On July 9, 2019, the California Senate Judiciary Committee passed Assembly Bill 25 (AB 25), but only after certain changes were made to quell opposition to the bill by labor groups. The bill was originally drafted to exclude employees and job applicants from the definition of “consumer” under the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (CCPA). With the changes adopted by the judiciary committee, AB 25 no longer seeks to exclude the employees and job applicants from the definition of consumer. Rather, the new version amends the CCPA in such a way that the net effect would be to limit the application of the CCPA on employment relationships but still require employers to tell employees what type of information they are collecting and the reasons for doing so.
AB 25 will now be referred to the State Senate Committee on Appropriations. AB 25 still faces significant hurdles before it is approved by the state senate.
