A number of California Chamber of Commerce-opposed bills missed the August 17 deadline to move beyond the fiscal committees of either the Assembly or the Senate.
• Former job killer SB 1284 (Jackson; D-Santa Barbara), a bill dealing with pay data disclosure, was held on the Assembly Appropriations Committee suspense file last week and is likely dead for the year.
The CalChamber removed SB 1284 from the job killer list after August 8 amendments helped rectify the public shaming aspect of the bill. The CalChamber remains opposed to SB 1284 because of the administrative burden it still places on employers by requiring them to turn over pay data information that could give the false impression of pay disparity where none may exist.
• Former job killer AB 1761 (Muratsuchi; D-Torrance), dealing with hotel worker panic buttons, was held in the Senate Appropriations Committee. CalChamber removed the job killer tag due to May 9 amendments, but remained opposed unless the bill was further amended because it creates unworkable requirements for paid leave, allows for a patchwork of state and local rules and unnecessary signage in regards to providing protection for hotel employees working alone and the provision of panic buttons.
Also held on the Senate Appropriations suspense file were:
• AB 1335 (Bonta; D-Oakland) Lawsuit Exposure. Increases frivolous liability claims and exposes beverage manufacturers and food retailers to fines and penalties by mandating state-only labeling requirements for sugar-sweetened drinks.
• AB 2094 (Kalra; D-San Jose) Increased Costs for Hazardous Waste Operators. Imposes unnecessary new costs on hazardous waste permit operators and further delays permit processing by arbitrarily increasing the frequency of inspections for hazardous waste facilities rather than focusing on improving the existing inspection process.
• AB 2570 (Nazarian; D-Sherman Oaks) Misguided Cleaning Product Procurement Mandate. Imposes a misguided cleaning product procurement mandate on California public schools by requiring schools to purchase and use “environmentally preferable cleaning products,” which exclude critical product certification alternatives and the use of disinfectant products to prevent disease and infection.
• AB 2627 (Kalra; D-San Jose) Migratory Birds. Restricts land use by imposing new requirements on the take of migratory nongame birds.
