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AB-1832 Civil Rights Department: Labor Trafficking Task Force.(2023-2024)



Current Version: 09/05/24 - Enrolled

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AB1832:v95#DOCUMENT

Enrolled  September 05, 2024
Passed  IN  Senate  August 30, 2024
Passed  IN  Assembly  August 31, 2024
Amended  IN  Senate  August 15, 2024
Amended  IN  Assembly  May 20, 2024
Amended  IN  Assembly  March 04, 2024

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 1832


Introduced by Assembly Member Blanca Rubio
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Davies, Grayson, Haney, Santiago, and Soria)

January 12, 2024


An act to add Section 12934 to the Government Code, relating to employment.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 1832, Blanca Rubio. Civil Rights Department: Labor Trafficking Task Force.
Existing law, the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, establishes in the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency the Civil Rights Department (department), headed by the Director of Civil Rights, to protect and safeguard the right and opportunity of all persons to seek, obtain, and hold employment without discrimination or abridgment on account of 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, reproductive health decisionmaking, or military and veteran status. Existing law requires the department, among other things, to render annually to the Governor and to the Legislature a written report of its activities and recommendations.
This bill would establish within the department the Labor Trafficking Task Force, as specified. The bill would require the task force, among other things, to take steps to prevent labor trafficking, coordinate with the Labor Enforcement Task Force, the Department of Justice, and the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement within the Department of Industrial Relations to combat labor trafficking, and receive and refer complaints alleging labor trafficking to the department or other agencies, as appropriate, for potential investigation, civil action, or criminal prosecution. The bill would authorize the task force to coordinate with other relevant agencies to combat labor trafficking, support law enforcement agencies that investigate criminal actions relating to labor trafficking in coordination with specified entities, and coordinate with state or local agencies to connect survivors with available services. The bill would require the Division of Occupational Safety and Health within the Department of Industrial Relations to notify the task force when, upon investigating businesses under their purview, there is evidence of labor trafficking. The bill would require the department to include specified information in the annual report described above, including the activities of the task force, the number of complaints referred to the department, and the status or outcome of those complaints. The bill would provide that its provisions become operative only upon appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or another measure for the purposes of the bill’s provisions.
Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest.
This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 Section 12934 is added to the Government Code, to read:

12934.
 (a) (1) There is hereby established within the department the Labor Trafficking Task Force.
(2) For purposes of this section, “task force” means the Labor Trafficking Task Force established by paragraph (1).
(3) The task force shall be comprised of experienced investigators, mediators, attorneys, outreach workers, support staff, and other staff deemed appropriate by the department.
(b) The task force shall do all of the following:
(1) Take steps to prevent labor trafficking.
(2) Coordinate with the Labor Enforcement Task Force, the Department of Justice, and the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement within the Department of Industrial Relations to combat labor trafficking.
(3) Make information on the legal rights of victims available to survivors.
(4) Provide a list of pro bono victim’s rights attorneys to survivors.
(5) Receive and refer complaints alleging labor trafficking to the department or other agencies, as appropriate, for potential investigation, civil action, or criminal prosecution.
(6) Follow protocols to ensure survivors are not victimized by the process of prosecuting traffickers and are informed of the services available to them.
(c) The task force may do any of the following:
(1) Coordinate with other relevant agencies to combat labor trafficking, including, but not limited to, the California Victim Compensation Board, the Agricultural Labor Relations Board, the Department of Cannabis Control, and the State Department of Public Health.
(2) Support law enforcement agencies that investigate criminal actions relating to labor trafficking. When providing this support, the task force may coordinate with any of the following:
(A) Local law enforcement agencies.
(B) Federal law enforcement agencies.
(C) District attorney’s offices.
(3) Coordinate with state or local agencies to connect survivors with available services.
(d) The Division of Occupational Safety and Health within the Department of Industrial Relations shall notify the task force when, upon investigating businesses under their purview, there is evidence of labor trafficking.
(e) (1) The department’s annual report required by Section 12930 shall include all of the following information for the year of the annual report:
(A) The activities of the task force, including, but not limited to, coordination with other agencies.
(B) The number of complaints referred to the department.
(C) The number of complaints referred to the Department of Justice and other agencies.
(D) The status or outcome of the complaints described in subparagraphs (B) and (C).
(E) A discussion of the major challenges to addressing labor trafficking complaints, the ongoing efforts to address those challenges, and options to improve the state’s claim process.
(2) The requirement for submitting the information imposed by this subdivision is inoperative on January 1, 2036.
(f) The task force shall not be subject to the requirements of the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act (Article 9 (commencing with Section 11120) of Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 3).
(g) The provisions of this section shall become operative only upon appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or another measure for the purposes of this section. The department shall send notice of the appropriation to the Secretary of State and the Legislative Counsel.

SEC. 2.

 The Legislature finds and declares that Section 1 of this act, which adds Section 12934 to the Government Code, imposes a limitation on the public’s right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies within the meaning of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution. Pursuant to that constitutional provision, the Legislature makes the following findings to demonstrate the interest protected by this limitation and the need for protecting that interest:
In order to protect the privacy of potential victims, while also assisting in efforts to prevent violations of law, it is necessary to limit the disclosure of information collected by the Labor Trafficking Task Force.