AB 942 – Legislative Call to Action Assembly Bill 942 still includes language that would eliminate NEM benefits for new non-beneficiary property owners and place them on Net Billing Tax (NBT). A shift to NBT could have a handful of consequences, but from a WECA perspective, it could deter future investments in solar-enabled housing. If you would like to share your experience with your issue, please email us by May 14th so we can be included in a larger effort to advocate on this legislation. It would be helpful to focus your experience based on how it would impact your property or business upon a sale, in terms of how a shift to NBT would influence the sale price of a property and the impact of solar relief on energy cost. Lastly, if you feel so compelled, contacting your local legislator is always a great way to magnify your voice.
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States Pile On Seventeen US states have filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration’s pause of $3.3 billion in funding to build electric vehicle (EV) chargers. These funds were part of a $5 billion plan passed during Biden's presidency under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) to help states build EV charging stations. The suit was filed on Wednesday and is being led by the attorneys general of California, Colorado, and Washington. They contend that only Congress can bar or block the funding, not the Federal Highway Administration. The Department of Transportation hasn't responded to the lawsuit yet.
This latest suit against the Trump administration, California’s 19th so far, is an attempt to rescue billions in frozen federal funds. As with most of the suits that California has joined against President Donald Trump, it’s a largely blue-state coalition. But in some ways, this filing could be of most use to the Republican states that aren’t signed onto it.
Texas is the state that’s supposed to receive the largest award from the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program — a $5 billion pot in 2021’s BIL that’s divvied up through a highway-based funding formula — at around $408 million. The state has around 4,400 public chargers, a fraction of California’s more than 80,000.
California was supposed to get the second-highest amount, at $384 million. But that’s a drop in the bucket compared to the $2 billion it’s already spent in state funding, and the $1.4 billion it still has coming from various state coffers. For rural (read Republican) states, the money is much more important. NEVI funding makes up a disproportionately high portion of EV charging funding in Republican states, where state funding is often lacking.
“I think that most, probably all of the states, would like to have this funding, but they are afraid to sue the Trump administration,” said Bill Magavern, policy director at Coalition for Clean Air. “Almost every Republican elected official has just gone silent, and attorneys general are elected officials.”
However, the NEVI funding will still have an impact, even in California. That’s because the program is designed to place charging stations no more than 50 miles away from each other along major highways. That means locations in the Central Valley and along the Northern California coast, rather than just urban centers like Los Angeles and the Bay Area, where EV adoption has been highest. “We need public funding, especially to go into the areas where the private sector may be more reluctant to venture,” Magavern said. “That includes rural areas and disadvantaged communities.”
Johannes Copeland, chief operating officer at Skycharger, a charger supplier that’s won NEVI grants in California and New Mexico, told POLITICO shortly after the DOT announced the freeze in February that the loss of federal funding and Biden-era tax credits that help cover costs of building and operating chargers could force some companies to reconsider investing in rural areas, where there are no guarantees they’ll ever be profitable. “The riskier sites may not get built,” Copeland said at the time. “That’s absolutely a risk in losing the money associated with the program.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom is also using the lawsuit to resume his jabs at Trump, taunting the president over a March decision to turn the White House lawn into a Tesla showroom to support Elon Musk. The governor also pointed to China’s growing manufacturers like BYD, which is now the largest EV maker in the world. “President Trump’s illegal action withholding funds for electric vehicle infrastructure is yet another Trump gift to China — ceding American innovation and killing thousands of jobs,” Newsom said in a statement. “Instead of hawking Teslas on the White House lawn, President Trump could actually help Elon — and the nation — by following the law and releasing this bipartisan funding.” Read more
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More Pain for HSR Trump said Tuesday that the federal government (a euphemism for taxpayers) will not pay for California’s medium-speed train, another potential wrinkle in a troubled project that has repeatedly blown past its budget and completion timeline since voters approved funding in 2008. “That train is the worst cost overrun I’ve ever seen,” Trump, who’s seen many of his own projects and endeavors fail, told reporters in the Oval Office during a joint appearance with Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada. “It’s, like, totally out of control.” He added: “This government (i.e., taxpayers) is not going to pay.” The president’s comments came three months after his administration launched a review of how California is spending a $3.1 billion federal grant issued under the Biden administration. That audit has not yet been completed. Story
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Bonta Soft on Child Sex Abuse? While California Attorney General and aspiring Governor Rob Bonta is quick to sue the Trump Administration, he is less inclined to charge a former official with sexual assault. Former Kern County Supervisor Zack Scrivner was not charged with a sex crime but was charged with three felony counts of child abuse and two felony counts of possessing assault weapons by the California Department of Justice in February.
