/19 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB201&version=20190AB20195AMD)
6. **07/11/19 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB201&version=20190AB20194AMD)
7. **08/12/19 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB201&version=20190AB20193AMD)
8. **08/29/19 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB201&version=20190AB20192AMD)
9. **10/08/19 - Chaptered** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB201&version=20190AB20190CHP)
10. **AB201** (committee substitute) — [source](http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB201)
11. **09/18/19 - Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB201&version=20190AB20191ENR)

## 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] — **4–1** (pass) · upper
- AB 201 Cervantes Consent Calendar Second Day — **77–0** (pass) · lower
- Do pass as amended and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] — **7–0** (pass) · lower
- With recommendation: That Senate amendments be concurred in. — **7–0** (pass) · lower
- AB 201 Cervantes Concurrence in Senate Amendments — **72–1** (pass) · lower
- 3rd Reading AB201 Cervantes et al. By Allen — **34–1** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Cervantes — primary (person)
- Allen — principal coauthor (person)
- Hill — coauthor (person)
- Mullin — author (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2019-01-14** Read first time. To print. `reading-1`
- **2019-01-15** From printer. May be heard in committee February 14.
- **2019-03-14** Referred to Com. on E. & R. `referral-committee`
- **2019-03-14** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on E. & R. Read second time and amended. `reading-1, reading-2, amendment-passage, amendment-introduction`
- **2019-03-18** Re-referred to Com. on E. & R. `referral-committee`
- **2019-04-12** From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (April 10). `amendment-passage, committee-passage, amendment-introduction`
- **2019-04-22** Read second time and amended. `amendment-passage, reading-1, reading-2`
- **2019-04-23** Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `referral-committee`
- **2019-05-06** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on APPR. Read second time and amended. `reading-1, reading-2, amendment-passage, amendment-introduction`
- **2019-05-07** Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `referral-committee`
- **2019-05-13** Joint Rule 62(a), file notice suspended. (Page 1609.)
- **2019-05-15** From committee: Do pass. To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 16. Noes 0.) (May 15). `committee-passage-favorable, committee-passage`
- **2019-05-16** Read second time. Ordered to Consent Calendar. `reading-1, reading-2`
- **2019-05-22** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 77. Noes 0. Page 1828.) `passage, reading-3, reading-1`
- **2019-05-23** In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. `reading-1`
- **2019-05-29** Referred to Com. on E. & C.A. `referral-committee`
- **2019-06-11** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on E. & C.A. `reading-1, reading-2, amendment-passage, referral-committee, amendment-introduction`
- **2019-06-18** In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.
- **2019-07-10** From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 4. Noes 1.) (July 2). `amendment-passage, committee-passage, amendment-introduction`
- **2019-07-11** Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `reading-1, reading-2, amendment-passage, referral-committee`
- **2019-07-31** In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.
- **2019-08-12** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on APPR. `reading-1, reading-2, amendment-passage, referral-committee, amendment-introduction`
- **2019-08-19** From committee: Be ordered to second reading pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8. `committee-passage, reading-2`
- **2019-08-20** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-1, reading-2`
- **2019-08-29** Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading. `amendment-passage, reading-3, reading-1`
- **2019-08-30** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-1, reading-2`
- **2019-09-11** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 34. Noes 1. Page 2836.). `passage, reading-3, reading-1`
- **2019-09-11** In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.
- **2019-09-12** Re-referred to Com. on E. & R. pursuant to Assembly Rule 77.2. `referral-committee`
- **2019-09-12** Joint Rule 62(a), file notice suspended. (Page 3461.)
- **2019-09-13** From committee: That the Senate amendments be concurred in. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (September 13). `committee-passage`
- **2019-09-13** Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 72. Noes 1. Page 3567.). `amendment-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2019-09-24** Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 3:30 p.m.
- **2019-10-08** Approved by the Governor. `executive-signature`
- **2019-10-08** Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 555, Statutes of 2019.

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/97ccee36-71dc-424e-8afd-c07d11e4e84f`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official California legislature records).