1108.
(a) An employer may not make, adopt, or enforce any rule, regulation, or policy, or engage in any conduct preventing or impeding an employee, independent contractor, or agent of any person or firm, corporation, or business that buys, sells, or schedules electricity in the California electricity or ancillary services market from disclosing information to the Legislature or any committee or member thereof, or to any government or law enforcement agency or employee thereof, where the employee, independent contractor, or agent has a reasonable basis to believe that the information reveals a possible fraud, false claim, anti-competitive practice, unlawful market manipulation, misrepresentation to a regulatory agency, or a violation of state or federal law or regulation.(b) An employer may not layoff, discharge, demote, suspend, threaten, or in any other manner discriminate or retaliate against an employee, independent contractor, or agent of any person, firm, corporation, or business that buys, sells, or schedules electricity in the California electricity or ancillary services market because the employee, independent contractor, or agent has, with reasonable cause, disclosed information about a possible fraud, false claim, anti-competitive practice, unlawful market manipulation, or violation of state or federal law to the Legislature or any committee or member thereof, any government or law enforcement agency or commission or employee thereof, or any member of the executive branch, board, the Independent System Operator, or the media, or because the employee, independent contractor, or agent has filed a civil lawsuit containing allegations of fraud, false claims, anti-competitive practices, or unlawful market manipulation, or is required by law to disclose such information through testimony at a deposition or similar proceeding.
(c) Upon the determination by a mediator, arbitrator, or judge, or upon a finding at any administrative or judicial proceeding that an employer has violated subdivision (a) or (b), the prevailing plaintiff shall be entitled to all of the following damages:
(1) Immediate reinstatement to his or her position at the same rate of compensation and with the same benefits that the prevailing plaintiff was earning at the time he or she disclosed information and immediate removal of any adverse comments related to the prevailing plaintiff’s discharge, demotion, suspension, or layoff from all of the prevailing plaintiff’s personnel files.
(2) An amount equal to two times the prevailing plaintiff’s actual lost wages and benefits.
(3) Reasonable attorneys’ fees, including a lodestar enhancement reflecting the risk of initiating and litigating the action in an amount to be determined by the decisionmaker, plus costs allowable pursuant to Section 1033.5 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
(4) Punitive damages pursuant to Section 3294 of the Civil Code.
(d) As used in this section, “prevailing plaintiff” includes, but is not limited to, an employee, independent contractor, or agent who, through settlement or as a consequence of filing a lawsuit, obtains a change in a defendant’s policy, rule, or practice, regardless of the amount of actual damages awarded in the action.