BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1890
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Date of Hearing: April 13, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Lorena Gonzalez, Chair
AB
1890 (Dodd) - As Introduced February 11, 2016
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill creates the Equal Pay for Equal Work Act of 2016 to
specify certain nondiscrimination policies in state contracting.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires an employer with 100 or more employees in California,
and a state contract of 30 days or more, to submit a
description of its nondiscrimination program to the Department
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of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) and periodic reports (no
more than annually) of its compliance with that program.
2)Specifies that an employer with fewer than 100 employees, or a
contract of less than 30 days, may be required to submit a
nondiscrimination program.
3)Authorizes DFEH to require approval and certification of a
nondiscrimination program and requires DFEH to define employee
for purposes of this bill.
4)Requires a nondiscrimination program to include policies and
procedures designed to ensure equal employment opportunities
for all applicants and employees, an analysis of employment
selection procedures, and a workforce analysis, as specified.
5)Excludes an employee in the construction industry covered by a
valid collective bargaining agreement from the calculation of
the employer's total number of employees for purposes of the
nondiscrimination program requirement.
6)Specifies that this bill shall not be construed to negate
exemptions to specified requirements in existence on January
1, 2017, as specified.
FISCAL EFFECT:
1)The Department of Fair Employment and Housing estimates
General Fund administrative costs of approximately $350,000 to
collect and store nondiscrimination program information and
process anticipated Public Record Act (PRA) requests.
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The department indicates they currently process 300 to 400 PRA
requests each month. A budget proposal is pending before the
Legislature to provide the department $148,000 GF and two
positions for existing PRA workload.
2)Significant General Fund cost pressures, potentially in the
millions of dollars annually, to the extent DFEH choses to
require approval and certification of contractors'
nondiscrimination programs. Costs are also associated with
compliance monitoring to ensure state contractors have
policies for preventing unlawful discrimination.
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. Existing state law provides that, prior to becoming a
contractor or subcontractor with the state, an employer may be
required to submit a nondiscrimination program to DFEH for
approval and certification, and may be required to submit
periodic reports of its compliance with that program. This
bill seeks to strengthen this law by requiring an employer
with 100 or more employees in the state, and a state contract
of 30 days or more, to submit a description of its
nondiscrimination program to DFEH.
2)Background. The Department of Fair Employment and Housing
(DFEH) receives, investigates, conciliates, mediates, and
prosecutes complaints of alleged violations of the Fair
Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), Unruh Civil Rights Act,
Disabled Persons Act, and Ralph Civil Rights Act. At the core
of the DFEH's mission is the mandate to provide thorough,
timely and fair investigations of discrimination complaints
received from the public.
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Current DFEH regulations go beyond the permissive state
statutes with regard to nondiscrimination programs.
Specifically, DFEH regulations provide that all employers who
are, or wish to become, contractors with the state "must"
develop and implement a nondiscrimination program, unless
otherwise exempted. (Title 2, California Code of Regulations,
Section 11102).
3)Prior legislation. This bill is substantially similar to AB
1354 (Dodd) of 2015 which was vetoed by Governor Brown.
According to the veto message:
"Currently, the department requires all state contractors to
develop and implement a nondiscrimination program meeting
certain requirements and also certify that they have done so,
under penalty of perjury. Furthermore, the department has
existing authority to require a contractor to submit this
information prior to contracting with the state, if
noncompliance is suspected. In light of these factors, I do
not believe this bill is necessary at this time."
Analysis Prepared by:Misty Feusahrens / APPR. / (916)
319-2081
AB 1890
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