BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  AB 2900
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   May 5, 2004

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                   Judy Chu, Chair

                    AB 2900 (Laird) - As Amended:  April 1, 2004 

          Policy Committee:                              Labor and  
          Employment   Vote:                            6-2

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          Yes    Reimbursable:              No

           SUMMARY  

          This bill amends various antidiscrimination provisions of  
          current law to bring them into conformity with the bases and  
          protected classes used in the nondiscrimination provisions of  
          the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA).  The principal  
          effect of this bill is to extend the antidiscrimination  
          provisions of FEHA regarding disability and sexual orientation  
          to various provisions of the Education Code, Government Code,  
          Labor Code, Military and Veterans Code, Public Utilities Code,  
          Unemployment Insurance Code, and Welfare and Institutions Code  
          concerning employment and contracting practices.

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          1)Minor enforcement costs to state agencies, less than $100,000  
            annually.

          2)Minor local law enforcement costs; not state-reimbursable.

           COMMENTS  

           1)Background  .  FEHA prohibits employment and housing  
            discrimination based on race, religious creed, color, national  
            origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability,  
            medical condition, marital status, sex, age or sexual  
            orientation.  Individuals who identify with these bases of  
            discrimination are referred to as "protected classes".   
            Various other sections of state law relating to employment and  
            contracting, however, prohibit discrimination according to  
            different bases and protected classes. For instance, the  
            provision in state law prohibiting discrimination against  








                                                                  AB 2900
                                                                  Page  2

            physicians in medical staff membership and clinical privileges  
            with hospitals that contract with the Medi-Cal program only  
            covers "sex, race, creed and national origin" (Welfare and  
            Institutions Code 11322.62). The FEHA list of bases and  
            protected classes is more expansive.

           2)Purpose  .  The author introduced this bill to provide a single  
            antidiscrimination standard in state law to extend protections  
            to many Californians and address confusion over compliance  
            with statutes prohibiting discrimination. This bill  
            eliminates, in specified sections of law, the current bases of  
            discrimination and protected classes and instead applies the  
            FEHA standard. 

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Stephen Shea / APPR. / (916) 319-2081