Update: California lawmakers weigh COVID vaccine requirement for indoor restaurants, venues
.JPG "A vaccination tech draws a syringe of the Pfizer vaccine, as California Surgeon General, Dr. Nadine Burke Harris (second from right) is briefed upon her visit to the Covid-19 vaccination clinic at the Kerman Community Center, June 9, 2021.")
California Democrats are considering legislation to require people to prove they’re fully vaccinated against COVID-19 before entering indoor public spaces like restaurants, bars, movie theaters, gyms, hotels and stadiums.
The proposal hasn’t been formally introduced in the Legislature, and the timeline for action is unclear.
Assemblywoman Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, said the coalition of lawmakers supporting the concept has not decided whether to push the plan immediately before the legislative year’s Sept. 10 deadline or wait until January when lawmakers return to work. The Sacramento Bee obtained a copy of the draft legislation, which Wicks said is also subject to change.
Wicks said she is in conversations with business leaders, union representatives and others whose support is necessary for any legislation to be successful.
“I think everyone right now is honestly and earnestly at the table,” Wicks said.
As currently written, the proposal would take effect immediately upon the governor’s signature, and would direct the Department of Public Health to develop an enforcement mechanism by Nov. 1.
The proposal, first reported by Politico, would create one of the strictest statewide vaccination requirements in the nation. The state Department of Public Health said last week that it was leading the nation with a requirement that everyone attending an indoor event with 1,000 people or more show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test. That requirement takes effect Sept. 20.
Wicks said the new verification requirement could help drive up vaccination rates in California and finally end a pandemic that has spread in the state for 18 months. The system could help schools and businesses keep their doors open, Wicks said, and ease overburdened hospitals clogged with COVID-19 patients amid the delta variant surge.
The new proposal comes as Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas signed an order explicitly banning vaccination requirements in that state.
Would it affect Gavin Newsom recall election?
If lawmakers pursue the idea this year, the bill will have to quickly pass through committees and be approved by both houses before the Legislature adjourns for the year in little more than two weeks.
The proposal precedes the Sept. 14 recall election of Gov. Gavin Newsom. Newsom could sign the bill after the election, as he has until Oct. 10 to approve or veto the hundreds of bills lawmakers will send to his desk.
Wicks said she knows there will be public pushback against the bill. The current increase in breakthrough infections and hospitalizations, she said, requires urgent action. Wicks said the coalition is also speaking with lawyers, legislative counsel and other experts to ensure any bill could withstand legal challenges.
“We do have a lot of eyes on the bill, and feel like if we move the legislation now or in January, it will be sound public policy, sound legally,” Wicks said. “Are there going to be people who fight it? Probably...What I’m focused on in the Legislature is putting forth policy that can help us get out of the pandemic.”
The proposal contains an “urgency clause,” which means it would require a two-thirds majority approval if lawmakers want to pass it this year.
California employers would have to check vaccine status
The new bill would exempt children too young to get the shots and people who aren’t eligible due to a medical condition or disability, subject to verification.
The requirement wouldn’t apply to places where food is served exclusively for takeout or curbside pickup, according to the proposal.
The proposal also would mandate that employers require their employees to show proof of vaccination as a condition of employment, or to submit weekly COVID-19 test results as an alternative.
That would essentially expand a requirement Newsom recently imposed on state employees. The new proposal would require public employers to meet and confer with labor unions over the new rules, addressing what has been a point of contention with state employee unions.
The proposal also would require both public and private employers to provide paid sick leave to employees for vaccination appointments and for recovery from any symptoms following vaccination.
The proposal, marked with 9:07 p.m. Tuesday timestamp, is packaged in a piece of legislation that originally would have created bus-only lanes on the Oakland Bay Bridge.
This story was originally published August 25, 2021 at 8:12 PM.
CORRECTION: Editor’s note: This story has been updated to clarify that the proposed law would require employers to verify employees’ vaccination status or submit COVID-19 test results.