FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: press@calchamber.com
(June 12, 2025) SACRAMENTO, CA — In acting to set aside costly policy proposals and mitigate the burdensome costs in others, members of the California Legislature agreed last week to take into consideration the important issue of affordability as urged by the California Chamber of Commerce.
As part of its new focus on making California a more affordable place to live and work, CalChamber identified several legislative proposals that would either lead to improvements or setbacks in making the state more affordable for business owners and workers.
Bills were placed in one of two categories: “Cost Cutters,” efforts to reduce business and consumer expenses, and “Cost Drivers,” proposals that would make California less competitive and less affordable.
“We applaud the efforts of legislators to take a second look at some of the proposals we identified as significant cost drivers to the California economy,” said CalChamber President and Chief Executive Officer Jennifer Barrera. “We look forward to working with members for the remainder of the legislative session to ensure new laws are carefully crafted with the best needs in mind of hard-working entrepreneurs, workers, and the families who depend on them.”
Cost Drivers Not Moving
The following bills, identified by CalChamber as “Cost Drivers,” failed to move forward for 2025:
SB 310 (Wiener; D-San Francisco) Expands Private Right of Action for Penalties: Creates a new private right of action for wage and hour penalties that will be manipulated by trial attorneys, undermining the 2024 Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) reform, which sought to reduce avenues for litigation abuse and overall costs on employers. To Senate Inactive File at author’s request, June 5, 2025.
SB 318 (Becker; D-Menlo Park) Air Quality Governance: Imposes extensive new mandates and permitting requirements that introduce significant regulatory uncertainty, force costly technology upgrades on stationary sources, and increase the cost of operating in California for critical sectors such as energy, food production, manufacturing, and recycling. Such costs undermine the state’s competitiveness and further strain affordability for residents. Held in Senate Appropriations.
SB 601 (Allen; D-Santa Monica) Punitive and Onerous Water Quality Permitting Requirements: Creates duplicative permitting obligations and dramatic legal liability requirements for businesses, agriculture, and water and wastewater utilities by granting the water boards broad authority to impose permitting requirements without considering economic impacts or the critical need for housing and recycled water projects. Cost Driver status removed due to amendments.
SB 682 (Allen; D-Santa Monica De Facto PFAS Ban: Creates a de facto ban on the use of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in all commercial and consumer products, unless Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) is petitioned and makes an affirmative determination that the PFAS in a particular product is an unavoidable use. Because of the breadth and scope of PFAS use, including in aerospace, lithium-ion batteries, medical devices, automotive and semiconductors, to name a few, the regulatory program established is unworkable and ultimately will lead to a ban on critically important products or otherwise make certain products less safe, and ultimately drive up prices for consumers. Cost Driver status removed due to amendments.
SB 755 (Blakespear; D-Encinitas) Climate Disclosure Mandate: Imposes significant costly new mandates on businesses that contract with the state and risks reducing participation in state contracting at a time when public procurement should be more efficient, not more burdensome. Held in Senate Appropriations Suspense File, May 23, 2025.
SB 763 (Hurtado; D-Bakersfield) Vast Expansion of State Antitrust Penalties: Raises penalties under California’s antitrust law, the Cartwright Act, from $1 million to $100 million, and individual penalties from $250,000 to $1 million, with no demonstrated need for reform or adjustment, thereby increasing liability and costs on businesses. Cost Driver status removed due to amendments.
AB 914 (Garcia; D-Rancho Cucamonga) Massive Expansion of CARB Regulatory Authority: Hands the California Air Resources Board (CARB) blank check fee authority, transferring a core power of the Legislature to an unelected bureaucracy with little to no oversight. Placed on Assembly Inactive File at author’s request, June 2, 2025.
AB 1221 (Bryan; D-Los Angeles) Restricts Use of Data in Employment: Imposes impractical requirements on employers of every size relating to any worker data collected by a workplace surveillance tool, which is defined so broadly that it would impact everything from security footage to emails. These requirements will drive up costs and impact consumer prices. Held in Assembly Appropriations.
Cost Cutters Moving Forward
Bills identified by CalChamber as “Cost Cutters” that cleared their legislative house of origin and remain under consideration include:
SB 540 (Becker; D-Menlo Park) Independent Regional Energy Organization: Authorizes the California Independent System Operator and California utilities to integrate into a broader regional energy market governed by an independent regional organization. Will reduce energy costs for Californians.
AB 265 (Caloza; D-Los Angeles) Small Business Recovery Act: Allows the Office of Small Business Advocate to provide grants to small businesses impacted by the Los Angeles fires to help them recover and rebuild.
AB 417 (Carrillo; D-Palmdale) Enhanced Infrastructure Financing Districts: Improves the ability for local governments to build critical infrastructure and provide financing for economic development in targeted districts within their jurisdiction. It will allow economic development projects to receive additional financing, which incentivizes businesses to invest and create more jobs.
AB 609 (Wicks; D-Oakland) CEQA Reform for Infill Projects: Will help to reduce the cost of housing, by reforming the permitting process for infill housing, which will allow for the state to build more housing and drive down prices.
AB 1308 (Hoover; R-Folsom) Expedites Entitlement Process for Housing Construction: Requires the building department to provide an applicant of a residential building permit with an estimated timeframe in which the inspection of the permitted work will be completed, upon receiving a notice of the completion of the permitted work, to reduce costs and ultimately housing prices.
AB 1138 (Zbur; D-Hollywood) and SB 630 (Allen; D-Santa Monica) Film Tax Credit: More than doubles the State’s Film Tax Credit to $750 million annually that will help to grow and retain jobs in one of California’s signature industries and ultimately strengthen the economy.
CalChamber’s policy advocates will continue to work closely with legislators and other allies over the remainder of the legislative year to promote a cost-conscious approach that will improve the bottom line for Californians now and into the future.
