Legislative Update: Key Employment and Regulatory Bills Continue Moving
Published Friday, June 26, 2026
Several concerning bills advanced through the legislative process this week as policy committees continue hearing Assembly measures in the second house.
The Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement Committee approved two measures affecting agricultural employers. Assembly Bill 2646 by Maggy Krell, D-Sacramento, would establish a $19.75 minimum wage for H-2A temporary agricultural employees and California workers performing the same work in the same county. The committee also approved Assembly Bill 2227 by Damon Connolly, D-San Rafael, which would significantly increase bonding requirements for licensed farm labor contractors. Both bills passed on 4-1 votes. AB 2646 now heads to the Senate Appropriations Committee, while AB 2227 moves to the Senate Judiciary Committee. California Farm Bureau opposes both measures.
Senate Bill 947 by Jerry McNerney, D-Stockton, also advanced this week after clearing the Assembly Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee. The bill, which Farm Bureau opposes, would regulate low-risk automated decision-making systems used in workforce management and impose new compliance requirements and legal risks for employers. The measure now moves to the Assembly Judiciary Committee.
In a positive development, Senate Bill 1123 by Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, which would have weakened California's Standardized Regulatory Impact Analysis, or SRIA, requirements for major regulations, was withdrawn from consideration in the Assembly Committee on Economic Development, Growth and Household Impact after apparently lacking sufficient support to advance. Farm Bureau opposed the proposal because SRIA provides an important safeguard against excessive regulation and helps stakeholders understand the economic impacts of major regulatory actions.
Meanwhile, Assembly Bill 1890 by Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, D-Winters, was heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee and placed on the suspense file. The bill, which Farm Bureau supports, would provide state matching grants to support the Napa County Housing Authority's Farmworker Centers, which have long been funded through grower self-assessments.
Staff contact: Bryan Little, blittle@cfbf.com.
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