Yes and it always was legal to have a Mini14 in CA. You just can't use high caps or modify it in a way that would "offend" the CA regulations.
But my info from people in the industry, BTW I used to work behind the gun counter and I know some folks, is that Ruger paid to have the Mini14/30 exempt from the ban. Yes the ban has since expired but if Ruger supported gun control for its own benefit, by removing the competition, then I have a serious problem with that. My info tells me that was the case.