Enacted in 1999, California’s domestic partnership registry was the first of its kind in the United States created by a legislature without court intervention. Initially, domestic partnerships enjoyed very few privileges — principally hospital-visitation rights. The California Legislature has since expanded the scope of California domestic partnership laws to afford many of the rights and responsibilities common to marriage.

As of 2002, California law provided for the establishment of registered domestic partners (RDP) with the California Secretary of State. This law provided certain rights, benefits, and responsibilities.

The California Domestic Partner Rights and Responsibilities Act of 2003 gave a wide array of marriage-like rights and responsibilities to RDPs.

Effective January 1, 2007, a new law requires that RDPs must file their 2007 California income tax returns using the Married/RDP Filing Jointly or Married/RDP Filing Separately filing status.

You can view the legislative history by clicking here. You can also read the various AB (Assembly Bill), SB (Senate Bill), or Family Law information below.

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Assembly Bills, Senate Bills, Family Law

• AB 2051: This bill would establish a fee of $23 to be imposed upon persons registering as domestic partners to develop and support a training curriculum specific to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender domestic abuse support service providers who serve that community in regard to domestic violence, and to provide brochures specific to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender domestic abuse, as specified.
• SB 1827: This bill would allow registered domestic partners to file joint or separate state tax returns, as specified.
• AB 205: This bill would enact the California Domestic Partner Rights and Responsibilities Act of 2003.
• SB 105: This bill would provide that a domestic partner or former domestic partner be treated as the spouse or former spouse of that taxpayer for purposes of applying the Personal Income Tax Law, specified franchise and income tax laws, the Corporation Tax Law, and the Katz-Harris Taxpayers' Bill of Rights Act, except where that treatment would result in specified treatment under federal income tax law, as provided.
• AB 102: The bill would allow one party or both parties to a registered domestic partnership to elect to change the middle or last names by which that party wishes to be known after registration of the domestic partnership by entering the new name in the spaces provided on the Declaration of Domestic Partnership form without intent to defraud.
• AB 25: This bill expands the legal effect of the registration of a domestic partnership to any provision of law specifically referring to domestic partners.
• SB 11: This bill would delete that latter same-sex or age eligibility requirement, thereby allowing any 2 persons who meet the other, specified criteria to register as domestic partners.
• Family Code Sections 297-297.5, 298-298.5, 299-299.3, and 299.6: These codes define the requirements to become registered domestic partners, terminate registered domestic partnership, as well as rights, obligations, and privileges.