The charges stemmed from an incident at his Tehachapi house in April of last year, where Scrivner was stabbed in the upper torso by one of his four children, who was trying to protect another child from being sexually assaulted by Scrivner, according to Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood. Detectives seized around 30 firearms and psychedelic mushrooms from Scrivner’s house after the incident. Scrivner resigned from the Board of Supervisors last August after taking a lengthy medical leave of absence. According to the complaint filed by the Department of Justice, Scrivner allegedly got into bed with one of his children and touched the child inappropriately.
The case wound up on Bonta’s desk due to a familial conflict with Kern County District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer.
The decision not to charge Scrivner didn’t sit well with Assemblymember Jasmeet Bains (D-Bakersfield), who wrote a letter to Bonta asking for clarification on the charges filed against Scrivner to know why he was not charged with a sex crime. Story
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Praise the Lord, Congress Focuses on Important Stuff! The Gulf of America Act of 2025 (HR 276) renames the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America. The bill directs the Board on Geographic Names within the Department of the Interior to oversee the implementation of the renaming concerning each federal document and map. Each federal agency must update its records and maps within 180 days of the bill's enactment. All nine of California's Republicans voted AYE today on the bill. All the state's Democrats voted no. The House voted for the renaming by a margin of 211 to 206. Rep. Kevin Kiley, R-Roseville, explained why he backed the plan, which would write into law the renaming plan proposed by President Donald Trump on his first day in office. "The Gulf of America is a critical region to our country's economy. It's a staple of energy independence that fuels economic growth, creates jobs, and is a tourist destination for people across the United States," Kiley said. Story
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Navigating California’s New Regulations on Automated Decision-Making Tools The California Civil Rights Department (CRD) has recently approved regulations under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) to address discrimination in employment resulting from the use of automated decision-making systems, including artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithms. These regulations apply to all employers covered by the FEHA and are expected to take effect in July, once they have completed the final administrative approval process with the Office of Administrative Law. Story
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California Court of Appeal Affirms Enforceability of Prospective Meal Period Waivers In a ruling that clarifies a previously unsettled area of California employment law, a California Court of Appeal affirmed the enforceability of written, prospective meal period waivers for shifts between five and six hours long. The April 21, 2025, decision in Bradsbery v. Vicar Operating, Inc. explained that advanced “blanket” waivers are valid under the law if freely revocable and absent evidence of coercion or unconscionability. For California employers, Bradsbery provides much-needed guidance on how to implement meal period waivers in compliance with the law. Story
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Good News, Gov. Newsom has launched a website fact-checking anonymous X accounts, in-state Republicans, and President Donald Trump — escalating a campaign to defend his home state and record against false and misleading information online, Politico reports. “This site is for everyone sick of the BS about California,” Newsom said in a statement. “We’re done letting the MAGA trolls define the Golden State. We’re going on the offense and fighting back — with facts.” Posts already on the site dispense with some serious whoppers from questionable sources. One claim, from an X account named “Beauty Hub,” incorrectly asserts that stealing up to $950 is legal in California. Another post, from Libs of TikTok, falsely claimed California reservoirs ran dry during the LA fires. Californiafacts.com deploys some of Newsom’s go-to answers for common criticisms of his home state. It responds to economic digs by touting California’s status as the fourth-largest economy. To an X post that accused Democrats of being a party of “zealous open border immigration,” it notes the federal government’s jurisdiction over the issue. It cites the economic benefits of people commuting across the Mexico-California border for work.
