Deceptive practices: service members and veterans.

The bill now amends Section 1770 of the Civil Code (Consumers Legal Remedies Act) in addition to the Military and Veterans Code, expanding its reach into general consumer protection law.

Expands the prohibition on electronically accessing service member credentials (Common Access Card) to cover former service members as well as current ones, and extends it from only Department of Defense systems to also include Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Homeland Security computer systems.

Adds coauthors: Senator Cervantes and Assembly Members Schiavo (principal coauthor), Jeff Gonzalez, and Stefani, indicating broader legislative sponsorship for the expanded bill.

Expands the definition of 'public social services' to include activities administered by the US Department of Veterans Affairs or California Department of Veterans Affairs involving aid or services to veterans, including pension and other benefits.

Expands the definition of 'unreasonable fee' to include any fee charged for federal veterans benefits that exceeds what a VA-accredited attorney or claims agent could charge for those same services.

Requires anyone advertising or promoting events, seminars, or workshops about veterans' benefits to display a specific disclaimer stating they are not authorized to file Aid and Attendance applications or represent veterans before the Board of Veterans' Appeals, and that it would be illegal to accept a fee for preparing such an application.

Requires events about veterans' benefits not sponsored by the VA or recognized veterans' organizations to display a disclaimer stating the event is not affiliated with those organizations and that no insurance products promoted are endorsed by them.

Prohibits conditioning a military or veteran discount on the waiver of any right the person has under state or federal law, and declares any such waiver void. Also voids any other waiver of rights provided to service members by the Military and Veterans Code.

Prohibits advertising, offering for sale, or selling any financial product that is illegal under state or federal law, specifically including cash payments for the assignment of a consumer's right to receive future pension or veteran's benefits.

Prohibits accessing any DoD, VA, or DHS computer system using another person's credentials, with transactions entered into in violation being void.

Prohibits any person from directly or indirectly soliciting, contracting for, charging, or receiving any fee or compensation for the preparation, presentation, or prosecution of claims for benefits under laws administered by the US Department of Veterans Affairs, with narrow exceptions under 38 USC sections 1984 and 5904.

Makes violations of Section 401 a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in prison or a fine of up to $1,000, or both. This changes the bill's state-mandated local program designation from 'no' to 'yes.'

The original change to the Section 881 progress report deadline (from April 1, 2019 to April 1, 2026) is retained but moved to a separate section at the end of the bill.

Header changed from enrolled bill format (with Senate/Assembly passage dates, Secretary of Senate and Chief Clerk signatures, and Governor receipt line) to chaptered law format with 'STATE OF CALIFORNIA AUTHENTICATED ELECTRONIC LEGAL MATERIAL' and the approval date of February 10, 2026.

Page headers changed from 'SB 694' with page numbers starting at 97 to 'Ch. 1' with page numbers starting at 96, reflecting re-pagination in the official chaptered publication.

The document was reformatted from an official chaptered legislative document (with page numbers, 'STATE OF CALIFORNIA AUTHENTICATED ELECTRONIC LEGAL MATERIAL' headers, and column layout) to a web page display format that includes navigation menus, search fields, and website-specific UI elements. The underlying bill text is identical in both versions.