BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 2707|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 2707
Author: Ridley-Thomas (D), et al.
Amended: 4/26/16 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: 6-0, 6/14/16
AYES: Jackson, Moorlach, Anderson, Leno, Monning, Wieckowski
NO VOTE RECORDED: Hertzberg
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 76-0, 5/19/16 (Consent) - See last page for
vote
SUBJECT: Stop Consumer Racial Profiling Act of 2016
SOURCE: Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights of the San
Francisco Bay Area
DIGEST: This bill establishes the Stop Consumer Racial
Profiling Act of 2016 (Act) to prohibit business establishments
from using consumer racial profiling, as specified.
Specifically, this bill defines "consumer racial profiling" to
mean the profiling or targeting of a person that results in
differential treatment based on his or her race or ethnicity and
that constitutes a denial or degradation in the product or
service offered to customers, and would include, but not be
limited to, refusal to serve, removal from the business
establishment premises, segregated seating, requiring additional
forms of identification, and surveillance practices based on
race or ethnicity. This bill makes this Act enforceable by the
Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH).
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ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Provides for various civil actions based on violations of a
person's civil or personal rights, including the Unruh Civil
Rights Act, the Ralph Civil Rights Act, the Gender Tax Repeal
Act, the California Trafficking Victims Protection Act, and
the Bane Civil Rights Act, among others. (Civ. Code Sec.
51-51.9.)
2)Provides under the Unruh Civil Rights Act that all persons in
California are free and equal, and regardless of a person's
sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin,
disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital
status, sexual orientation, citizenship, primary language, or
immigration status, everyone is entitled to the full and equal
accommodations, advantages, facilities, privileges, or
services in all business establishments.
3)Specifies the functions, powers, and duties of DFEH, which
include, among other things, to receive, investigate,
conciliate, mediate, and prosecute complaints alleging
practices made unlawful pursuant to the Fair Employment and
Housing Act (FEHA) and other specified civil rights laws,
including the Unruh Civil Rights Act.
This bill:
1)Enacts the Act and provides that no business establishment
shall use consumer racial profiling. For these purposes,
"consumer racial profiling" shall mean the profiling or
targeting of a person that results in differential treatment
based on his or her race or ethnicity and that constitutes a
denial or degradation in the product or service offered to
customers. This bill further specifies that "consumer racial
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profiling" includes, but is not limited to, refusal to serve,
removal from the business establishment premises, segregated
seating, requiring additional forms of identification, and
surveillance practices based on race or ethnicity.
2)Amends FEHA to add within DFEH's functions, powers and duties,
the authority to receive, investigate, conciliate, mediate,
and prosecute complaints alleging practices made unlawful
pursuant to the Act.
Background
California law reflects a strong public policy protecting
individuals against discrimination under numerous statutes,
covering a variety of contexts. FEHA and the Unruh Civil Rights
Act, for example, prohibit discrimination in employment,
housing, public accommodation, and services provided by business
establishments on the basis of specified personal
characteristics, such as sex, race, color, religion, ancestry,
national origin, age, disability, medical condition, genetic
information, marital status, or sexual orientation. (See Gov.
Code Sec. 12920 et seq. for FEHA; Civ. Code Sec. 51 for Unruh
Civil Rights Act). Others still, prohibit discrimination in
public schools and in other state-funded programs or activities.
(See Educational Equity at Ed. Code Sec. 200 et seq. and Equity
in Higher Education Act at Ed. Code Sec. 66270 et seq.; see also
Gov. Code Section 11135 et seq.)
This bill seeks to now enact the Act to prohibit business
establishments from discriminating on the basis of race or
ethnicity by way of specified consumer racial profiling.
Comments
According to the author:
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Federal and state public accommodation laws are often
ill-equipped to address consumer racial profiling. Courts
often fail to understand the subtle nature of modern
discrimination and interpret civil rights statutes narrowly
requiring plaintiffs to establish specific harms.
However, no incident of consumer racial profiling is harmless.
The use of consumer racial profiling negatively impacts the
quality of life for African Americans and other ethnic
minorities. Furthermore, the victims of consumer racial
profiling feel as if they remain second-class citizens,
marginalized by the rest of society. All consumers, regardless
of race or ethnicity, should enjoy fair and equal treatment in
the marketplace.
Since the enactment of the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964
and the state Unruh Civil Rights Act of 1959, all people are
legally entitled to equal access to businesses and the right
to service regardless of race or ethnicity. Despite the
tremendous progress that our nation has made since the passage
of these civil rights laws, discrimination in the marketplace
remains a problem.
Across California there have been numerous reports of consumer
racial profiling, including targeting and regarding ethnic
minority consumers as potential criminals, unworthy of
service, and being unable to afford high-end merchandise
available for purchase. There have also been additional
reports of consumer racial profiling resulting in different
standards being applied to minority consumers. These incidents
have impacted celebrity and working-class ethnic minorities
alike.
The Center for Popular Democracy released a report that found
Black customers are 7 times more likely to be targeted as
potential thieves than white customers. However, research on
shoplifting trends in retail stores found no differences by
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race or ethnicity. The common misperception that African
American consumers engage in more criminal activity than other
consumers must be put to an end.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified6/27/16)
Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay
Area (source)
Black Women Organized for Political Action
California State Conference of the National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People
Consumer Attorneys of California
Consumer Federation of California
Prevent CRP (Consumer Racial Profiling)
Service Employees International Union, Local 1000
OPPOSITION: (Verified6/27/16)
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: Several proponents, including the
California State Conference of the National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the Consumer Attorneys
of California, write in support of this bill that "Federal and
state public accommodation laws are often ill-equipped to
address consumer racial profiling. Courts often fail to
understand the subtle nature of modern discrimination and
interpret civil rights statutes narrowly requiring plaintiffs to
establish specific harms. This bill would make it clear that
all forms of consumer racial profiling violate the Unruh Civil
Rights Act and ensure that consumers have a designated state
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entity to report incidents of racial profiling. We believe that
the Stop Consumer Racial Profiling Act is necessary to send a
strong message that all consumers[,] regardless of race or
ethnicity[,] are entitled to fair and equal treatment."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 76-0, 5/19/16
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Arambula, Atkins, Baker,
Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke,
Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper,
Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines,
Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson,
Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger
Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey,
Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mayes, Medina,
Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen,
Patterson, Quirk, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago,
Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber,
Wilk, Wood, Rendon
NO VOTE RECORDED: Chang, Mathis, McCarty, Williams
Prepared by: Ronak Daylami / JUD. / (916) 651-4113
6/29/16 15:46:03
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