CA AB 1324

vetoed

CalWORKs.

California · 2025-2026 Regular Session · lower

Description

Existing federal law, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, replaced the federal Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program with the federal Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) block grant program. Existing federal law provides for allocation of federal funds through the federal TANF block grant program to eligible states. Existing law establishes the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, under which, through a combination of state and county funds and federal funds received through the TANF program, each county provides cash assistance and other benefits to qualified low-income families. Existing law requires aid to be granted to a family with a related child under 18 years of age who has been deprived of parental support or care due to the unemployment, continued absence, death, incapacity, or incarceration of a parent. Existing law considers a child to be deprived of parental support or care due to unemployment of the child's parent or parents when the parent has worked less than 100 hours in the preceding 4 weeks and meets specified requirements related to the federal AFDC program. This bill would, operative on July 1, 2026, or on a later date as specified, for purposes of determining a child's deprivation of parental support or care due to the unemployment of their parent, delete the requirements that a parent work less than 100 hours in the preceding 4 weeks and meet the federal AFDC program requirements. The bill would instead disregard the number of hours that the child's parent works, provided the family does not exceed the applicable gross or net income limits and is otherwise eligible for assistance. To the extent that the bill would expand eligibility for the CalWORKs program, thereby imposing a higher level of service on counties, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law prohibits the payment of CalWORKs aid to an assistance unit if a caretaker relative is, on the last day of the month, participating in a strike, unless the strike is necessitated by an imminent health and safety hazard or abnormally dangerous working conditions at the place of employment, or a lockout. Under existing law, if an individual other than a caretaker relative is participating in a strike, subject to the exceptions and their limitations, that individual's needs are not included in determining the amount of aid payable to the assistance unit for the month. This bill would, operative on July 1, 2026, or on a later date as specified, instead require the payment of CalWORKs aid to an assistance unit if a parent or caretaker relative is participating in a strike or lockout, to the extent permitted by federal law. In the case of participation in a strike by a parent, caretaker relative, or other individual, the bill would instead require that the person's needs be included in determining the amount, to the extent permitted by federal law. To the extent that the bill would expand eligibility for the CalWORKs program, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the State Department of Social Services to conduct a CalWORKs expansion feasibility study, to include recommendations within the report, and to submit the report to legislative human services committees on or before January 1, 2028. Under the CalWORKs program, certain recipients are required to participate in welfare-to-work activities, which may include, among others, unsubsidized employment, subsidized private or public sector employment, and self-employment. Existing law, operative on July 1, 2026, or on a later date as specified, does not expressly include self-employment within the list of work activities under those provisions. This bill would specify self-employment within the above-described list of work activities. To the extent that this would expand CalWORKs eligibility or increase the duties of counties in the administration of the CalWORKs program, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law requires the department to develop an allocation methodology to distribute additional funding for expanded subsidized employment programs for CalWORKs recipients. Existing law requires the department, in consultation with the County Welfare Directors Association of California, to determine the amount or proportion of funding allocated that may be utilized for operational costs, as specified. This bill would also include feedback from representatives from labor unions and public benefit advocates for purposes of the above-described determination. Existing law requires a county that accepts funding from this allocation to, among other things, submit to the department a plan regarding how it intends to utilize the allocated funding and to prioritize subsidized employment placements that offer opportunities for participants to obtain skills and experiences in their fields of interest. This bill would require a participating county to include in its plan, with regard to prioritized subsidized employment, placements with employers that have a joint labor-management letter of support, a signed community benefits agreement, a project labor agreement, or a labor peace agreement. The bill would require the plan to include how the county intends to prevent subsidized employment placements that supplant work that a public employee would have otherwise been hired to do, and to prevent placement with employers that have a history of a bad safety record, or resolved or pending litigation, violations, citations, fines, or penalties relating to any state or federal environmental or labor laws within the last 10 years. Existing law continuously appropriates moneys from the General Fund to defray a portion of county costs under the CalWORKs program. This bill would instead provide that the continuous appropriation would not be made for purposes of implementing the above provisions. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Introduced: 2025-02-21
Status date: —
Latest action: 2026-01-22 — Consideration of Governor's veto stricken from file.
Bill type: bill
Last updated: —

