BILL ANALYSIS
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
Mark DeSaulnier, Chair
Date of Hearing: July 8, 2009 2009-2010 Regular
Session
Consultant: Gideon L. Baum Fiscal:Yes
Urgency: No
Bill No: AB 402
Author: Davis
Version: As Proposed to be Amended
SUBJECT
Employment: entertainment work permits.
KEY ISSUE
Should the Legislature require applicants for an Entertainment
Work Permit (EWP) for minors to pay a $50 fee in order to fund
the administration of the Entertainment Work Permits and the
enforcement of the working conditions of minors in the
entertainment industry?
PURPOSE
To levy a fee to fund the administration of permits for minors
in the entertainment industry, as well as to fund the
enforcement of working conditions for minors in the
entertainment industry.
ANALYSIS
Existing law requires the written consent of the Labor
Commissioner for the employment of a minor in the entertainment
industry, as specified.
Existing law requires an entertainment work permit to be
obtained from the Labor Commissioner for a minor in order for
them to be employed in the entertainment industry.
Existing law provides that once written consent is given by the
Labor Commissioner, as specified, that consent shall be void
after the expiration of ten business days from the date the
written consent was granted unless it is attached to a true and
correct copy as evidence that a "Coogan Trust Account" has been
established on behalf of the minor.
This bill:
1) Requires that an applicant for an Entertainment Work
Permit pursuant to Section 11753 of Title 8 of the
California Code of Regulations to submit to the Labor
Commissioner an application fee of $50 with his or her
application.
2) Creates an Entertainment Work Permit Fund in the State
Treasury and directs the Labor Commissioner to deposit the
$50 application fee into the Entertainment Work Permit
Fund, which, upon appropriation by the Legislature, must be
used to pay the costs of:
a) Issuing Entertainment Work Permits;
b) Enforcing the requirement of an Entertainment Work
Permit for minors at worksites, including making at least
one unannounced visit to a randomly selected set or
production facility where children are working under an
Entertainment Work Permit per quarter; and
c) Administering the Entertainment Work Permit program,
including the production of informational materials, the
development of a web site, and training to studio
teachers on their role in enforcing existing laws and
regulations.
COMMENTS
1. Legislative Background
The Coogan law was passed in 1938 in response to Jackie
Coogan's plight. Even though he earned millions as a child
actor, Coogan was surprised to find out when he reached
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adulthood that his entire earnings were depleted, because his
mother and stepfather spent all his money legally, as the law
of the time considered his earnings to be his parents
property. The Coogan law was enacted to preserve a portion of
a minor's earnings under an employment contract for creative
or artistic services, for the minor's use when he or she turns
18 years of age, or becomes legally emancipated.
SB 1162 (Burton), Chapter 940, Statutes of 1999, overhauled
the Coogan law. Applicable to both court-approved and non
court-approved minors' contracts for creative or artistic
employment, SB 1162 required 15% of a minor's earnings to be
set aside and deposited into a "Coogan trust" account,
invested in low-risk financial vehicles, and blocked from use
until the minor is emancipated or reaches age 18. To enforce
the set-aside, SB 1162 imposed a duty on the employer to make
the deposit directly into the minor's Coogan trust account,
which a parent or guardian is required to open at an insured
financial institution and to invest in a manner consistent
with that of a trustee. Annual accounting is required, and
court supervision of trust accounts for minors with
court-approved contracts continues until the minor turns 18
years of age or becomes legally emancipated.
To further strengthen enforcement of the Coogan law, the
Legislature adopted, and the Governor signed, SB 210 (Burton),
Chapter 667, Statutes of 2004, which added the requirement
that the Labor Commission's written consent for performances
of a minor under Labor Code Section 1308.5 be limited to 10
days, unless a Coogan Trust Account has been established, as
discussed above.
The enforcement of this system is placed upon the studio
teachers, with whom the duty to check a child performer's
paperwork rests. A studio teacher is a certificated teacher
who holds both a valid and current California Elementary and a
California Secondary teaching credential, which is certified
by the Labor Commissioner. Studio teachers are paid by the
employer (e.g. a production company or studio).
A studio teacher, in addition to teaching, has the
responsibility for caring and attending to the health, safety,
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Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
and morals of minors under 16 years of age, and shall take
cognizance of such factors as: working conditions, physical
surroundings, signs of minor's mental and physical fatigue,
demands placed upon the minor in relation to the minor's age,
agility, strength, and stamina, and may refuse to allow
engagement of a minor on a set or a location and may remove
the minor there from, if in judgment of studio teacher,
conditions are such as to present a danger to the health,
safety, or morals of the minor.
AB 402 would create a fund for the enforcement of existing law
for minors in the entertainment industry, which, with
Legislative appropriation, would finance the issuance of
Entertainment Work Permits and the enforcement of working
conditions for minors in the entertainment industry.
2. Proponent Arguments :
Proponents believe that existing law creates an enforcement
structure that is inadequate to monitor and track the work
permits and ensure that the hundreds of minors who work in the
entertainment industry are safe and secure. Proponents
believe that by creating the Entertainment Work Permit Fund,
which will exist solely to enforce regulations that protect
minors in the entertainment industry, this bill will foster a
safer work environment for many young performers, as well as
reduce funding pressure on the state in a time of great fiscal
need.
3. Opponent Arguments :
None received.
4. Prior Legislation :
SB 210 (Burton), Chapter 667, Statutes of 2004, which was
discussed earlier, added the requirement that the Labor
Commission's written consent for performances of a minor be
limited to 10 days, unless a Coogan Trust Account has been
established.
SB 1162 (Burton), Chapter 940, Statutes of 1999, which was
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discussed earlier, made significant changes to the Coogan law.
SUPPORT
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
(AFSCME)
Screen Actors Guild (SAG)
OPPOSITION
None received.
* * *
Hearing Date: July 8, 2009 AB 402
Consultant: Gideon L. Baum Page 5
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations