BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1650|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1650
Author: Jones-Sawyer (D)
Amended: 8/18/14 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION COMMITTEE : 7-1, 6/10/14
AYES: Correa, Cannella, De León, Galgiani, Hernandez, Padilla,
Torres
NOES: Vidak
NO VOTE RECORDED: Berryhill, Lieu, Vacancy
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE : 5-1, 6/17/14
AYES: Jackson, Corbett, Lara, Leno, Monning
NOES: Vidak
NO VOTE RECORDED: Anderson
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 5-0, 8/14/14
AYES: De León, Hill, Lara, Padilla, Steinberg
NO VOTE RECORDED: Walters, Gaines
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 58-16, 5/29/14 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Public contracts: bidders: employment practices
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill requires a person bidding on certain state
contracts to certify that the person will not ask job applicants
to disclose information concerning their conviction history.
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AB 1650
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2
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1.Regulates, under the State Contract Act, contracting between
state agencies and private contractors, and outlines
requirements for bidding and awarding of contracts for
projects.
2.Defines projects to include the construction or other
improvement to a state structure, building, road or other
state improvement of any kind that will exceed a total cost of
$250,000 for the 2010 calendar year, as adjusted every two
years.
3.Prohibits employers from asking applicants for employment to
disclose information concerning convictions that have been
sealed, expunged, or statutorily eradicated, and certain
marijuana-related convictions if the convictions are more than
two years old.
4.Prohibits a state or local agency from asking an applicant to
disclose information regarding a criminal conviction, except
as specified, until the agency has determined the applicant
meets the minimum employment qualifications, as stated in any
notice issued for the position.
This bill:
1.Requires any person submitting a bid to the state on a
contract involving onsite construction-related services to
certify that the person will not ask an applicant for onsite
construction-related employment to disclose orally or in
writing information concerning the applicant's conviction
history.
2.Does not require this certification if the bidder or state
agency is otherwise required by state or federal law to
conduct a conviction history background check, or in any
contract position with a "criminal justice agency."
3.Does not require this certification when the person submitting
the bid obtains workers from a hiring hall pursuant to a bona
fide collective bargaining agreement.
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Comments
According to the author, "men and women released from prison
often face daunting obstacles as they return home to their
communities, however none can be more difficult than finding
employment. Former prisoners are often concentrated in a
relatively small number of distressed urban neighborhoods that
lack the resources needed to assist them in the reentry process.
Not surprisingly, after being unable to find a job, many end up
returning to prison, a disastrous result for them, their
families, communities, taxpayers, and public safety.
"Across California, felony convictions are often treated as an
automatic disqualification in employment application procedures.
Without much justification individuals with criminal records are
excluded from being considered for employment. According to the
California Research Bureau, California parolees have an
unemployment rate of 80%.
"In order to fight this alarming trend six states, 32 U.S.
cities and 8 cities and counties across California including San
Francisco, Richmond & Alameda County have removed the conviction
history box from job applications in public employment and
contractors who conduct business with the public. These
entities have recognized that stable employment is critical to a
successful transition into the community.
"Removing the conviction history box can give thousands of
individuals a fair shot at employment while simultaneously
decreasing the recidivism rate, increasing economic activity and
improving public safety."
Scope and applicability . According to the Senate Governmental
Organization Committee, this bill concerns when, not whether,
state contractors may obtain criminal conviction information
from applicants for on-site construction-related employment.
Under this bill, this information may be sought and considered
after the state contractor has determined that the applicant
meets the minimum qualifications for the job. This bill exempts
contract positions in all criminal justice agencies, as well as
all positions with any employer for which a criminal background
investigation is legally required.
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FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
This bill potentially dissuades noncompliant contractors from
bidding on certain state public works contracts. To the
extent this occurs, competition will be reduced, resulting in
potentially higher contract costs than would have occurred
otherwise. The amount of the increase is unknown, but given
the volume at state public works contracts, could exceed
$150,000 annually.
The state may incur investigation-related costs associated
with information that a bidder was not in compliance with this
bill's requirements. The number of such cases is unknown, but
could result in significant investigative and legal costs.
If a state contractor was later found to have been in
violation of this bill's requirements, there could be
additional costs to void the contract and rebid the project.
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/13/14)
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : Supporters note that California joined
a number of other states and local governments by adopting AB
218 (Dickinson, Chapter 669, Statutes of 2013) which established
a similar but more expansive policy for state and local
government as this bill proposes for state contractors.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 58-16, 5/29/14
AYES: Alejo, Ammiano, Bloom, Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta,
Bradford, Brown, Buchanan, Ian Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chávez,
Chesbro, Dababneh, Daly, Dickinson, Eggman, Fong, Fox,
Frazier, Garcia, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gorell, Gray, Hall,
Roger Hernández, Holden, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Levine,
Lowenthal, Medina, Mullin, Muratsuchi, Nazarian, Olsen, Pan,
Patterson, Perea, John A. Pérez, V. Manuel Pérez, Quirk,
Quirk-Silva, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Skinner,
Stone, Ting, Weber, Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada, Atkins
NOES: Achadjian, Allen, Conway, Dahle, Donnelly, Beth Gaines,
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Gatto, Grove, Hagman, Harkey, Logue, Maienschein, Mansoor,
Wagner, Waldron, Wilk
NO VOTE RECORDED: Bigelow, Cooley, Linder, Melendez, Nestande,
Vacancy
MW:nl 8/17/14 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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