Might be so.
The article I linked says it was different in 2014.
I have had many officers tell me things about the law that turned out to be completely wrong.
California firearms law is very complex.
I agree their laws are quite byzantine - but this is apparently pretty simple and he said he was quoting off a directive from the state AG’s office. Basically, they treat offlist firearms in CA as if they were Class 3s in the rest of the country, sans the civilian purchase possibility.