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AZ Valley Voters, Lawmakers Should Stand Up to California Labor Union An out-of-state labor-affiliated group has cast a shadow over the Valley’s economic development future. Voters and elected officials can help clear things up. An example is Glendale City Council’s recent approval of zoning for a 39-acre site on the west side of Loop 101 across from State Farm Stadium, which is set to feature a mix of multifamily housing, retail and hotels. It’s the type of development cities typically welcome. They create jobs, generate tax revenues and generally improve a community’s quality of life thanks to new amenities. Worker Power, the Los Angeles-based political arm of the hospitality union UniteHere, opposes the zoning approval and is poised to thwart development at the site. A representative was at the April 22 Council meeting to express the group’s opposition, specifically calling out the inclusion of a hotel in the development. More
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Legislator Wants School Funds to be Given to Utilities Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris is attempting to reintroduce legislation that would provide a one-time credit to most of the state’s electricity customers with funding from a program that provides money for school heating, ventilation and air conditioning upgrades, reports Politico. Petrie-Norris, a Democrat who chairs the Assembly Utilities and Energy Committee, is refusing to hear AB 832 by Assembly Education Chair Al Muratsuchi, which would give school districts more time to use some $192 million for HVAC improvements and plumbing.
While Muratsuchi's bill would extend the time that schools can tap the funding for HVAC improvements until 2031, Petrie-Norris proposed amendments that would redirect any funding not used by December 2026 to the state’s utilities, which would then distribute the money to customers as credits. Muratsuchi's office confirmed that he wouldn't take the amendments. He said he was “disappointed” that Petrie-Norris won’t hear his bill, which “ensures that schools have access to critical funds to improve indoor air quality and create healthier learning environments.”
“California’s students and staff deserve to learn and work in spaces with safe, effective ventilation systems,” he said in a statement. It's the second year that Petrie-Norris has proposed redirecting school HVAC funding to electricity bills, as well as the second year that school advocates have proposed extending the funding deadline, which was established in 2020's AB 841. A similar bill proposed last year by former Assemblymember Phil Ting died before it received a floor vote.
WECA's Southern California Government Relations Representative Dave Everett gives Riverside City Councilman Chuck Condor a tour of WECA Riverside's labs.
Councilman Visits Riverside City Councilman Chuck Condor recently toured WECA Riverside for a discussion about workforce development. Joined by Dave Everett with WECA’s Government Affairs team, Condor sat down to learn more about WECA’s commitment to apprenticeship, training and safety. Currently, the City of Riverside is looking at several construction projects, including a $32.8 million construction contract to bring the Museum of Riverside closer to reopening and a proposed 126-acre sports complex. On the tour, WECA highlighted the great opportunity that apprenticeships are for students and how beneficial it is for young adults to begin adulthood debt-free. Thank you, Riverside Councilman Chuck Condor, for taking time out of your busy schedule to learn more about our members and students!
NABTU Sues Over PLA Exemption North America’s Building Trades Unions filed suit in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia recently against two federal agencies and their chiefs for ignoring a still-in-effect executive order from former President Joe Biden requiring project labor agreements on some federal jobs. They asked the court to enjoin the Department of Defense and the General Services Administration from foregoing PLA use, as the Biden-era order remains on the books. Since Trump took office, he has enacted a flurry of executive orders undoing many Biden-era policies, and in January, a judge severely weakened the case for the federal government to use PLAs, but NABTU argues that the original order is still in effect. Story
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New Building for California Lawmakers Costing as Much as an NFL Stadium Leaders overseeing California's Capitol Annex project refuse to explain the cost of what will be one of the most expensive buildings in the United States. The $1.1 billion (and counting) Capitol Annex Project had an original cost estimate of $543.2 million in 2018. Within the next few years, the building will house offices for the state’s 120 lawmakers, the governor, lieutenant governor, and staff. It will also have committee hearing rooms where lawmakers debate and vote on various issues. The price tag is also expected to pay for a parking garage, but maybe not a new visitors' center on the west side of the historic state capitol building. Story
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When Headless PAGAs Attack! A split in authority has developed in the California Courts of Appeal regarding what to do when an employer moves to compel arbitration of a Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) that is “headless”—that is, a claim seeking penalties on behalf of all allegedly aggrieved employees except the named plaintiff. (This is the latest trick the plaintiff’s bar has come up with to thwart enforceable arbitration agreements, because if there’s one thing plaintiffs’ lawyers hate, it’s arbitration!)
