AB129 - Labor.

Amended IN Senate June 27, 2025 Amended IN Senate June 24, 2025 CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION Assembly Bill No. 129 Introduced by Committee on Budget (Assembly Members Gabriel (Chair), Addis, Ahrens, Alvarez, Bennett, Bonta, Connolly, Fong, Haney, Hart, Jackson, Lee, Muratsuchi, Ortega, Patel, Petrie-Norris, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Rogers, Schiavo, Schultz, Sharp-Collins, Solache, Ward, and Wilson) January 08, 2025 An act to amend Section 19878 of, and to add Sections 19816.22 and Section 20825.18 to, the Government Code, to amend Section 1872.83 of the Insurance Code, and to amend Section 62.5 of, to add Section 6717.2 to, and to repeal Section 62.6 of, the Labor Code, relating to labor, and making an appropriation therefor, to take effect immediately, bill related to the budget. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 129, as amended, Committee on Budget. Labor. (1) Existing law creates the Department of Human Resources in an effort to better serve the human resources and personnel needs of the state. Existing law establishes the In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program, which is administered by the State Department of Social Services, counties, and other entities, under which qualified aged, blind, or disabled persons are provided with supportive services in order to permit them to remain in their own homes. This bill would require the Department of Human Resources, in collaboration with the State Department of Social Services, to appoint a statewide bargaining advisory committee to review the full cost of care for IHSS provided through the IHSS program under a statewide collective bargaining model. The bill would require the advisory committee to submit reports, between January 1, 2027, and January 1, 2029, to the Legislature containing completed analyses covering key issues associated with any transition of IHSS to statewide bargaining, as specified. To inform the advisory committee’s work, the bill would require the State Department of Social Services to provide a report to the advisory committee on approaches for cost containment associated with a statewide collective bargaining model in the In-Home Supportive Services program, no later than July 1, 2027. The bill would authorize the Department of Human Resources to enter into any contracts necessary for the performance of its duties under these provisions. The bill would state the intent of the Legislature that, upon submission of the completed analyses, the process of transitioning IHSS to a statewide collective bargaining model may commence and this may occur no earlier than January 1, 2030. (2) (1) Existing law, the State Civil Service Act, regulates employment with the state and vests in the Department of Human Resources all powers, duties, and authority necessary to operate the state civil service system. Existing law requires the department to designate positions of a high administrative and policy-influencing character for inclusion in or removal from the category of civil service appointment called “career executive assignments,” subject to review by the State Personnel Board, as provided. Under existing law, when an employee is disabled, whether temporarily or permanently, the employee is entitled, subject to certain conditions, to receive specified nonindustrial disability benefits, unless a memorandum of understanding conflicts with this requirement. Existing law defines “employee” for purposes of those provisions as a permanent or probationary full-time, part-time, or intermittent state officer or employee, as specified. This bill would, effective October 1, 2025, for a disability benefit period commencing on or after July 1, 2025, additionally include a state officer or employee appointed to a career executive assignment in that definition of “employee.” The bill would require these employees claiming benefits for a certain disability benefit period to file a completed claim no later than 41 days following the effective date of this provision. (3) (2) The Public Employees’ Retirement Law (PERL) creates the Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) for the purpose of providing pensions and benefits to state employees and their beneficiaries and prescribes the rights and duties of employers participating in the system. Under PERL, benefits are funded by investment income and employer and employee contributions, which are deposited into the Public Employees’ Retirement Fund, a continuously appropriated trust fund administered by the system’s board of administration. PERL prescribes methods for the calculation and payment of the state employer contribution for its employees who are PERS members. PERL provides for an annual adjustment of the state’s contribution in the budget and quarterly appropriations to the Public Employees’ Retirement Fund from the General Fund and other funds that are responsible for payment of the employer contribution. Existing law makes additional General Fund appropriations to the Public Employees’ Retirement Fund for the 2020–21, 2021–22, 2022–23, 2023–24, and 2024–25 fiscal years. Supplemental payments connected with appropriations for those fiscal years are to be apportioned to the state employee member categories generally, as directed by the Department of Finance, and to specified state employee member categories, including to the state miscellaneous member category, the industrial member category, the state safety member category, and the state peace officer/firefighter member category. The California Constitution establishes the Budget Stabilization Account in the General Fund and requires the Controller, in each fiscal year, to transfer from the General Fund to the Budget Stabilization Account amounts that include a sum equal to 1.5% of the estimated amount of General Fund revenues for that fiscal year. These provisions further require, until the 2029–30 fiscal year, that the Legislature appropriate a percentage of these moneys, the amount of which is generated pursuant to specified calculations, for certain obligations and purposes, including addressing unfunded liabilities for state-level pension plans. This bill would appropriate $584,000,000 from the General Fund for the purposes identified in the constitutional provisions described above, to supplement the state’s appropriation to the Public Employees’ Retirement Fund. The bill would specify that this appropriation represents a portion of the amount identified in a specific provision of the Budget Act of 2025. The bill would require the Department of Finance to provide the Controller with a schedule establishing the timing of specific transfers. The bill would require the supplemental payment to the Public Employees’ Retirement Fund to be apportioned to specified state employee member categories, not to exceed $273,983,000 to the state miscellaneous member category, $16,164,000 to the state industrial member category, $32,150,000 to the state safety member category, and $261,703,000 to the state peace officer/firefighter member category. The bill would require the appropriation described above to be applied to the unfunded state liabilities for the state employee member categories that are in excess of the base amounts for the 2025–26 fiscal year. (4) (3) Existing law establishes the Department of Industrial