AB 1578: State agency officials: training on responding to hate: local agency officials: anti-hate speech training.

Official summary

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

The California Fair Employment and Housing Act makes specified employment practices unlawful, including the harassment of an employee directly by the employer or indirectly by agents of the employer with the employer’s knowledge. Under existing law, the Civil Rights Department administers these provisions. Existing law requires a specified employer with 5 or more employees to, by January 1, 2021, provide at least 2 hours of classroom or other effective interactive training and education regarding sexual harassment to all supervisory employees and at least one hour of classroom or other effective interactive training and education regarding sexual harassment to all nonsupervisory employees in California and, after that date, once every 2 years. Existing law requires an employer to include prevention of abusive conduct as a component of that training and education.

This bill would require, beginning on January 1, 2028, if a state agency provides any type of compensation, salary, or stipend to a state agency official of that agency, that all state agency officials of that agency receive training on responding to hate, as prescribed. The bill would define “state agency official” to mean a state elected official for that purpose. The bill would require at least one hour of training and education for a state agency official within the first 6 months of taking office or commencing employment, and every 2 years thereafter. The bill would authorize a state agency or an association of state agencies to offer one or more training courses, or sets of self-study materials with tests, to meet these requirements. The bill would authorize a state agency to develop its own training that meets the requirements or direct elected officials to complete a training developed by the department. The bill would require the department to develop or obtain an online training course on responding to hate and make the course available on its internet website.

Existing law requires local agency officials, as defined, to receive sexual harassment prevention training and education if the local agency provides any type of compensation, salary, or stipend to those officials. Existing law requires the training and education to include practical examples aimed at instructing the local agency official in the prevention of sexual harassment, discrimination, and retaliation.

This bill would additionally require, beginning on January 1, 2028, the above-described training and education to include for any elected local agency official, as a component of the training and education, anti-hate speech training, as described. The bill would authorize an elected local agency official to take a training developed for state agency officials pursuant to the bill to satisfy the anti-hate speech training requirement.

By imposing new requirements on local agencies, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

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.

Sponsors

Sponsors by party (alphabetical): Democratic 2

“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. September 27, 2026Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 526, Statutes of 2026.
2. September 27, 2026Approved by the Governor.
3. September 9, 2026Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 1 p.m.
4. August 30, 2026In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.
5. August 30, 2026Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 59. Noes 17. Page 6911.).
6. August 30, 2026Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 30. Noes 10.).
7. August 27, 2026Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
8. August 26, 2026Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
9. August 24, 2026Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
10. August 21, 2026Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
11. August 13, 2026Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
12. August 13, 2026From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 5. Noes 2.) (August 13).