In Leeper v. Shipt, Inc., the court held that a PAGA claim cannot be headless, so in this circumstance, the “individual” PAGA claim is implied and can be compelled to arbitration. On the other hand, Parra Rodriguez v. Packers Sanitation, Inc. held that a court must take the complaint as it finds it and cannot “imply” an individual PAGA claim that was not pled.
The California Supreme Court has granted review of Leeper to answer two questions:
- Does every PAGA action necessarily include both individual and non-individual PAGA claims, regardless of whether the complaint specifically alleges individual claims?
- Can a plaintiff choose to bring only a non-individual PAGA action?
Story
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Changes to WC Mandate? To address concerns that some construction contractor applicants or licensees were providing a certification of exemption even though they had employees, SB 216 (Dodd, Chapter 978, Statues of 2022) expanded the license classifications required to have a Certificate of Workers’ Compensation Insurance on file with the CSLB to include the C-8 (Concrete), C-20 (HVAC), C-22 (Asbestos Abatement), and D-49 (Tree Service), regardless if the contractor has employees, effective January 1, 2023, and additionally required that all licensing classifications (regardless of employee status) obtain workers’ compensation beginning January 1, 2026. Before the passage of SB 216, only a C-39 (Roofing) contractor was required to have workers’ compensation insurance regardless of the number of employees.
The impetus for the CSLB’s sponsorship of SB 216 stemmed from enforcement-related work conducted by the CSLB. The CSLB reported that between January 2018 and March 2020, it issued 500 stop-work orders to licensed contractors on job sites for failure to secure workers’ compensation. It also took 342 legal actions against licensed contractors for workers’ compensation insurance violations. In addition, in 2017, CSLB conducted an audit of a sample of contractors in four classifications that perform outdoor construction likely to require multiple workers: C-8 (Concrete), C-12 (Earthwork/Paving), C-27 (Landscaping), and D-49 (Tree Trimming). The survey revealed that 59% of contractors audited had false workers’ compensation exemptions on file with the CSLB. Contractors who file a false workers’ compensation exemption are subject to disciplinary action and cancellation of the false exemption, which subjects the license to suspension.
SB 1455 and Sunset Review. The CSLB is subject to the joint sunset oversight review process. In December 2023, the CSLB submitted its required sunset review report to this committee and the Assembly Committee on Business and Professions. That report noted significant challenges stemming from the implementation of SB 216. The report highlighted concerns that the implementation of SB 216 would have had a greater impact on CSLB’s workload than anticipated and could potentially increase license processing times. At that time, in early 2024, the CSLB reported the following concerning the issue of implementing the requirement for workers’ compensation coverage:
“If the 2026 mandate in SB 216 took effect today, approximately 115,000 contractors would currently need a policy. CSLB may expect 10 percent of licensees to stop paying to maintain a license, resulting in a possible loss of $8 million to CSLB’s fund that may impact enforcement operations. Staff also anticipates a significant increase in document processing with an increase in certificates and possibly applications to inactivate or cancel licenses. Staff will need to explore an entirely online certificate process or pursue a partnership with the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau to assist with the tracking and registering of certificates…
…As to workforce issues, contractors have expressed concern about being forced to pay for a policy that does not benefit them. There has always been a concern with any requirement of this nature that a percentage of licentiate will “go underground” instead of paying for workers’ compensation insurance.”