Relations in the Labor and Workforce Development Agency to perform specified functions, including fostering, promoting, and developing the welfare of the wage earners of California, to improve their working conditions and to advance their opportunities for profitable employment. Existing law requires the director of the department to levy and collect assessments from specified employers, as specified, for purposes of collecting the aggregate amount determined by the Fraud Assessment Commission pursuant to specified provisions. Existing law requires revenues derived from the assessments to be deposited in the Workers’ Compensation Fraud Account in the Insurance Fund and to only be expended, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for the investigation and prosecution of workers’ compensation fraud and the willful failure to secure payment of workers’ compensation, as prescribed. Existing law requires the director to promulgate reasonable rules and regulations governing the manner of collection of the assessments, as specified. This bill would make technical changes to the above-described assessment provisions, and conforming changes related to those provisions. Existing law, the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), governs the procedures for the adoption, amendment, or repeal of regulations by state agencies and for the review of those regulatory actions by the Office of Administrative Law. Existing law exempts from the rulemaking provisions of the APA regulations adopted by the director governing, among other things, the manner of collection of surcharges levied by the director upon specified employers for purposes of deposit in specified funds, including the Workers’ Compensation Administration Revolving Fund. This bill would also exempt from the rulemaking provisions of the APA regulations adopted pursuant to those promulgated by the director governing the manner of collection of the above-described assessments. (5) (4) Existing law authorizes the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board to adopt, amend, or repeal occupational safety and health standards and orders. Existing law requires the Division of Occupational Safety and Health to propose to the board for its review and adoption, a standard that protects the health and safety of employees who engage in lead-related construction work and meets all requirements imposed by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Existing law requires the division to submit to the board a rulemaking proposal to revise the lead standards of the general industry safety orders and the construction safety orders, as specified, consistent with scientific research and findings. A violation of these standards and regulations under specific circumstances is a crime. This bill would subject the work performed under any construction contract, including subcontracts, on the Golden Gate Bridge for the Suspension Bridge Seismic Retrofit Project that is awarded on or after January 1, 2025, and on or before December 31, 2025, to the division’s lead standard regulations that were in effect on December 31, 2024. Because a violation of these provisions constitutes a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (5) Existing law, the Budget Act of 2025, allocates $3,300,000 from a specified schedule for state operations and personnel for statewide collective bargaining for In-Home Supportive Services providers. This bill would provide that, notwithstanding that provision in the Budget Act of 2025, those moneys are available for use and may be encumbered only if one of specified conditions is met. (6) This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. (7) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. (8) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill. Digest Key Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: YES Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: YES Bill Text The people of the State of California do enact as follows: SECTION 1. Section 19816.22 is added to the Government Code , to read: 19816.22. (a) The department, in collaboration with the State Department of Social Services, shall appoint a statewide bargaining advisory committee to review the full cost of care for in-home supportive services provided through the In-Home Supportive Services program established pursuant to Article 7 (commencing with Section 12300) of Chapter 3 of Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code under a statewide collective bargaining model. (b) The advisory committee shall submit reports, between January 1, 2027, and January 1, 2029, to the Legislature that contain completed analyses covering key issues associated with any transition of in-home supportive services to statewide bargaining, including, but not limited to, all of the following: (1) Identification of the comprehensive fiscal structure and impacts of an in-home supportive services statewide collective bargaining model, including any county maintenance of effort and potential impacts on realignment if the state were to adopt a statewide collective bargaining process with a continued county contribution. (2) Analysis of state versus county responsibilities, potential litigation and workplace liability costs, and the role of in-home supportive service recipients associated with a statewide collective bargaining model. (3) Analysis of in-home supportive services costs and savings, including all of the following: (A) Overall program cost growth, including to states and counties, on a yearly basis. (B) Estimates of in-home supportive services costs that may be considered during bargaining, including, but not limited to, elements such as retirement, travel, time off, sick leave, training, and benefits. (C) Automation and information technology changes associated with an in-home supportive services statewide bargaining model. (4) A landscape analysis examining other states’ in-home supportive services statewide collective bargaining models, and the potential costs associated with adopting a similar statewide model in California. (c) (1) The requirement for submitting a report imposed under subdivision (b) is inoperative on January 1, 2033, pursuant to Section 10231.5. (2) A report to be submitted pursuant to subdivision (b) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795. (d) To inform the advisory committee’s work, the State Department of Social Services shall provide a report to the advisory committee on approaches for cost containment associated with a statewide collective bargaining model in the In-Home Supportive Services program, no later than July 1, 2027. (e) The department may enter into any contracts necessary for the performance of its duties under this section. (f) It is the intent of the Legislature that, upon submission of the completed analyses included in the reports described in subdivision (b), the process of transitioning in-home supportive services to a statewide collective bargaining model may commence and this may occur no earlier than January 1, 2030. SEC. 2. SECTION 1. Section 19878 of the Government Code is amended to read: 19878. (a) As used in this article: (1) “Appeals board” means the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board. (2) “Disability” or “disabled” includes mental o [Text truncated for display. 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