Executive Summary
The California Senate Appropriations Committee passed AB5 on party lines. The bill now moves to the Senate at-large for consideration.
Analysis
On August 30, 2019, the California Senate Appropriations Committee passed after earlier amendment. Votes were as follows:
Ayes
Steven Bradford (D) – 35th Senate District
Maria Elena Durazo (D) – 24th Senate District
Gerald Hill (D) – 19th Senate District
Anthony Portantino, Jr. (D) – 25th Senate District
Bob Wieckowski (D) – 10th Senate District
Noes
Patricia Bates (R) – 36th Senate District
Brian Jones (R) – 40th Senate District
NVR
None
The bill will now move to the California Senate at large for consideration.
Looking Forward
As before, AB5 was considered and passed along party lines. While this demonstrates two clearly divergent views on the impact that AB5 will have on each Senator’s constituents, the amendments still remain far too few to even meet the bill’s stated purpose of clarifying the full effect of the Dynamex “ABC” Test. Do not be surprised if many more amendments are made. However, we should fully expect that this bill will eventually become law and, if you haven’t already, you should analyze what impact a change from Borello to Dynamex will have on your business and business model and consider what, if anything, you can do to prevent a finding that your independent contractors and/or franchisees will be considered your employees.
This article was originally published on the California Franchise Network.
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Thomas O’Connell – Tom O’Connell is a Shareholder at Buchalter APC, where he serves as Chair of the firm’s Franchise Law Practice and Chair of Litigation for the firm’s San Diego office.
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