As a result of the concern raised concerning those potential licensees who may qualify for an exemption and to address the administrative workload impacts from the CSLB, SB 1455 (Ashby, Chapter 485, Statutes of 2024) paused the requirement for all licensees to have workers’ compensation coverage, regardless of employee status by January 1, 2026, and instead delayed implementation of the requirement until January 1, 2028, and additionally required the CSLB to establish a process, no later than January 1, 2027, to verify through and audit or other means that a contractor applicant or licensee may not have employees.
Although SB 1455 provided the CSLB with additional time to implement the requirement that all licensees obtain workers’ compensation as part of the licensure or renewal process and further required the CSLB to establish a process to verify that an applicant or licensee may legitimately not have employees, the CSLB has instead sponsored this bill as a means to achieve the legislative directive in SB 1455.
Instead of mandating workers’ compensation coverage for all licensees, as required by SB 216, SB 291 (Grayson) would instead exempt a licensee who self-certifies that they have no employees and whose work includes labor and materials, which are no more than $2,000, from the requirement to have workers’ compensation coverage. SB 291 specifies that a $2,000 contract cannot be split into more than one contract for the project to avoid the coverage requirements. This bill would remove the previous mandate for a C-8 (Concrete), D-49 (Tree Service), and C-20 (Warm-Air Heating, Ventilating and Air-Conditioning) licensee to have workers’ compensation, regardless of employee status, and allow these licensees to self-certify that they do not have employees. This bill will now require only a C-39 (roofing contractor) to obtain workers’ compensation insurance regardless of employee status.
To address the Legislature’s mandate that the CSLB establish a process to verify that a licensee or applicant who states that they do not have any employees, SB 291 would require the CSLB to establish as part of the application and renewal process, an open book examination, which will require applicants and licensees to answer questions correctly regarding workers’ compensation laws.
Under current law, BPC § 7126 explicitly states that any licensee or agent who violates the workers’ compensation requirements under existing law is guilty of a misdemeanor. This bill adds new civil penalties for violating the requirement to have workers’ compensation insurance for those applicants and licensees who have employees, in addition to the current misdemeanor penalties. The civil penalties range between $10,000 and $30,000, depending on the license type and the number of violations received.
Policy Issues Raised by Committee The Senate Business, Professions, and Economic Development Committee raised several points about this proposed retreat when it heard the bill on April 21.
Is an open-book examination sufficient? Will an open-book examination aid the CSLB in evaluating whether or not a licensee truly has no employees? The exam may be duplicative, as the content should be included in the Law and Business exam, which is already a requirement for licensure. The examination adds another step in the licensure and renewal process, which could increase application and renewal processing timeframes, costs for printing and mailing the exam, and may not ensure the applicant or licensee has a sufficient understanding of the law.
Rolling back previous workers’ compensation requirements for higher risk classifications. SB 216 required four different licensing classifications to obtain workers’ compensation insurance regardless of employee status. The classifications include asbestos abatement contractors, concrete contractors, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning contractors, and tree service contractors. As currently drafted, this bill would roll back the requirement for these licensing classifications to be mandated to have workers’ compensation insurance, regardless of employees, and allow them to file an exemption if they contract for less than $2,000. This rollback does not take into account prior research conducted by the CSLB. Could this bill place those licensees or employees at risk? The CSLB may need to complete an updated industry study on those licensing classifications that may be able to operate without employees.
Are there potential workarounds for the $2,000 contract threshold? This bill would allow a licensee to self-certify that they have no employees if they contract for a project (labor and materials) less than $2,000 and specifies that the contract cannot be broken into multiple contracts to avoid the $2,000 threshold. Unfortunately, this exemption could potentially be circumvented. The $2,000 threshold appears to be arbitrary and does not reflect any study conducted by the CSLB finding that only contracts offered at $2,000 or less ensures that a licensee would be eligible for an exemption, or that any contract higher would require employees.
