What is the California Safe at Home Act?
California’s Safe at Home program is an address-confidentiality program administered by the Secretary of State that allows eligible people facing safety risks to use a designated substitute mailing address instead of their residential address. What is sometimes called the “Safe at Home Act” is principally codified in Gov. Code, §§ 6205–6210 and Gov. Code, §§ 6215–6216.[2][4][6]
Who qualifies?
The program serves two principal groups:
| Category | People covered |
|---|---|
| Victims and qualifying household members | Victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, human trafficking, child abduction, or elder or dependent adult abuse, and qualifying household members. |
| People targeted because of health care affiliations or public employment | Qualifying reproductive health care or gender-affirming health care providers, employees, volunteers, and patients, and public entity employees who experience qualifying harassment, violence, or threats because of their affiliation or work. |
The first category is governed by Gov. Code, § 6206, subd. (a). The Attorney General describes the additional eligibility categories, and the current legislative findings expressly address threats against public entity workers, including election workers, public health workers, school board members, and code enforcement officers. Eligibility depends on the applicable statutory requirements, not merely membership in an occupation.[1][5][6]
What protections does it provide?
Substitute address for government records
The central protection is use of the Secretary of State’s designated address in state and local government records. The controlling language provides:
“When creating a public record, state and local agencies shall accept the address designated by the Secretary of State as a program participant’s substitute address,” unless the Secretary of State makes the specified findings permitting an exception.
Gov. Code, § 6207, subd. (a).[7]
An exception requires findings that:
- The agency has a bona fide statutory or administrative requirement for the actual address.
- The actual address will be used only for those purposes and will not be publicly disseminated.
Similar protections apply when agencies modify or maintain public records, although the statute excludes specified registered vital records from that provision.[7]
Mail and service of process
For participants enrolled under the victim-protection provisions, the Secretary of State acts as an agent for receiving mail and service of process. The statute provides for forwarding process to the participant and maintaining a record of service. Enrollment does not make a participant immune from being sued or served.[5]
Restrictions on public disclosure
The Attorney General identifies two additional protections:
- Written-demand protection: Public display of a participant’s home address or telephone number is prohibited after the participant makes the prescribed written demand.[1]
- Threat-related protection: Public display of a participant’s or household member’s home address, telephone number, or image with the intent to threaten or cause physical harm is prohibited.[1]
These protections should not be understood as an automatic erasure of every existing record or internet reference.
How does someone enroll?
Under the victim-protection provisions, an applicant must be domiciled in California and complete an application in person through a qualifying community-based assistance program, including meeting with a victims’ assistance counselor and receiving program orientation. An adult may apply personally; a parent or guardian may apply for a minor, and a guardian may apply for an incapacitated person.[5]
The application requires, among other things:
- A sworn statement establishing the qualifying circumstances and fear for safety.
- Contact information and identification of the addresses to be protected.
- Designation of the Secretary of State as agent for mail and service of process.
- For a household-member application, identification of the qualifying victim and evidence of the household relationship.
Supporting evidence of victimization may accompany the application; the statute does not make a police report or restraining order universally mandatory.[5]
The Secretary of State also administers implementing regulations, including enrollment requirements, updated effective April 1, 2025.[2][3]