Subjects

CalWORKs

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
2025-03-13
Referred to Com. on HUM. S.
referral-committee
2025-04-24
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on HUM. S. Read second time and amended.
amendment-introduction,amendment-passage,committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-04-28
Re-referred to Com. on HUM. S.
referral-committee
2025-04-30
Coauthors revised.
2025-04-30
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 5. Noes 2.) (April 29). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-05-01
Measure version as amended on April 24 corrected.
amendment-passage
2025-05-14
In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.
2025-05-21
In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file.
referral-committee
2025-05-21
Joint Rule 62(a), file notice suspended. (Page 1627.)
2025-05-23
From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 11. Noes 2.) (May 23).
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable
2025-05-27
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
reading-1,reading-2,reading-3
2025-06-03
Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 60. Noes 14. Page 1993.)
passage,reading-1,reading-3
2025-06-04
In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.
reading-1,referral-committee
2025-06-18
Referred to Com. on HUMAN S.
referral-committee
2025-07-08
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 4. Noes 1.) (July 7). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-08-18
In committee: Referred to suspense file.
referral-committee
2025-08-29
From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended. (Ayes 5. Noes 2.) (August 29).
amendment-introduction,amendment-passage,committee-passage
2025-08-29
Read second time and amended. Ordered returned to second reading.
amendment-passage,reading-1,reading-2
2025-09-02
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
reading-1,reading-2,reading-3
2025-09-05
Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
amendment-passage,reading-1,reading-2,reading-3
2025-09-08
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
reading-1,reading-2,reading-3
2025-09-10
Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 30. Noes 10. Page 2799.).
passage,reading-1,reading-3
2025-09-10
In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.
2025-09-11
Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 60. Noes 15. Page 3308.).
amendment-passage,committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable
2025-09-23
Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4 p.m.
executive-receipt
2025-10-06
Vetoed by Governor.
executive-veto
2025-10-06
Consideration of Governor's veto pending.
2026-01-22
Consideration of Governor's veto stricken from file.
veto-override-failure

Versions

02/21/25 - Introduced — 2025-02-21Compare
04/24/25 - Amended Assembly — 2025-04-24Compare
08/29/25 - Amended Senate — 2025-08-29Compare
09/05/25 - Amended Senate — 2025-09-05Compare
09/15/25 - Enrolled — 2025-09-15Compare
AB1324Compare
(document, no version)Compare

