Bill Text: CA SB301 | 2025-2026 | Regular Session | Chaptered

California Senate Bill 301

Bill Title: County Employees Retirement Law of 1937: employees.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)

Status: (Passed) 2025-10-13 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 749, Statutes of 2025. [SB301 Detail]

Download: California-2025-SB301-Chaptered.html

Senate Bill No. 301

CHAPTER 749

An act to add Section 31566 to the Government Code, relating to retirement.

[ Approved by Governor October 13, 2025. Filed with Secretary of State October 13, 2025. ]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

SB 301, Grayson. County Employees Retirement Law of 1937: employees.

Existing law, the County Employees Retirement Law of 1937 (CERL), prescribes the rights, benefits, and duties of members of the retirement systems established pursuant to its provisions. Existing law prohibits a resolution, ordinance, contract, or contract amendment under CERL from providing retirement benefits for some, but not all, general members of a county or district.

This bill would prohibit a county or district whose officers and employees are enrolled as members of a retirement system under CERL from excluding from membership in the system any employee, group, or classification, other than those excludable officers and employees, as defined.

The bill would include findings that changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities and counties, including charter cities and charter counties.

The bill would also include findings that its provisions are declaratory of existing law.

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: NO Local Program: NO

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

SECTION 1.

Section 31566 is added to the Government Code, to read:

31566.

(a) The Legislature finds and declares that this section is declaratory of existing law.

(b) A county or district whose officers and employees are enrolled as members of a retirement system pursuant to this chapter shall not exclude from membership in the system any employee, group, or classification, other than those excludable officers and employees.

(c) For purposes of this section, “excludable officers and employees” mean officers and employees whose tenures may be excluded pursuant to Section 31527 as being temporary, seasonal, intermittent, or part time only, as determined by the retirement board, or who are excluded pursuant to Section 31552 or 31553.

SEC. 2.

The Legislature finds and declares that ensuring consistency for public employees’ membership in county employee retirement systems is a matter of statewide concern and is not a municipal affair as that term is used in Section 5 of Article XI of the California Constitution. Therefore, Section 1 of this act adding Section 31566 to the Government Code applies to all cities and counties, including charter cities and charter counties.