September 17, 2009

 

Vote Record: Legislators Ax Job Creators, Give Approval to Many ‘Job Killer’ Bills

Based on the record of legislators’ votes as the summer recess began in late July, job creator proposals have received a less favorable reception this year than “job killer” bills.

Just one of 19 proposals identified by the California Chamber of Commerce as improving the state’s job climate and stimulating economic recovery has been enacted. Two other job creators that would have encouraged investments won approval by the full Assembly, but seem unlikely to advance further this year, having missed the deadline to pass Senate policy committees.

In contrast, although a number of “job killer” bills stalled in committees or were amended to remove their more onerous sections, just one “job killer” has been defeated in a floor vote this year. Numerous others have passed on largely party-line votes.

Following are descriptions of the bills in the CalChamber tally of how legislators have voted so far this year on job creators and “job killers” that reached the floor of at least one legislative house.

Former “job killers” shown in the vote record still contained “job killer” provisions at the time of the vote.

JOB CREATORS

Encourages Investments
• AB 222 (Adams; R-Hesperia) Green Energy. Encourages new investment and job creation by allowing conversion of solid waste to energy at a biorefinery to count toward meeting the state mandate that 20 percent of energy come from renewable sources by 2010. Passed Assembly, June 1, 54-13.

• AB 1565 (Ruskin; D-Redwood City) Research and Development Credits. Encourages investment and jobs in research and development by increasing the research and development tax credit rate from 15 percent to 20 percent, in conformity with federal law, beginning in 2012. Passed Assembly, May 14, 73-0.

Increased Construction Jobs
• AB 333 (Fuentes; D-Sylmar) New Home Construction. Facilitates the smooth recovery of the housing market by extending the life of active tentative subdivision maps and parcel maps for a period of two years. Passed Assembly, May 28, 76-0. Passed Senate, July 9, 34-0. Signed by Governor — Chapter 18 (urgency).

‘JOB KILLERS’

Costly Workplace Mandates
• AB 943 (Mendoza; D-Artesia) Hampers Employment Decisions. Unduly restricts the ability of businesses to use all legally available information in employment decisions, including consumer credit reports. Passed Assembly, May 28, 49-30.

• SB 145 (DeSaulnier; D-Concord) Workers’ Compensation Apportionment. Erodes recent workers’ compensation reforms and leads to higher premiums for California employers by undercutting fair and reasonable provisions in current law that protect an employer from paying for disability that was not caused by a workplace accident. Passed Senate, June 1, 23-15.

• SB 227 (Alquist; D-Santa Clara) New Health Care Tax. Increases health care premiums by establishing a new targeted tax and government bureaucracy to change California’s major risk medical insurance program (MRMIP). Passed Senate, June 3, 23-15.

• SB 789 (Steinberg; D-Sacramento) Increased Agricultural Costs. Undermines the process that now guarantees, through secret-ballot elections, a fair vote and the expression of agricultural employees’ true sentiments on the selection of a collective bargaining representative. This act will hurt California’s businesses by driving up costs, making employers less competitive in a global market. Passed Senate, April 23, 23-14.

Economic Development Barriers
• AB 231 (Huffman; D-San Rafael) Climate Change Tax Increase. Increases costs and discourages job growth by granting the Air Resources Board broad authority to implement unlimited fees and taxes with little or no oversight. Passed Assembly as “job killer,” June 2, 45-31. Amended June 18 to remove opposition.

• AB 846 (Torrico; D-Newark) Anti-Business Cost Increases. Could significantly increase the cost of doing business in California by increasing fines and penalties, while disregarding good faith efforts of California’s businesses to comply with complex regulations, and removing the incentive for agencies to work out settlements. Passed Assembly, June 3, 47-30.

• AB 1404 (De León; D-Los Angeles) Discourages Emission Reductions. Significantly increases business costs and threatens state jobs and businesses by severely limiting the amount of offsets California industries can use to meet their greenhouse gas emission goals. Passed Assembly, June 3, 45-30.

• AB 1405 (De León; D-Los Angeles) Climate Change Tax Increase. Increases costs and discourages job growth by granting the Air Resources Board broad authority to implement unlimited fees and taxes with little or no oversight. Passed Assembly, June 3, 45-30.

• SB 31 (Pavley; D-Agoura Hills) Climate Change Tax Increase. Increases costs and discourages job growth by granting the Air Resources Board broad authority to implement unlimited fees and taxes with little or no oversight. Failed Senate, June 3, 16-19.

Expensive, Unnecessary Regulatory Burdens
• AB 479 (Chesbro; D-Arcata) Expanded Waste Bureaucracy. Originally increased costs by giving the California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB) broad authority to impose any policy, program or incentive to reach a 75 percent solid waste diversion rate by 2020. Passed Assembly as “job killer,” June 2, 41-32. As amended July 1, circumvents an existing public process by the CIWMB to develop a new mandatory commercial recycling program with stakeholders and prejudges the outcome of such work by prematurely imposing a similar program on California businesses. CalChamber still opposes, but no longer lists it as a “job killer.”

• SB 602 (Padilla; D-Pacoima) Retail Restrictions. Before amendments, would have severely restricted retailers from growing their businesses in California by limiting the sale of a legal product in a legal venue. Passed Senate as “job killer,” June 3, 23-13. Amended July 1 to deal with a different subject.

• SB 603 (Padilla; D-Pacoima) Retail Restrictions. Severely restricts retailers from growing their businesses in California by limiting the sale of a legal product in a legal venue. Passed Senate, June 3, 21-16.

Inflated Liability Costs
• AB 2 (De La Torre; D-South Gate) Health Insurance Litigation. Drives up the cost of health care premiums and increases the number of uninsured by establishing litigation as the only meaningful approach to resolving disputes over rescinding coverage. Passed Assembly, June 3, 45-26.

• AB 793 (Jones; D-Sacramento) Unreasonable New Liability for Employers. Imposes unfair and costly litigation burden on California employers by unreasonably expanding employer liability in workplace lawsuits far beyond the federal Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009. Passed Assembly, May 18, 49-28.

• SB 95 (Corbett; D-San Leandro) Vehicle Price Increase. Before amendments, would have imposed new surety costs on car dealers in an already-difficult economy by placing excessive restrictions on the sale of trade-in vehicles and unreasonably expanding dealer liability and damages. Passed Senate as “job killer,” June 3, 21-17. Amended July 1 to remove opposition.

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