Bill > SB515

This bill requires cities, counties, and city-and-county governments, including charter cities, to add more detailed demographic collection categories for Black or African American groups when collecting employment-related ethnic origin data, starting January 1, 2027. Specifically, the bill aims to enhance the accuracy and comprehensiveness of demographic data concerning employees who are descendants of persons enslaved and emancipated in the United States (also known as American Freedmen), with the goal of improving policy planning and resource allocation. The bill emphasizes protecting individual privacy and ensuring secure data handling, and it explicitly states that these requirements apply to all cities, even those with their own charters. If the Commission on State Mandates determines that implementing this law will create additional costs for local governments, the state will provide reimbursement for those expenses through existing statutory procedures. The legislation is framed as addressing a matter of statewide concern, which means it supersedes local municipal regulations and creates a uniform standard for demographic data collection across California.

Budget and Finance, Government Affairs

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260SB515