Bill > AB1073

This bill allows the Employment Development Department (EDD) to release an employee's wage information to a qualified third-party vendor, which is defined as a consumer reporting agency that meets specific criteria and has experience with similar services in other states, if the employee provides written permission. This wage information, including name, social security number, employer name, and quarterly wages, can be electronically transmitted for "permissible uses" such as verifying wages, credit granting, residential leasing, employment screening, or insurance and government transactions, similar to the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act. The bill requires the EDD to enter into agreements with these vendors, who must then use the information only for permissible uses and can share it with "subscribers" (entities paying for the information) only if the employee has also given written permission for that specific release to the subscriber, with subscribers prohibited from reselling or redisclosing the information. The bill emphasizes that this wage information remains confidential and subject to existing laws, and while the EDD cannot spend state funds on these agreements, it can charge fees to vendors to cover administrative costs. Furthermore, the bill makes it a misdemeanor for anyone to knowingly access, use, or disclose this confidential information without authorization, creating a new crime. The bill also includes provisions related to the disqualification of judges and appellate justices for prejudice, allowing parties to request a different judge or justice under specific circumstances, particularly after a higher court reverses a decision and remands the case for further proceedings, with these provisions set to become inoperative and repealed on specific dates in the future.

Business and Industry, Justice

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB1073