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California · 2025–26 Regular Session · Assembly Bill

AB 559: Professions and vocations: contractors: home improvement contracts: prohibited business practices.

Passed one chamber Official data

  1. Introduced
  2. In committee
  3. Passed one chamber
  4. Passed both chambers
  5. Enacted

Last official action: ·Record last updated:

Plain-language summary

AB 559 is a assembly bill introduced in the California Assembly on February 12, 2025. According to its official title, it concerns: Professions and vocations: contractors: home improvement contracts: prohibited business practices. Primary sponsor: Marc Berman (D). It lists 1 additional sponsor. Most recent recorded action (September 3, 2025): Ordered to inactive file at the request of Senator Niello.

Generated automatically from the official title, sponsor list, and status record only. It does not characterize the bill’s purpose or effects. How summaries are written

Official summary

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

Existing law, the Contractors State License Law, defines and regulates the activities of contractors and provides for their licensure, regulation, and discipline by the Contractors State License Board within the Department of Consumer Affairs (department). That law requires a home improvement contract, as defined, to be in writing and include the contract amount, as specified, and prohibits any downpayment for that contract from exceeding the lesser of $1,000 or 10% of the contract amount. Except for a downpayment, existing law prohibits the contractor from requesting or accepting payment that exceeds the value of the work performed or material delivered. Existing law makes the violation of these provisions a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $5,000, by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, or by both that fine and imprisonment.

This bill would include in the definition of “home improvement” construction, erection, installation, replacement, or improvement of accessory dwelling units on residentially zoned property. The bill would also make a licensee, or an unlicensed person, who violates the above-described downpayment and payment prohibitions subject to revocation of their license and a civil penalty of at least $10,000 in the case of a licensee, or, if the person is unlicensed, subject to a citation and assessment of a civil penalty of at least $10,000.

Sponsors

Sponsors by party (alphabetical): Democratic 1 · Republican 1

NameRolePartyChamberDistrict
Marc BermanPrimary sponsorDemocraticAssembly23
Roger NielloCo-sponsorRepublicanSenate6

“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. Ordered to inactive file at the request of Senator Niello.
  2. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
  3. From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (August 29).
  4. In committee: Referred to suspense file.
  5. In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.
  6. From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 13. Noes 0.) (July 8). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
  7. From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on JUD. (Ayes 10. Noes 0.) (June 30). Re-referred to Com. on JUD.
  8. Referred to Coms. on B. P. & E.D. and JUD.
  9. In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.
  10. Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 76. Noes 0. Page 1386.)
  11. Read second time. Ordered to Consent Calendar.
  12. From committee: Do pass. To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 15. Noes 0.) (April 23).

Sources

  1. California Legislative Information — pubinfo database export
  2. Official bill page