Does this bill satisfy the legislative mandate for an audit or other proof to verify an applicant or licensee’s eligibility for a workers’ compensation exemption? The CSLB is required to establish a process and procedure that may include an audit, proof, or other means to verify that an applicant or licensee is eligible for an exemption from the requirement to obtain workers’ compensation insurance by January 1, 2027 (BPC § 7125.7). It’s unclear if the provisions of this bill satisfy the legislative mandate for the CSLB to establish a process to verify if a licensee may not have any employees and would be eligible for an exemption. The proposed increased civil penalty and open book examination are not comparable to an audit or providing proof that an applicant or licensee does not have employees.
To address the concerns raised above, the author agreed to amend the bill to strike the current contents of this bill, except the increased penalties for violating the current workers’ compensation coverage requirements and the inclusion of disciplinary actions related to workers’ compensation violations in the report the CSLB submits annually to the Legislature, to provide greater insight into the current number of violations for workers compensation exemptions. In addition, to reinforce that the Legislature already provided time for the CSLB to address the issue of verifying employee status, this bill should clarify that the CSLB must provide a mechanism no later than January 1, 2027, to effectively determine whether a licensee has no employees and qualifies for an exemption to the workers compensation coverage requirements and report back to the Legislature.
With those amendments, the Committee approved the bill 11-0.
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Trump Orders Federal Procurement Overhaul President Trump ordered federal agencies to overhaul their procurement systems and regulations. According to Federal News Network, this is the biggest effort to modernize how federal agencies buy products and services since Congress passed the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act and the Federal Acquisition Reform Act into law in the ’90s.
Trump’s April 15 executive order said the FAR had evolved “into an excessive and overcomplicated regulatory framework.” He called for it to include only those “provisions required by statute or essential to sound procurement,” and said any provisions that do not advance these objectives should be removed.
In a second order on April 16, Trump also directed agencies to purchase only commercially available products and services, rather than unique government systems or custom solutions, unless they are given a waiver from the agency’s approval authority. Story
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Former Edison Executive Calderon, Now A Lawmaker, Seeks to Cut Rooftop Solar Credits Nearly 2 million California rooftop solar owners could lose the energy credits that help them cover what they spent to install the expensive, climate-friendly systems under a proposed bill. The bill’s author, Assemblymember Lisa Calderon (D-Whittier), is a former executive at Southern California Edison and its parent company, Edison International. She says the credits that rooftop solar owners receive when they send unused electricity to the grid raise the bills of customers who don’t own the panels. Assembly Bill 942 would limit the program’s benefits to 10 years, half the 20-year period the state had told the rooftop owners they would receive. The bill would also cancel the solar contracts if the home were sold. Story
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Steve Hilton, Former Fox News Host, Is Running for California Governor Steve Hilton, a former Fox News host who has also worked in conservative politics in Britain, announced on Monday that he was running to become California’s next governor. Mr. Hilton is the second prominent Republican to enter the 2026 race, but he faces difficult odds. California voters have not elected a Republican to statewide office since they re-elected Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2006. Story
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Here's Where Your Tax Dollars Are Going Individual income taxes are the largest source of tax revenues and half of total annual receipts. Here's what they support in the federal budget. More
From Hostile to Union Leaders to Vacationing with Them Leaders at the Chula Vista Elementary School District once had an adversarial relationship with the teachers’ union. That’s changed in the years since Francisco Tamayo, a former union leader in the Sweetwater Union High School District, joined the Chula Vista school board. With Tamayo on the Chula Vista Elementary District Board, Voice of San Diego reports, the district’s teachers’ union has gotten pay raises five of the last eight years and won concessions from district leaders – even as the district faces a $15 million budget deficit this year. Tamayo’s partnership with union president Rosi Martinez has made those gains possible. Martinez and Tamayo both say their relationship is professional. But their close ties have provoked questions about accountability. Story