BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS
Senator Tony Mendoza, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 327 Hearing Date: June 10,
2015
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|Author: |Gordon |
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|Version: |April 30, 2015 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |No |
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|Consultant:|Gideon Baum |
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Subject: Public works: volunteers.
KEY ISSUE
Should the Legislature extend the sunset date on the exemption
that allows volunteers to perform work on public works projects
and not be paid the prevailing wage, as would otherwise be
required?
ANALYSIS
Existing law public works as any construction, alteration,
demolition, installation or repair work done under contract and
paid for in whole or in part from public funds. This includes
work performed during the design and pre-construction phase,
including, but not limited to, inspection and land surveying.
(Labor Code §1720)
Existing law requires, with certain exceptions, contracted
public works projects to be submitted for bids by the public
entity requesting the work, and that the contract is awarded to
the lowest responsible bidder. The awarding body is required to
ensure that the winning contractor is appropriately licensed
with the Contractors' State Licensing Board, and has not been in
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barred from bidding on, accepting, or performing public
contracts. (Labor Code §§1725.5 & 1750)
Existing law requires all employees who work on public works
projects with a budget of $1,000 or more to be paid the general
prevailing rate of per diem wages and the general prevailing
rate for holiday and overtime work for the specific location
where the public work is to be performed. This prevailing wage
is determined by the Department of Industrial Relations.
(Labor Code §1771)
Existing law exempts from public work requirements any project
where the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) contracts with
public agencies, Indian tribes, or nonprofit organizations for
fish and wildlife habitat preservation, restoration, and
enhancement. Existing law also allows the DFG to contract with
public and private entities for fish and wildlife habitat
preservation, restoration, and enhancement, but these contracts
are only exempt from public work requirements if they are less
than $50,000. (Fish and Game Code §1501.5)
Existing law exempts any work performed by volunteers from the
public works requirements, but the exemption allowing volunteers
on public works projects is set to expire on January 1, 2017.
Under existing law volunteers are defined as:
Individuals who perform works for civic, charitable, or
humanitarian reasons for a public agency or tax-exempt
organization, such as a 501(c)(3), without any compensation;
Volunteer coordinators.
Members of the California Conservation Corps (CCC) or the
Community Conservation Corps are also exempt.
Existing law excludes from the definition of a volunteer:
Anyone who works on the public works project for
compensation; or
Anyone who received payment from the contractor on the public
works project for construction, alteration, demolition,
installation, repair, or maintenance work on the same
project.
(Labor Code §1720.4)
This bill extends the sunset on the exemption for volunteers on
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public works project out five years, from January 1, 2017 to
January 1, 2024.
COMMENTS
1. Need for this bill?
In 2004, AB 2690 (Hancock), Chapter 330, Statutes of 2004,
created an exemption for volunteers from public works
requirements, but also included the sunset of January 1, 2009.
This bill came about from a 2003 Department of Industrial
Relations (DIR) decision, which found that a stream
restoration project using student volunteers should have paid
prevailing wages and assessed back wages and civil penalties.
At the time, the proponents argued that a public works
exemption for volunteers was needed due to the "importance of
volunteers in building community support for local projects",
many of which included environmental projects such as stream
restoration, beach clean-up, wetlands restoration, and trail
building. This exemption has been extended several times,
most recently in by AB 587 (Gordon), Chapter 219, Statutes of
2011.
The proponents of this bill argue that this exemption has
proven successful, and therefore it is important to extend
this exemption for an additional 7 years to allow volunteers
to continue to participate in preservation activities on
public lands, including removing invasive species, river and
beach clean-ups, and maintaining walking trails.
2. Proponent Arguments :
According to the author, for more than 10 years, this
exemption has proven a vital tool in keeping Californians
connected to both their local community and our state's
environment and natural resources in a meaningful, productive
way - and without any examples of abuse having arisen. This
bill would extend that exemption until 2024. The author states
that even though California is currently experiencing a period
of economic recovery, extending this important provision will
allow California to continue to tap into one of our greatest
resources for healthy communities and the environment -
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volunteerism.
3. Opponent Arguments :
None on file.
4. Prior Legislation :
AB 587 (Gordon), Chapter 219, Statutes of 2011, was discussed
above.
SUPPORT
CA State Building & Construction Trades (co-sponsor)
California Council of Land Trusts (co-sponsor)
Amigos de los Rios
Arroyos & Foothills Conservancy
Benicia Tree Foundation
Big Sur Land Trust
Bolsa Chica Land Trust
CA Association of Local Conservation Corps (CALCC)
CA Association of School Building Officials (CASBO)
CA Native Plant Society
CA Park & Recreation Society
CA Special Districts Association
CA State Association of Counties
CA Urban Forests Council
CA Urban Streams Partnership
Cache Creek Conservancy
California League of Conservation Voters (CLCV)
California ReLeaf
California State Association of Counties
California State Parks Foundation
California Waterfowl
California Watershed Network
Cal-Invasive Plants Council
CalNonprofits (CA Assoc of Nonprofits)
Canopy
Catalina Island Conservancy
Cayucos Land Conservancy
City of Burbank
City of Danville
City of Indian Wells
Common Vision
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Community Services Employment Training
Construction Employers' Association
Council for Watershed Health
Defenders of Wildlife
Ducks Unlimited
East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD)
East Bay Regional Parks District
Environment California
Fresno Metropolitan Flood Control
Friends of Balboa Park
Friends of Harbors, Beaches & Parks
Friends of the Urban Forest
Habitat for Humanity
Hollywood Beautification Team
Huntington Beach Tree Society
Intl. Society of Arboriculture, Western Chapter
Just One Tree
Keep Eureka Beautiful
Koreatown Youth & Community Center
Lake County Land Trust
Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County
Land Trust for Santa Cruz County
Lassen Land & Trails Trust
League of California Cities
League to Save Lake Tahoe
Los Angeles Conservation Corps
Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust
Marin Agricultural Land Trust
McKinleyville Land Trust
Mendocino Land Trust
Mountains Recreation & Conservation Authority
Mountains Restoration Trust
Muir Heritage Land Trust
Napa County Regional Park & Open Space District
Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)
North East Trees
Ojai Valley Land Conservancy
Our City Forest
Pacific Forest Trust
Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy
Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST)
Placer Land Trust
Planning and Conservation League
Richmond Trees
Riverside Land Conservancy
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Roseville Urban Forest Foundation
Rural County Representatives of CA (RCRC)
Sacramento Tree Foundation
San Joaquin River Parkway and Conservation Trust
Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society
Save Mount Diablo
Save the Bay
Save the Redwoods League
Sierra Cascade Land Trust Council
Sierra Club California
Sierra Foothill Conservancy
Solano Advocates Green Environments (SAGE)
Solano Land Trust
Sonoma County Water Agency
Sonoma Land Trust
Southern CA Mountains Foundation
State Park Partners Coalition
Tahoe Resource Conservation District
The City of Thousand Oaks
Tree Foundation of Kern
Tree Fresno
Tree Lodi
Tree Musketeers
Tree Partners Foundation
Tree San Diego
TreeDavis
TreePeople
Trout Unlimited
Truckee Donner Land Trust
Trust for Public Land (TPL)
Urban Conservation Corps of the Inland Empire
Urban ReLeaf
Urban Tree Foundation
Victoria Avenue Forever
Wildlife Heritage Foundation
Woodland Tree Foundation
Your Children's Trees
OPPOSITION
None on file.
-- END --
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