CA AB 1221
deadWorkplace surveillance tools.
California · 2025-2026 Regular Session · lower
Quick answers
Did CA AB 1221 pass?
No. CA AB 1221 did not pass — it was defeated or died in the legislative process (2026-02-02). Latest recorded action (2026-02-02): From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56.
What is CA AB 1221 about?
Existing law establishes the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement within the Department of Industrial Relations. Existing law authorizes the division, which is headed by the Labor Commissioner, to enforce the Labor Code and all labor laws of the state, the enforcement of which is not specifically vested in any other officer, board, or commission. This bill would generally regulate the use of workplace surveillance tools and an employer's use of worker data. The bill would, among other things, require an employer, at least 30 days before introducing a workplace surveillance tool, to provide a worker who will be affected a written notice that includes, among other things, a description of the worker data to be collected, the intended purpose of the workplace surveillance tool, and how this form of worker surveillance is necessary to meet that purpose. The bill would define "employer" to include public employers, as specified. The bill would prohibit an employer from transferring, selling, disclosing, or licensing worker data to a vendor, unless the vendor is under contract to analyze or interpret the worker data and the contract includes certain terms. The bill would prohibit an employer from using certain workplace surveillance tools, including a workplace surveillance tool that incorporates facial, gait, or emotion recognition technology, except as specified. The bill would also prohibit an employer from using a workplace surveillance tool to infer specified categories of information about a worker, including, among others, their immigration status, veteran status, ancestral history, religious or political beliefs, disability status, criminal record, or credit history. The bill would require the Labor Commissioner to enforce the bill's provisions, would authorize an employee to bring a civil action for specified remedies for a violation of the bill's provisions, and would authorize a public prosecutor to enforce the provisions. The bill would subject an employer who violates the bill's provisions to a civil penalty of $500 for each violation. The bill would define various terms for purposes of its provisions.
Who sponsors CA AB 1221?
Bryan is the primary sponsor of CA AB 1221, joined by 3 cosponsors.
Description
Existing law establishes the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement within the Department of Industrial Relations. Existing law authorizes the division, which is headed by the Labor Commissioner, to enforce the Labor Code and all labor laws of the state, the enforcement of which is not specifically vested in any other officer, board, or commission. This bill would generally regulate the use of workplace surveillance tools and an employer's use of worker data. The bill would, among other things, require an employer, at least 30 days before introducing a workplace surveillance tool, to provide a worker who will be affected a written notice that includes, among other things, a description of the worker data to be collected, the intended purpose of the workplace surveillance tool, and how this form of worker surveillance is necessary to meet that purpose. The bill would define "employer" to include public employers, as specified. The bill would prohibit an employer from transferring, selling, disclosing, or licensing worker data to a vendor, unless the vendor is under contract to analyze or interpret the worker data and the contract includes certain terms. The bill would prohibit an employer from using certain workplace surveillance tools, including a workplace surveillance tool that incorporates facial, gait, or emotion recognition technology, except as specified. The bill would also prohibit an employer from using a workplace surveillance tool to infer specified categories of information about a worker, including, among others, their immigration status, veteran status, ancestral history, religious or political beliefs, disability status, criminal record, or credit history. The bill would require the Labor Commissioner to enforce the bill's provisions, would authorize an employee to bring a civil action for specified remedies for a violation of the bill's provisions, and would authorize a public prosecutor to enforce the provisions. The bill would subject an employer who violates the bill's provisions to a civil penalty of $500 for each violation. The bill would define various terms for purposes of its provisions.
- Introduced
- 2025-02-21
- Latest action
- 2026-02-02 — From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56.
- Bill type
- bill
- Last updated
- —
Subjects
Sponsors
- Bryanauthor
- Elhawarycoauthor
- Lowenthalcoauthor
- McNerneycoauthor
Committees
Not provided by source.
Action timeline
2025-02-21
Introduced. To print.
introduction
2025-02-22
From printer. May be heard in committee March 24.
2025-02-24
Read first time.
reading-1
2025-03-28
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on L. & E. Read second time and amended.
amendment-introduction,amendment-passage,committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-03-28
Referred to Coms. on L. & E., P. & C.P. and JUD.
referral-committee
2025-04-01
Re-referred to Com. on L. & E.
referral-committee
2025-04-03
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on P. & C.P. (Ayes 5. Noes 0.) (April 2). Re-referred to Com. on P. & C.P.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-04-21
In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.
2025-04-21
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on P. & C.P. Read second time and amended.
amendment-introduction,amendment-passage,committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-04-22
Re-referred to Com. on P. & C.P.
referral-committee
2025-05-05
From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 10. Noes 1.) (May 1).
amendment-introduction,amendment-passage,committee-passage,referral-committee
2025-05-06
Read second time and amended.
amendment-passage,reading-1,reading-2
2025-05-07
Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
referral-committee
2025-05-14
In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file.
referral-committee
2025-05-23
In committee: Held under submission.
2026-01-31
Died pursuant to Art. IV, Sec. 10(c) of the Constitution.
failure
2026-02-02
From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56.
committee-passage,failure
Versions
Documents
- application/pdf
- application/pdf
- application/pdf
- application/pdf
- text/html
- application/pdf(no extracted text yet)
- application/pdf(no extracted text yet)
- application/pdf(no extracted text yet)
Votes
Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Privacy and Consumer Protection]
2025-04-02 · pass · 5-0
Member-level votes (7)
- Elhawary: yes
- Ward: yes
- Ortega: yes
- Lee: yes
- Kalra: yes
- Chen: other
- Flora: other
Do pass as amended and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]
2025-05-01 · pass · 10-1
Member-level votes (15)
- Irwin: yes
- Bryan: yes
- Ortega: yes
- Ward: yes
- Wilson: yes
- Wicks: yes
- Bennett: yes
- Pellerin: yes
- Lowenthal: yes
- Bauer-Kahan: yes
- DeMaio: no
- Patterson: other
- Dixon: other
- Petrie-Norris: other
- Flora: other
Related bills
No related bills recorded for this bill.
Official source
Attribution
Data from openstates_bulk_csv, retrieved 2026-07-24T01:34:27.960412Z
Inspect retained evidence for changes recorded after evidence tracking began:
Use this data
Every field on this page is available from the free public API — no key or licence required. Fetch this bill as JSON: GET /api/v1/bills?jurisdiction=CA&identifier=AB 1221. See the API docs or the MCP server for AI assistants.
Known limitations
- Sponsor party and chamber affiliation are not yet captured by this API.
- Committee referrals are not yet captured.
- Some documents have no extracted text yet, so version comparison may be limited.
See the methodology page for data sources and limitations.