SACRAMENTO – On Sunday Gov. Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 768, authored by Assemblywoman Fiona Ma (D-San Francisco/San Mateo Counties) and Assemblymember Mike Gatto (D- Los Angeles). Assemblywoman Ma joint-authored AB 768 to protect the rights of California parents to make decisions regarding the circumcision of their sons.

Last week, the governor also signed Assembly Bill 536, authored by Assemblywoman Ma, which will ensure that information on the records of doctors are accurate and available to the public.

“Making circumcision a crime is foolish, unenforceable, and a violation of religious and parental freedoms and I applaud Governor Brown for signing this common sense bill," said Assemblywoman Ma. "California cannot have a patchwork of extreme local laws that criminalize doctors for performing medical procedures. There are plenty of things that are against the law. Public resources for law enforcement should be reserved for more serious criminal offenses"

AB 768 was introduced in California in response to efforts on the local level in some California jurisdictions, including a local San Francisco initiative attempting to outlaw circumcisions.

Assembly Bill 536 requires the Medical Board of California to post notification of any expunged misdemeanors or felony convictions on its website within six months of the board receiving the court expungement order from a doctor.

State law requires the board to post certain information on the Internet regarding physicians and surgeons. Inaccurate publication of doctor records can not only be economically disastrous for a physician, but can also disrupt the successful delivery of health care services to consumers.

“AB 536 will bring fairness to doctors who have been wrongfully victimized by a state website,” said Assemblywoman Ma. “This bill ensures that consumers have accurate information when researching a physician or surgeon.”