Cal. GOV § 946.4
This is the official text of Cal. GOV § 946.4, part of California’s Government Code — covers the structure and operation of state and local government, including public employment and public records.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
Official statutory text
(a) Where provision is made by or pursuant to law that no suit may be brought against a public agency as defined in Section 53050 unless and until a claim is presented to the agency, the failure to present a claim does not constitute a bar or defense to the maintenance of a suit against the public agency if, during the 70 days immediately following the accrual of the cause of action, either of the following apply:
(1) No statement pertaining to the public agency is on file, or is placed on file, in the Registry of Public Agencies in the office of the Secretary of State and of the county clerk of each county in which the public agency then maintains an office, as required by Section 53051.
(2) A statement or amended statement pertaining to the public agency is on file, or is placed on file, in the Registry of Public Agencies in the office of the Secretary of State and of the county clerk of each county in which the public agency then maintains an office, but the information contained therein is so inaccurate or incomplete that it does not substantially conform to the requirements of Section 53051.
(b) On any question of fact arising within the scope of paragraphs (1) and (2) of subdivision (a), the burden of proof is upon the public agency.
(c) This section is inapplicable where the presentation of a claim is required by a claims procedure established by agreement made pursuant to Section 930.2 unless the procedure so prescribed requires that the claim be presented to the governing body of the public agency or to a person listed in Section 53051.
(1) No statement pertaining to the public agency is on file, or is placed on file, in the Registry of Public Agencies in the office of the Secretary of State and of the county clerk of each county in which the public agency then maintains an office, as required by Section 53051.
(2) A statement or amended statement pertaining to the public agency is on file, or is placed on file, in the Registry of Public Agencies in the office of the Secretary of State and of the county clerk of each county in which the public agency then maintains an office, but the information contained therein is so inaccurate or incomplete that it does not substantially conform to the requirements of Section 53051.
(b) On any question of fact arising within the scope of paragraphs (1) and (2) of subdivision (a), the burden of proof is upon the public agency.
(c) This section is inapplicable where the presentation of a claim is required by a claims procedure established by agreement made pursuant to Section 930.2 unless the procedure so prescribed requires that the claim be presented to the governing body of the public agency or to a person listed in Section 53051.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Need a lawyer in California?
Find a California lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.