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California · 2025–26 Regular Session · Senate Bill

SB 498: Incarcerated persons: communications.

Passed one chamber Official data

  1. Introduced
  2. In committee
  3. Passed one chamber
  4. Passed both chambers
  5. Enacted

Last official action: ·Record last updated:

Plain-language summary

SB 498 is a senate bill introduced in the California Senate on February 19, 2025. According to its official title, it concerns: Incarcerated persons: communications. Primary sponsor: Josh Becker (D). It lists 4 additional sponsors. Most recent recorded action (August 13, 2026): August 13 hearing: Held in committee and under submission.

Generated automatically from the official title, sponsor list, and status record only. It does not characterize the bill’s purpose or effects. How summaries are written

Official summary

Legislative Counsel’s Digest (official, as of the latest version). Written by nonpartisan legislative staff; reproduced verbatim.

Under existing law, a person sentenced to imprisonment in state prison or in a county jail for a felony offense, as specified, may, during that period of confinement, be deprived only of those rights as are reasonably related to legitimate penological interests. Existing law requires the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to provide inmates with accessible, functional voice communication services free of charge to the person initiating and the person receiving the communication.

This bill would additionally require the department to provide inmates electronic messaging services as described above. The bill would prohibit staff at a department facility, if an incarcerated individual is authorized to possess and use a tablet or other device for voice communications, from disconnecting any communications conducted by the individual on the device based solely on the duration of the call.

Sponsors

Sponsors by party (alphabetical): Democratic 5

NameRolePartyChamberDistrict
Josh BeckerPrimary sponsorDemocraticSenate13
Mia BontaCo-sponsorDemocraticAssembly18
Sharon Quirk-SilvaCo-sponsorDemocraticAssembly67
Nick SchultzCo-sponsorDemocraticAssembly44
LaShae Sharp-CollinsCo-sponsorDemocraticAssembly79

“Support” is shown only as formal sponsorship recorded by the legislature. Roll-call votes are available on the official bill page.

Recent official actions

  1. August 13 hearing: Held in committee and under submission.
  2. June 24 set for first hearing. Placed on suspense file.
  3. From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (June 9). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
  4. Coauthors revised.
  5. From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on PUB. S.
  6. Referred to Com. on PUB. S.
  7. In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.
  8. Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 39. Noes 0. Page 1504.) Ordered to the Assembly.
  9. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
  10. Read second time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
  11. From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 6. Noes 0. Page 1202.) (May 23).
  12. Set for hearing May 23.

Sources

  1. California Legislative Information — pubinfo database export
  2. Official bill page