Kelly Seyarto
- Republican
- Senator
- District 32
Author
Under existing law, the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) , it is an unlawful employment practice for an employer, unless based upon a bona fide occupational qualification or applicable security regulations established by the United States or the State of California, to refuse to hire or employ a person or to refuse to select a person for a training program leading to employment, or to bar or discharge a person from employment or a training program leading to employment, or to discriminate against a person in compensation or in terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because of the race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, sexual orientation, or military and veteran status of that person. FEHA provides that nothing in that act relating to discrimination on account of sex affects the right of an employer to use veteran status as a factor in employee selection or to give special consideration to Vietnam-era veterans. FEHA is enforced by the Civil Rights Department, which is in the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency, and is under the direction of an executive officer known as the Director of Civil Rights. This bill would enact the Voluntary Veterans' Preference Employment Policy Act to authorize a private employer to establish and maintain a written veterans' preference employment policy, to be applied uniformly to hiring decisions, to give a voluntary preference for hiring a veteran over another qualified applicant. The bill would require a private employer with a veterans' preference employment policy to annually report to the Civil Rights Department the number of veterans hired under the preference policy and any demographic information about those veterans that the employer obtained in response to the department's reporting requirements. Under the bill, failure to submit that report would render any preference granted by the employer ineligible for the protections provided by this bill. The bill would require the department to report that information, in addition to the number of discrimination claims received based on an employer's veterans' preference employment policy, to specified legislative policy committees by July 1, 2026, and July 1, 2028. This bill would provide that the granting of a veterans' preference pursuant to the bill, in and of itself, shall be deemed not to violate any local or state equal employment opportunity law or regulation, including, but not limited to, the antidiscrimination provisions of FEHA. The bill would require the Department of Veterans Affairs to assist any private employer in determining if an applicant is a veteran, to the extent permitted by law. The bill would prohibit a veterans' preference employment policy from being established or applied for the purpose or with the effect of unlawfully discriminating against an employment applicant on the basis of a protected classification, as specified. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2029.
August 15 hearing: Held in committee and under submission.
August 7 set for first hearing. Placed on suspense file.
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To consent calendar. (Ayes 11. Noes 0.) (June 25). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on JUD. (Ayes 8. Noes 0.) (June 20). Re-referred to Com. on JUD.
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 36. Noes 0. Page 1328.) Ordered to the Assembly.
In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
Read second time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 6. Noes 0. Page 1159.) (May 18).
Set for hearing May 18.
May 1 hearing: Placed on APPR suspense file.
Set for hearing May 1.
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 4. Noes 0. Page 854.) (April 24). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
Set for hearing April 24.
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on M. & V.A. (Ayes 8. Noes 1. Page 685.) (April 11). Re-referred to Com. on M. & V.A.
Set for hearing April 11.
From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on JUD.
From printer. May be acted upon on or after February 11.
Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.
| Bill Text Versions | Format |
|---|---|
| SB73 | HTML |
| 01/11/23 - Introduced | |
| 03/22/23 - Amended Senate | |
| 05/18/23 - Amended Senate |
| Document | Format |
|---|---|
| 04/07/23- Senate Judiciary | |
| 04/21/23- Senate Committee on Military and Veterans Affairs | |
| 04/28/23- Senate Appropriations | |
| 05/18/23- Senate Appropriations | |
| 05/23/23- Sen. Floor Analyses | |
| 06/19/23- Assembly Military and Veterans Affairs | |
| 06/21/24- Assembly Judiciary | |
| 08/05/24- Assembly Appropriations |
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