Consenting Adult Sex Bill

Consenting Adult Sex Bill
California State Legislature
Full name	An act to amend Section 12912 of the Education Code, to amend Sections 972 and 985 of the Evidence Code, and to amend Sections 220, 286, 287, 288a and 290 of, to add Section 286.5 to, and to repeal Sections 269a, 269b, 286.1 and 288b of, the Penal Code, relating to sexual offenses.
Introduced	January 15, 1975
Assembly voted	45-26
Senate voted	21-20
Signed into law	Yes
Governor	Jerry Brown
Code	Education, Evidence, and Penal
Section	Section 12912 of the Education Code; Sections 972 and 985 of the Evidence Code; and Sections 220, 286, 287, 288a, and 290, and to repeal Sections 269a, 269b, 286.1, and 288b of the Penal Code.
Status: Amended

The Consenting Adult Sex Law (Assembly Bill 489) is a Californian piece of legislation which decriminalized private and consensual gay sex.^[1] Its main promoters were George Moscone, an early proponent of gay rights, and his friend and ally Willie Brown, who was serving in the California Assembly at the time. The bill passed in the Senate by a vote of 21 to 20 and in the Assembly by a vote of 45 to 26. It was signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown on May 12, 1975, which came into effect in January 1976.^[2]

A previous bill to the same effect had been introduced in 1970 but had failed to garner enough support to pass.