BILL NUMBER: SB 1125 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 147
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE AUGUST 6, 2001
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR AUGUST 6, 2001
PASSED THE SENATE JULY 18, 2001
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY JULY 16, 2001
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JULY 12, 2001
INTRODUCED BY Senator Burton
FEBRUARY 23, 2001
An act to amend Section 1684 of the Labor Code, relating to farm
labor.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 1125, Burton. Farm labor contractors: licensing.
Existing law prohibits the Labor Commissioner from issuing to any
person, a license to act as a farm labor contractor until specified
conditions are satisfied, including that the person has deposited a
surety bond with the Labor Commissioner and has paid a license fee of
$500. Existing law provides that the bond and a portion of the
license fee are payable and shall be disbursed, among other things,
for interest on wages and for any damages arising from a violation of
an order of the Industrial Welfare Commission, but shall not be
payable or disbursed for penalties on nonpayment or late payment of
wages to an employee who is discharged or who quits.
This bill would delete that exception for penalties on nonpayment
or late payment of wages to former employees and would specify that
the bond and license funds shall also be payable and disbursed for
any monetary relief awarded to an agricultural worker as a result of
a violation of laws relating to labor.
This bill would become operative only if AB 423 is enacted and
becomes effective on or before January 1, 2002.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 1684 of the Labor Code is amended to read:
1684. (a) The Labor Commissioner shall not issue to any person a
license to act as a farm labor contractor, nor shall the Labor
Commissioner renew that license, until all of the following
conditions are satisfied:
(1) The person has executed a written application in a form
prescribed by the Labor Commissioner, subscribed and sworn to by the
person, and containing all of the following:
(A) A statement by the person of all facts required by the Labor
Commissioner concerning the applicant's character, competency,
responsibility, and the manner and method by which the person
proposes to conduct operations as a farm labor contractor if the
license is issued.
(B) The names and addresses of all persons, except bona fide
employees on stated salaries, financially interested, either as
partners, associates, or profit sharers, in the proposed operation as
a farm labor contractor, together with the amount of their
respective interests.
(C) A declaration consenting to the designation by a court of the
Labor Commissioner as an agent available to accept service of summons
in any action against the licensee if the licensee has left the
jurisdiction in which the action is commenced or otherwise has become
unavailable to accept service.
(2) The Labor Commissioner, after investigation, is satisfied as
to the character, competency, and responsibility of the person.
(3) The person has deposited with the Labor Commissioner a surety
bond in an amount based on the size of the person's annual payroll
for all employees, as follows:
(A) For payrolls up to five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000), a
twenty-five thousand dollar ($25,000) bond.
(B) For payrolls of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) to
two million dollars ($2,000,000), a fifty thousand dollar ($50,000)
bond.
(C) For payrolls greater than two million dollars ($2,000,000), a
seventy-five thousand dollar ($75,000) bond.
Where the contractor has been the subject of a final judgment in a
year in an amount equal to that of the bond required, he or she
shall be required to deposit an additional bond within 60 days. The
bond shall be payable to the people of the State of California and
shall be conditioned that the farm labor contractor will comply with
all the terms and provisions of this chapter and will pay all damages
occasioned to any person by failure to do so, or by any violation of
this chapter, or false statements or misrepresentations made in the
procurement of the license. The bond shall also be payable for
interest on wages and for any damages arising from violation of
orders of the Industrial Welfare Commission, and for any other
monetary relief awarded to an agricultural worker as a result of a
violation of this code.
(4) The person has paid to the Labor Commissioner a license fee of
five hundred dollars ($500) plus a filing fee of ten dollars ($10).
However, where a timely application for renewal is filed, the ten
dollar ($10) filing fee is not required. The Labor Commissioner
shall deposit fifty dollars ($50) of each licensee's annual license
fee into the Farmworker Remedial Account. Funds from this account
shall be disbursed by the Labor Commissioner only to persons
determined by the Labor Commissioner to have been damaged by any
licensee when the damage exceeds the limits of the licensee's bond,
or to persons determined by the Labor Commissioner to have been
damaged by an unlicensed farm labor contractor. In making these
determinations, the Labor Commissioner shall disburse funds from the
Farmworker Remedial Account to satisfy claims against farm labor
contractors or unlicensed farm labor contractors, which shall also
include interest on wages and any damages arising from the violation
of orders of the Industrial Welfare Commission, and for any other
monetary relief awarded to an agricultural worker as a result of a
violation of this code. The Labor Commissioner may disburse funds
from the Farmworker Remedial Account to farm labor contractors, for
payment of farmworkers, where a contractor is unable to pay
farmworkers due to the failure of a grower or packer to pay the
contractor. Any disbursed funds subsequently recovered by the Labor
Commissioner pursuant to Section 1693, or otherwise, shall be
returned to the Farmworker Remedial Account.
(5) The person has taken a written examination that demonstrates
an essential degree of knowledge of the current laws and
administrative regulations concerning farm labor contractors as the
Labor Commissioner deems necessary for the safety and protection of
farmers, farmworkers, and the public. To successfully complete the
examinations, the person must correctly answer at least 85 percent of
the questions posed. The examination period shall not exceed four
hours. The examination may only be taken a maximum of three times in
a calendar year. The examinations shall include a demonstration of
knowledge of the current laws and regulations regarding wages, hours,
and working conditions, penalties, employee housing and
transportation, collective bargaining, field sanitation, and safe
work practices related to pesticide use, including all of the
following subjects:
(A) Field reentry regulations.
(B) Worker pesticide safety training.
(C) Employer responsibility for safe working conditions.
(D) Symptoms and appropriate treatment of pesticide poisoning.
(6) The person has registered as a farm labor contractor pursuant
to the federal Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection
Act (29 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.), when registration is required pursuant
to federal law.
(b) (1) The Labor Commissioner shall consult with the Director of
Pesticide Regulation, the Department of the California Highway
Patrol, the Department of Housing and Community Development, the
Employment Development Department, the Department of Food and
Agriculture, the Department of Motor Vehicles, and the Division of
Occupational Safety and Health in preparing the examination required
by paragraph (5) of subdivision (a) and the appropriate educational
materials pertaining to the matters included in the examination, and
may charge a fee of not more than one hundred dollars ($100) to cover
the cost of administration of the examination.
(2) In addition, the person must enroll and participate in at
least eight hours of relevant, educational classes each year. The
classes shall be chosen from a list of approved classes prepared by
the Labor Commissioner, in consultation with the persons and entities
listed in paragraph (1) and county agricultural commissioners.
(c) The Labor Commissioner may renew a license without requiring
the applicant for renewal to take the examination specified in
paragraph (5) of subdivision (a) if the Labor Commissioner finds that
the applicant meets all of the following criteria:
(1) Has satisfactorily completed the examination during the
immediately preceding two years.
(2) Has not during the preceding year been found to be in
violation of any applicable laws or regulations including, but not
limited to, Division 7 (commencing with Section 12501) of the Food
and Agricultural Code, Part 1 (commencing with Section 17000) of
Division 13 of the Health and Safety Code, Division 2 (commencing
with Section 200), Division 4 (commencing with Section 3200), and
Division 5 (commencing with Section 6300) of this code, and Chapter 1
(commencing with Section 12500) of Division 6 of the Vehicle Code.
(3) Has, for each year since the license was obtained, enrolled
and participated in at least eight hours of relevant, educational
classes, chosen from a list of approved classes prepared by the Labor
Commissioner.
(4) Has complied with all other requirements of this section.
SEC. 2. This bill shall become operative only if Assembly Bill No.
423 of the 2001-02 Regular Session is enacted and becomes effective
on or before January 1, 2002.