California Legislative History

What is the Legislative Counsel's Digest?

The Legislative Counsel's Digest is the brief summary of the changes the proposed bill would make to current law. It is prepared by the attorney for the Legislature and his or her staff. The digest is found at the beginning of each bill and its chaptered version. It is also printed in the Summary Digest. 

1. Statutes and Amendments to the Codes. The Summary Digest appears in the last volume for the applicable year.
   • Library: KFC 25 .A222
   • California Assembly Office of the Chief Clerk (1849-2008): large PDF files that can be cumbersome to navigate
   • HeinOnline Sessions laws library (1849 forward)
2. Chaptered bills. The Legislative Counsel's Digest precedes the text of the bill.​
   • California legislative information archive (1993-2016)
   • California legislative information (1999 forward)
3. Summary Digest. The Summary Digest is also published in separate volumes.
   • Library: KFC 38 .C35 (1938; 1949-50; 1953-forward)