Documents

Votes

Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]
2025-04-29 · pass · 5-2
Member-level votes (7)
- Celeste Rodriguez: yes
- Lee: yes
- Elhawary: yes
- Jackson: yes
- Calderon: yes
- Castillo: no
- Tangipa: no
Do pass.
2025-05-23 · pass · 11-2
Member-level votes (15)
- Calderon: yes
- Elhawary: yes
- Hart: yes
- Mark González: yes
- Arambula: yes
- Pacheco: yes
- Solache: yes
- Caloza: yes
- Wicks: yes
- Pellerin: yes
- Fong: yes
- Dixon: no
- Tangipa: no
- Ta: other
- Sanchez: other
AB 1324 Sharp-Collins Assembly Third Reading
2025-06-03 · pass · 60-14
Member-level votes (79)
- Berman: yes
- Zbur: yes
- Celeste Rodriguez: yes
- Bonta: yes
- Blanca Rubio: yes
- Fong: yes
- Harabedian: yes
- Rivas: yes
- Elhawary: yes
- Bauer-Kahan: yes
- Valencia: yes
- Wilson: yes
- Wicks: yes
- Bennett: yes
- Haney: yes
- Quirk-Silva: yes
- Caloza: yes
- Muratsuchi: yes
- Soria: yes
- Schiavo: yes
- Ávila Farías: yes
- Gabriel: yes
- Mark González: yes
- Nguyen: yes
- Papan: yes
- Ransom: yes
- Bains: yes
- Addis: yes
- Kalra: yes
- Lowenthal: yes
- Solache: yes
- Lee: yes
- Ortega: yes
- Calderon: yes
- Patel: yes
- Ward: yes
- Michelle Rodriguez: yes
- Irwin: yes
- Krell: yes
- Pellerin: yes
- Sharp-Collins: yes
- Ramos: yes
- Bryan: yes
- Boerner: yes
- Garcia: yes
- Gipson: yes
- McKinnor: yes
- Stefani: yes
- Connolly: yes
- Alvarez: yes
- Petrie-Norris: yes
- Ahrens: yes
- Jackson: yes
- Schultz: yes
- Aguiar-Curry: yes
- Arambula: yes
- Rogers: yes
- Pacheco: yes
- Hart: yes
- Carrillo: yes
- Davies: no
- Jeff Gonzalez: no
- Sanchez: no
- Tangipa: no
- Ellis: no
- Hadwick: no
- Patterson: no
- Gallagher: no
- Wallis: no
- Hoover: no
- Flora: no
- DeMaio: no
- Dixon: no
- Macedo: no
- Ta: other
- Alanis: other
- Castillo: other
- Lackey: other
- Chen: other
Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]
2025-07-07 · pass · 4-1
Member-level votes (5)
- Arreguín: yes
- Limón: yes
- Durazo: yes
- Becker: yes
- Ochoa Bogh: no
Placed on suspense file
2025-08-18 · pass · 7-0
Member-level votes (7)
- Richardson: yes
- Seyarto: yes
- Caballero: yes
- Cabaldon: yes
- Dahle: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Grayson: yes
Do pass as amended
2025-08-29 · pass · 5-2
Member-level votes (7)
- Richardson: yes
- Grayson: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Caballero: yes
- Cabaldon: yes
- Dahle: no
- Seyarto: no
3rd Reading AB1324 Sharp-Collins et al. By Limón
2025-09-10 · pass · 30-10
Member-level votes (40)
- Umberg: yes
- Wiener: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Cortese: yes
- Limón: yes
- Durazo: yes
- Archuleta: yes
- Gonzalez: yes
- Smallwood-Cuevas: yes
- Grayson: yes
- Weber Pierson: yes
- Hurtado: yes
- Arreguín: yes
- Laird: yes
- Cervantes: yes
- Rubio: yes
- McGuire: yes
- Reyes: yes
- Blakespear: yes
- Padilla: yes
- Menjivar: yes
- Pérez: yes
- Stern: yes
- Allen: yes
- Caballero: yes
- McNerney: yes
- Ashby: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Becker: yes
- Cabaldon: yes
- Choi: no
- Strickland: no
- Grove: no
- Niello: no
- Jones: no
- Dahle: no
- Ochoa Bogh: no
- Alvarado-Gil: no
- Seyarto: no
- Valladares: no
AB 1324 Sharp-Collins Concurrence in Senate Amendments
2025-09-11 · pass · 60-15
Member-level votes (80)
- Ahrens: yes
- Mark González: yes
- Quirk-Silva: yes
- Gipson: yes
- Rogers: yes
- Addis: yes
- Ward: yes
- Haney: yes
- Hart: yes
- Fong: yes
- Elhawary: yes
- Calderon: yes
- Wilson: yes
- Carrillo: yes
- Bains: yes
- Ransom: yes
- Soria: yes
- Michelle Rodriguez: yes
- Berman: yes
- Valencia: yes
- Wicks: yes
- Celeste Rodriguez: yes
- Arambula: yes
- Connolly: yes
- Schultz: yes
- Bauer-Kahan: yes
- Bennett: yes
- Papan: yes
- Schiavo: yes
- Bonta: yes
- Ávila Farías: yes
- Aguiar-Curry: yes
- Pacheco: yes
- Boerner: yes
- Alvarez: yes
- Lee: yes
- Stefani: yes
- Caloza: yes
- Sharp-Collins: yes
- Nguyen: yes
- Ortega: yes
- Solache: yes
- Lowenthal: yes
- Blanca Rubio: yes
- Jackson: yes
- Bryan: yes
- Petrie-Norris: yes
- Harabedian: yes
- Gabriel: yes
- Zbur: yes
- McKinnor: yes
- Pellerin: yes
- Muratsuchi: yes
- Krell: yes
- Irwin: yes
- Ramos: yes
- Patel: yes
- Kalra: yes
- Rivas: yes
- Garcia: yes
- Johnson: no
- Dixon: no
- Hoover: no
- Hadwick: no
- Tangipa: no
- Macedo: no
- Gallagher: no
- Jeff Gonzalez: no
- Sanchez: no
- Castillo: no
- Ellis: no
- Davies: no
- Wallis: no
- Patterson: no
- DeMaio: no
- Lackey: other
- Chen: other
- Alanis: other
- Flora: other
- Ta: other

Related bills

No related bills recorded for this bill.

Official source

http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB1324

Attribution

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