AB 1564 California Assembly · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Employer-employee relations: confidential communications.

Summary

Existing law that governs the labor relations of public employees and employers, including, among others, the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act, the Ralph C. Dills Act, provisions relating to public schools, and provisions relating to higher education prohibits employers from taking certain actions relating to employee organization, including imposing or threatening to impose reprisals on employees, discriminating or threatening to discriminate against employees, or otherwise interfering with, restraining, or coercing employees because of their exercise of their guaranteed rights. Those provisions of existing law further prohibit denying to employee organizations the rights guaranteed to them by existing law. This bill would prohibit a public employer from questioning a public employee, a representative of a recognized employee organization, or an exclusive representative regarding communications made in confidence between an employee and an employee representative in connection with representation relating to any matter within the scope of the recognized employee organization's representation. The bill would also prohibit a public employer from compelling a public employee, a representative of a recognized employee organization, or an exclusive representative to disclose those confidential communications to a third party. The bill would not apply to a criminal investigation or when a public safety officer is under investigation and certain circumstances exist.

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Aug 2026

Assembly Passage

May 2026

Senate Passage

Governor

Introduced Jan 12, 2026 Last action Aug 13, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

02/25/26 - Amended Assembly → 05/18/26 - Amended Assembly · 4 edits · May 18, 2026

MODERATE

AB 1564 was substantially narrowed by removing all medicinal cannabis shipment provisions (amendments to Business and Professions Code Sections 26071, 26072, 26321, 26322, and 26323). The bill now contains only a single provision adding Section 3558.9 to the Government Code, which codifies existing Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) precedent by making it an unfair labor practice for public employers to question or compel disclosure of confidential communications between public employees and their union representatives.

SCOPE

All medicinal cannabis shipment provisions were removed. This included authorization for licensed microbusinesses with M-licenses to ship medicinal cannabis directly to patients via common carrier, detailed product restrictions (banning vape pens, concentrates, edibles, infused products), sourcing requirements limited to outdoor cultivation, age verification and labeling requirements, track-and-trace obligations, and a sunset date of January 1, 2030.

Amendments to the Medicinal Cannabis Patients' Right of Access Act (Section 26321) that would have prohibited local jurisdictions from banning medicinal cannabis shipments were removed.

The bill's scope narrowed from a dual-purpose act (cannabis access plus labor relations) to a single-purpose act addressing only employer-employee relations and protection of confidential union communications.

FISCAL

State-mandated local program provisions related to the cannabis sections were removed. The bill's state-mandated local program designation changed from yes to no, since the remaining labor relations provision does not impose new costs on local agencies.

01/12/26 - Introduced → 02/25/26 - Amended Assembly · 8 edits · Feb 25, 2026

MODERATE

AB 1564 was substantially amended to add an entirely new labor relations topic alongside its original medicinal cannabis shipping provisions. The amendment adds a new Government Code section (3558.9) prohibiting public employers from questioning or compelling disclosure of confidential communications between public employees and their union representatives, effectively codifying existing PERB case law as a statutory unfair labor practice. The original cannabis access provisions were renumbered but retained with minor technical adjustments including a simplified operative date and an added definition of 'shipment.'

SCOPE

A new subject matter was added to the bill: employer-employee relations. The bill now adds Section 3558.9 to the Government Code, which prohibits public employers from questioning or compelling disclosure of confidential employee-union communications regarding matters within the scope of representation.

New Section 3558.9(c) carves out two exceptions: the prohibition does not apply during a criminal investigation, and it does not supersede Section 3303 (which governs public safety officer investigations).

REQUIREMENT

New Section 3558.9(a) prohibits a public employer from questioning a public employee, union representative, or exclusive representative about confidential communications made in connection with representation. New Section 3558.9(b) prohibits compelling disclosure of those communications to a third party.

DEFINITION

New legislative findings (Section 1 of the amended bill) state the intent to codify longstanding PERB precedents, reference William S. Hart Union High School District (2018) PERB Decision No. 2595, and assert that the act yields fiscal savings by reducing unfair labor practice charges and litigation costs.

A new subdivision (d) was added to Section 26071 defining 'shipment' as shipping medicinal cannabis by a licensed microbusiness utilizing a common carrier in compliance with Section 26072, and requiring the common carrier to use only its own employees.

TECHNICAL

The operative date for the free medicinal cannabis provision (Section 26071) was simplified. The original tied operability to completion of track and trace program changes or March 1, 2020, whichever came first. The amended version simply states the section remains in effect until January 1, 2030.

In Section 26071(a)(3), the word 'shipment' was added to the list of regulated activities (cultivation, manufacture, distribution, processing, storing, laboratory testing, packaging, labeling, transportation, delivery, shipment, or donation).

ELIGIBILITY

Section 26071(c) was expanded to explicitly allow licensed microbusinesses authorized for retail sales solely by means of shipment to provide free medicinal cannabis products by means of shipment.

Floor votes · Assembly May 27, 2026

How they voted

64–4

Passed · 11 other

Total votes 79

May 27, 2026

D Democratic59

56 Yea 3

94% Yea

R Republican20

8 Yea 4 Nay 8

40% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Aug 13, 2026

Upper · Passed

In committee: Held under submission.

upper

Aug 3, 2026

Committee

In committee: Referred to APPR. suspense file.

upper

Jul 1, 2026

Upper · Passed

From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 12. Noes 1.) (June 30). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

upper

Jun 24, 2026

Upper · Passed

From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on JUD. (Ayes 5. Noes 0.) (June 24). Re-referred to Com. on JUD.

upper

Jun 22, 2026

Committee

Referred to Coms. on L., P.E. & R. and JUD.

upper

May 27, 2026

Assembly · Passed

Assembly Vote: pass (64-4-11)

assembly

May 26, 2026

Lower · Passed

Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 65. Noes 4.)

lower

May 18, 2026

Lower · Passed

Read second time and amended. Ordered returned to second reading.

lower

May 14, 2026

Introduced

From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended. (Ayes 11. Noes 0.) (May 14).

lower

May 6, 2026

Committee

In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file.

lower

Mar 18, 2026

Lower · Passed

From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 6. Noes 0.) (March 18). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

lower

Feb 26, 2026

Committee

Re-referred to Com. on P. E. & R. pursuant to Assembly Rule 96.

lower

Feb 26, 2026

Committee

Re-referred to Com. on B. & P.

lower

Feb 25, 2026

Introduced

From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on B. & P. Read second time and amended.

lower

Feb 2, 2026

Committee

Referred to Com. on B. & P.

lower

Jan 13, 2026

Lower · Passed

From printer. May be heard in committee February 12.

lower

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors