AB 129: Labor.

Official summary

Legislative Counsel’s Digest (official, as of the latest version). Written by nonpartisan legislative staff; reproduced verbatim.

(1)Existing law, the State Civil Service Act, regulates employment with the state and vests in the Department of Human Resources all powers, duties, and authority necessary to operate the state civil service system. Existing law requires the department to designate positions of a high administrative and policy-influencing character for inclusion in or removal from the category of civil service appointment called “career executive assignments,” subject to review by the State Personnel Board, as provided.

Under existing law, when an employee is disabled, whether temporarily or permanently, the employee is entitled, subject to certain conditions, to receive specified nonindustrial disability benefits, unless a memorandum of understanding conflicts with this requirement. Existing law defines “employee” for purposes of those provisions as a permanent or probationary full-time, part-time, or intermittent state officer or employee, as specified.

This bill would, effective October 1, 2025, for a disability benefit period commencing on or after July 1, 2025, additionally include a state officer or employee appointed to a career executive assignment in that definition of “employee.” The bill would require these employees claiming benefits for a certain disability benefit period to file a completed claim no later than 41 days following the effective date of this provision.

(2)The Public Employees’ Retirement Law (PERL) creates the Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) for the purpose of providing pensions and benefits to state employees and their beneficiaries and prescribes the rights and duties of employers participating in the system. Under PERL, benefits are funded by investment income and employer and employee contributions, which are deposited into the Public Employees’ Retirement Fund, a continuously appropriated trust fund administered by the system’s board of administration.

PERL prescribes methods for the calculation and payment of the state employer contribution for its employees who are PERS members. PERL provides for an annual adjustment of the state’s contribution in the budget and quarterly appropriations to the Public Employees’ Retirement Fund from the General Fund and other funds that are responsible for payment of the employer contribution.

Existing law makes additional General Fund appropriations to the Public Employees’ Retirement Fund for the 2020–21, 2021–22, 2022–23, 2023–24, and 2024–25 fiscal years. Supplemental payments connected with appropriations for those fiscal years are to be apportioned to the state employee member categories generally, as directed by the Department of Finance, and to specified state employee member categories, including to the state miscellaneous member category, the industrial member category, the state safety member category, and the state peace officer/firefighter member category.

Sponsors

“Support” is shown only as formal sponsorship recorded by the legislature. Roll-call votes are available on the official bill page.

Recent official actions

1. July 2, 2025Re-referred to Com. on B. & F. R.
2. June 30, 2025Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
3. June 27, 2025Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
4. June 26, 2025Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
5. June 25, 2025From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 10. Noes 4.) (June 25).
6. June 24, 2025From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on B. & F. R.
7. April 2, 2025Referred to Com. on B. & F. R.
8. March 20, 2025In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.
9. March 20, 2025Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 53. Noes 17. Page 727.)
10. March 18, 2025Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
11. March 17, 2025(Ayes 53. Noes 17. Page 643.)
12. March 17, 2025Ordered to second reading.