Amended  IN  Assembly  March 25, 2019

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill No. 1007

Introduced by Assembly Member Jones-Sawyer

February 21, 2019

An act to amend Section 6425 of the Labor Code, relating to employment. An act to amend Section 19635 of the Government Code, relating to public employment.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 1007, as amended, Jones-Sawyer. Occupational health and safety. State Civil Service Act: adverse action: notice.
The State Civil Service Act requires notice of any adverse action against any state employee for any cause for discipline based on any civil service law to be served within 3 years after the cause for discipline, upon which the notice is based, first arose. That act provides that an adverse action based on fraud, embezzlement, or the falsification of records is valid if notice of the adverse action is served within 3 years after the discovery of the fraud, embezzlement, or falsification.
This bill would instead provide that for any adverse action not based on fraud, embezzlement, falsification of records, harassment on specified bases, or sexual assault, if the cause for discipline was discovered on or after January 1, 2020, notice would be required to be served within one year of the discovery of the cause for discipline.

Under existing law, any employer and any employee having direction, management, control, or custody of any employment, place of employment, or of any other employee who willfully violates any occupational safety or health standard, order, or special order and the violation causes death or permanent or prolonged impairment of the body of an employee is guilty of a public offense.

This bill would make nonsubstantive changes to this provision.

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: NOYES   Local Program: NO  

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


SECTION 1.

 Section 19635 of the Government Code is amended to read:

19635.
 No (a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), no adverse action shall be valid against any state employee for any cause for discipline based on any civil service law of this state, unless notice of the adverse action is served within three years after the cause for discipline, upon which the notice is based, first arose. Adverse action based on fraud, embezzlement, or the falsification of records shall be valid, if notice of the adverse action is served within three years after the discovery of the fraud, embezzlement, or falsification.
(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), if the cause for discipline was discovered on or after January 1, 2020, no adverse action shall be valid against any state employee for any cause for discipline based on any civil service law of this state, unless notice of the adverse action is served within one year after the cause for discipline, upon which the notice is based, first arose. This subdivision shall not apply to an adverse action based on any of the following:
(1) Fraud.
(2) Embezzlement.
(3) Falsification of records.
(4) Harassment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, ancestry, familial status, source of income, disability, or genetic information.
(5) Sexual assault.

SECTION 1.Section 6425 of the Labor Code is amended to read:
6425.

(a)Any employer and any employee having direction, management, control, or custody of any employment, place of employment, or of any other employee, who willfully violates any occupational safety or health standard, order, or special order, or Section 25910 of the Health and Safety Code, and that violation caused death to any employee, or caused permanent or prolonged impairment of the body of any employee, is guilty of a public offense punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for a term not exceeding one year, or by a fine not exceeding one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), or by both that imprisonment and fine; or by imprisonment in the state prison for 16 months, or two or three years, or by a fine of not more than two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000), or by both that imprisonment and fine; and in either case, if the defendant is a limited liability company or a corporation, the fine may not exceed one million five hundred thousand dollars ($1,500,000).

(b)If the conviction is for a violation committed within seven years after a conviction under subdivision (b), (c), or (d) of Section 6423 or subdivision (c) of Section 6430, punishment shall be by imprisonment in state prison for a term of 16 months, two, or three years, or by a fine not exceeding two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000), or by both that fine and imprisonment, but if the defendant is a corporation or limited liability company, the fine may not be less than five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) or more than two million five hundred thousand dollars ($2,500,000).

(c)If the conviction is for a violation committed within seven years after a first conviction of the defendant for any crime involving a violation of subdivision (a), punishment shall be by imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170 of the Penal Code for two, three, or four years, or by a fine not exceeding two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000), or by both that fine and imprisonment, but if the defendant is a corporation or a limited liability company, the fine shall not be less than one million dollars ($1,000,000) but may not exceed three million five hundred thousand dollars ($3,500,000).

(d)In determining the amount of fine to be imposed under this section, the court shall consider all relevant circumstances, including, but not limited to, the nature, circumstance, extent, and gravity of the violation, any prior history of violations by the defendant, the ability of the defendant to pay, and any other matters the court determines the interests of justice require.

(e)As used in this section, “willfully” has the same definition as it has in Section 7 of the Penal Code. This subdivision is intended to be a codification of existing law.

(f)This section does not prohibit a prosecution under Section 192 of the Penal Code.