Amended  IN  Assembly  May 18, 2023

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 1381

Introduced by Assembly Member Weber
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Ramos and Reyes)

February 17, 2023

An act to add Section 1412.1 to the Labor Code, relating to employment.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 1381, as amended, Weber. Employment protections: call centers.
Existing law generally regulates the wages, hours, and working conditions of people employed in any occupation. Existing law creates the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement, the head of which is the Labor Commissioner. Existing law authorizes the Labor Commissioner to enforce certain notice requirements concerning a mass layoff, relocation, or termination of employees, including call center employees.
Existing law prohibits a call center employer from ordering a relocation of its call center, or one or more of its facilities or operating units within a call center, unless notice of the relocation is provided to the affected employees and the Employment Development Department, local workforce investment board, and the chief elected official of each city and county government within which the termination, relocation, or mass layoff occurs, as specified.
Existing law requires a state agency authorized to enter into contracts relating to public benefit programs, as defined, to only contract for services provided by a call center that directly serves applicants for, recipients of, or enrollees in, those public benefit programs with a contractor that certifies in its bid for the contract that the services provided under the contract and any subcontract performed under that contract, to applicants for, recipients of, or enrollees in, those public benefit programs, will be performed solely with workers employed in California, subject to certain exceptions. Existing law imposes a civil penalty, as provided, for knowingly providing false information in that certification.
This bill would require each state agency, on and after January 1, 2025, that enters a contract with a private entity specifically for call center services work to provide public or customer service for that agency or another state agency to ensure that no later than January 1, 2026, at least 90% of the call center work is conducted in California, except in specified circumstances.
This bill would also require each state agency that enters into a contract with a private entity for programs or other services, including no-fee contracts, in which call center customer support services are work is included but the contract is not specifically for call center support services, work, to prioritize the work being conducted in California. The bill would require each contract to require that no less than 50% of call center jobs be in California. For each new contract, contract extension, or contract renewal on or after January 1, 2027, the bill would require the contract to require that no less than 75% of call center work to be conducted in California. The bill would further require the Department of General Services to establish scoring incentives for those contracts, subject to certain conditions. The bill would create exceptions from these requirements for disasters and overflow work needs, as specified.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 Section 1412.1 is added to the Labor Code, to read:

1412.1.
 (a) (1) On and after January 1, 2025, each state agency that enters a contract with a private entity specifically for call center services work to provide public or customer service for that state agency or another state agency shall ensure that no later than January 1, 2026, at least 90 percent of the call center work is conducted in California, except as specified in subdivision (b). This paragraph does not apply to contracts entered into before January 1, 2025, and does not apply to contracts for programs or other services that are not call centers.
(2) For each state agency that enters into a contract with a private entity for programs or other services, including no-fee contracts, in which call center customer support services are work is included but the contract is not specifically for call center support services, work, the agency shall prioritize the work being conducted in California. Each contract shall require that no less than 50 percent of call center jobs are to be in California. For each new contract, contract extension, or contract renewal on or after January 1, 2027, the contract shall require no less than 75 percent of call center work to be conducted in California. California, including by using the scoring incentives established by the Department of General Services pursuant to subdivision (b).
(b) The Department of General Services shall establish scoring incentives for the contracts described in paragraph (2) of subdivision (a). The incentive scoring shall award private entities with 50 percent, 75 percent, and 90 percent or more of their contracted call center work associated with the state agency contract, located within the state. The incentive award shall not exceed 5 percent of the overall scoring awarded to a private entity for a contract bid.

(b)

(c) (1) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), if a disaster occurs, a private entity that has contracted with the state for call center services work may utilize a call center facility outside of the state until the call center’s facility within the state is operational, subject to agreement by the state agency.
(2) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), a private entity that has contracted with the state for call center services work may utilize a call center facility outside of the state for overflow for a period not to exceed 48 hours, or for a period previously approved by the state agency for that contract, to accommodate seasonal needs and avoid unreasonable, short-term costs for the state. Utilizing a call center facility outside of the state for overflow pursuant to this subdivision shall, at the state agency’s request, trigger a reassessment of the forecasted volume specified in the contract within a timeframe specified by the agency.