Senate BillChaptered/SignedPenal
SB 701: Signal jammers.
What SB 701 does, verified December 7, 2025
This bill would make it a crime to manufacture, import, market, purchase, sell, or operate a signal jammer, punishable as an infraction for a first offense, and a misdemeanor for a second offense. Operating a signal jammer in conjunction with a misdemeanor or felony would result in a fine or imprisonment. Using a signal jammer to block public safety communications and causing death or great bodily injury would be a misdemeanor or felony, punishable by a fine or imprisonment. Forfeiture of the signal jamming device would be required upon conviction. The bill would not require reimbursement for certain costs.
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Last action: Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 458, Statutes of 2025. (2025-10-07)Alert me
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| Oct. 07, 2025 | Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 458, Statutes of 2025. |
| Oct. 07, 2025 | Approved by the Governor. |
| Sep. 17, 2025 | Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 2 p.m. |
| Sep. 09, 2025 | Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 40. Noes 0. Page 2719.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling. |
| Sep. 08, 2025 | Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 75. Noes 0. Page 2996.) Ordered to the Senate. |
Latest bill textChaptered version, October 7, 2025 · 855 words
Senate Bill No. 701
CHAPTER 458
An act to add Section 636.6 to the Penal Code, relating to crimes.
[ Approved by Governor October 07, 2025. Filed with Secretary of State October 07, 2025. ]
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 701, Wahab. Signal jammers.
Federal law prohibits a person from willfully or maliciously interfering with or causing interference to radio communications. Federal law prohibits a person from manufacturing, importing, selling, offering for sale, or shipping a device that interferes with radio communications. Federal law makes a violation of these prohibitions punishable by a fine of not more than $10,000 or by imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or both the fine and imprisonment.
Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for a person to intercept a public safety radio service communication for the purpose of using the communication to assist in the commission of a criminal offense or to avoid arrest, as specified. Existing law makes it an infraction to possess or equip a vehicle with a device that is capable of interfering with a device used by a law enforcement agency to measure the speed of moving objects, as specified, and makes it a misdemeanor to possess four or more of those devices.
This bill would make it a crime to manufacture, import, market, purchase, sell, or operate a signal jammer, as defined, unless authorized to do so by the Federal Communications Commission, punishable as an infraction for a first offense, and a misdemeanor for a 2nd offense, as specified. The bill would make it a misdemeanor to operate a signal jammer in conjunction with the commission of a misdemeanor or felony, punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 or by imprisonment. The bill would make it a crime to willfully or maliciously use a signal jammer to block state or local public safety communications, if the person knows or should know that using the signal jammer is likely to result in death or great bodily injury and great bodily injury or death is sustained by any person as a result of that use, punishable as either a misdemeanor or a felony. The bill would require forfeiture of the signal jamming device upon conviction for these crimes. By creating new crimes, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 636.6 is added to the Penal Code, to read:636.6.
(a) (1) A person who manufactures, imports, markets, purchases, sells, or operates a signal jammer, unless authorized to do so by the Federal Communications Commission, is guilty of an infraction, punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500) for a first offense.(2) A second or subsequent violation of paragraph (1) is a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding year, by a fine not to exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both that fine and imprisonment.
(b) A person who operates a signal jammer in conjunction with the commission of a misdemeanor or felony is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, or by a fine not to exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both that fine and imprisonment.
(c) A person who willfully or maliciously uses a signal jammer to block state or local public safety communications, and who knows or should know that using the signal jammer is likely to result in death or great bodily injury and great bodily injury or death is sustained by any person as a result of that use, is guilty of a crime, punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year or pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170.
(d) A conviction under this section requires forfeiture of the signal jamming device.
(e) This section does not apply to the authorized and lawful use of signal jammers by local or state law enforcement.
(f) For the purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings:
(1) “Signal jammer” means a device that intentionally blocks, jams, or interferes with authorized radio or wireless communications.
(2) “Public safety communications” means the systems, technologies, and methods used by emergency response agencies, including law enforcement, firefighters, and EMS, to communicate with each other.
SEC. 2.
No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.Text of SB 701 as chaptered, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions