BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1050
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ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
1050 (Low)
As Amended April 21, 2015
Majority vote
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|Committee |Votes |Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+--------------------+----------------------|
|Accountability |8-1 |Salas, Lackey, |Beth Gaines |
| | |Brough, Burke, | |
| | |Frazier, Irwin, | |
| | |Medina, Rodriguez | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+--------------------+----------------------|
|Appropriations |13-4 |Gomez, Bloom, |Bigelow, Gallagher, |
| | |Bonta, Calderon, |Jones, Wagner |
| | |Chang, Daly, | |
| | |Eggman, Eduardo | |
| | |Garcia, Holden, | |
| | |Quirk, Rendon, | |
| | |Weber, Wood | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY: Requires a charitable organization seeking to
participate in the state employees' charitable giving program
(program) to provide a statement to the program administrator
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certifying that it complies with existing civil rights and
nondiscrimination laws. Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires a charitable organization seeking to participate in the
program to certify to the program administrator, the Victims
Compensation and Government Claims Board (Board), under penalty
of perjury that it complies with the state's existing civil
rights and nondiscrimination statutes, as a condition of
approval from the Board.
2)Requires the charitable organization to provide the Board with
its written nondiscrimination policy or, if it does not have
one, a written statement indicating that it complies with the
state's existing civil rights laws.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Authorizes, in the Government Code, payroll deductions from
state employees for an annual charitable fund drive and gives
the Board responsibility to develop the necessary rules and
regulations to carry out the program.
2)Requires every state employee to receive an approved list of
charitable organizations, a payroll deduction form, and a
designation form.
3)Establishes a process and standards for use by the Board in
approving donor organizations, including a requirement for an
organization to certify to the Board under penalty of perjury
that it complies with the California Fair Employment and Housing
Act (FEHA).
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4)Generally prohibits, under the Unruh Civil Rights Act, business
establishments from discriminating on the basis of sex, race,
color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, or
medical condition, marital status, or sexual orientation and
provides civil remedies for violations of its provisions.
5)Prohibits, under FEHA, workplace and housing discrimination or
harassment against any person on the basis of age, ancestry,
color, religion, familial status, disability, marital status,
medical condition, military and veteran status, national origin,
race, sex, gender, and sexual orientation.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
1)Minor, likely absorbable costs to the Board (special funds) to
modify its application forms and update regulations.
2)Minor costs to the Board (special funds) to receive and process
written nondiscrimination policies or statements. Staff notes
that the Board has moved to a fully automated and electronic
application process, and that accepting paper statements from
3,000 applicants burdens their existing process.
COMMENTS: The "Our Promise: California State Employees Giving at
Work" program is a fundraising drive coordinated by the Board that
allows state employees to direct regular contributions from their
paychecks to participating charities. According to the Board,
approximately 35,000 to 40,000 state employees participate in the
program annually and provide donations averaging about $6.5
million per year to nearly 3,000 designated charities.
To qualify as a designated charity in the program, an organization
must submit an electronic application to the Board, register as a
non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, and certify under penalty of
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perjury that it complies with FEHA. The Board can disqualify any
organization if it fails to comply with these requirements or
files an application containing false or intentionally misleading
information.
Currently, the Board verifies an organization tax-exempt status
and the organization self-certifies its compliance with FEHA in
the application process. This bill would additionally require a
charity to self-certify its compliance with the state's existing
civil rights laws under penalty of perjury. It would also require
organizations to provide a written statement to the Board
indicating their compliance with the state's existing civil rights
and nondiscrimination laws.
The author argues that, although the organizations in the program
are vetted and approved by the Board based on their tax-exempt
status and FEHA compliance, there are still organizations approved
that do not fully abide by the state's nondiscrimination statutes.
For example, the author cites the Boy Scouts of America which
had, until recently, denied membership to youth on the basis of
sexual orientation. The author states that, because the charities
in this program are supported by state employee contributions,
they should be held to the same standard of inclusiveness that is
reflected in the state's existing civil rights and
nondiscrimination laws. According to the author, this bill is
intended to bring more transparency to the program's donor
approval process.
Analysis Prepared by:
Cassie Royce / A. & A.R. / (916) 319-3600 FN:
0000388
AB 1050
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