Employees and independent contractors: construction trucking.

The deadline for a construction contractor to have already reclassified its drivers as employees (to qualify for additional documentation requirements) was changed from January 1, 2029 to September 1, 2028, giving contractors less time to complete prior reclassification before applying.

The scope of penalty relief in subdivision (j)(1) was narrowed from 'any civil or statutory penalties' to 'any civil or statutory penalties under this code or the Unemployment Insurance Code resulting from the misclassification of employees,' limiting the amnesty to specific codes rather than all penalties broadly.

Subdivision (j)(2)(A) was broadened to cover not just unpaid penalties already assessed, but also 'penalties for which an eligible construction contractor may have been liable but that were not yet assessed by the department or by a court of competent jurisdiction,' extending relief to potential future assessments.

The release required from a construction driver who accepts a settlement was narrowed from 'all claims the construction driver may have' to 'all claims covered by the settlement agreement that the construction driver may have,' limiting the scope of what drivers must waive.

For drivers who decline a settlement agreement, the bill now specifically identifies that they are precluded from pursuing claims 'under the Labor Code Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 (Part 13 (commencing with Section 2698) of Division 2)' rather than broadly stating 'civil penalties or statutory penalties,' narrowing which specific claims are barred.

Fixed drafting errors including removing redundant 'either both' language in subdivision (c)(1), correcting 'A persons person who owns a vehicle' to 'A person who owns a vehicle' in Section 2775.5, and reorganizing subdivision lettering throughout Section 2750.9.

In Section 2750.9(f)(5), the requirement to provide proof of workers' compensation insurance coverage was changed from being provided to 'the Labor Commissioner and the department' to just 'the Labor Commissioner,' removing the department as a recipient of that proof.

In Section 2750.9(h), the interest rate language for installment payments was simplified by removing the specific reference to 'Sections 1113 and 1129 of the Unemployment Insurance Code,' leaving only the reference to Section 19521 of the Revenue and Taxation Code for the method of calculating the adjusted annual rate.

Several typos were corrected: 'charged assessed' was changed to 'assessed' in subdivision (j)(1)(A); a duplicated word 'division division' was corrected to 'division' in subdivision (j)(1)(B); and a duplicated word 'executed. executed' was corrected to 'executed' in subdivision (h).

The reclassification deadline for construction contractors seeking additional documentation in their application was clarified from an ambiguous dual date ('January 1, 2029, September 1, 2028') to a single date of September 1, 2028.

Settlement agreements must now include interest on unpaid taxes at the adjusted annual rate under Section 19521 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, and interest on unpaid wages at the rate specified in subdivision (b) of Section 3289 of the Civil Code.

Installment payment periods under settlement agreements are now capped at 24 months from the date the agreement is signed. Previously there was no explicit time limit on installment plans.

The scope of penalty waivers for compliant contractors was expanded to include penalties under Section 1112 of the Unemployment Insurance Code, in addition to Sections 1112.5, 1126, and 1127 that were already covered.

The fraud-based penalty exception was broadened to cover amounts admitted as based on fraud or made with intent to evade reporting requirements under this division, Division 1 of the Unemployment Insurance Code (commencing with Section 100), or authorized regulations - previously it only referenced 'this division.'

Language was clarified to specify that the Section 1128 penalty exception applies to penalties 'assessed by the department' rather than simply 'charged under' that section, making the source of the assessment more explicit.

Interest on installment payments was clarified to apply separately: unpaid taxes at the adjusted annual rate per Sections 1113 and 1129 of the Unemployment Insurance Code and Section 19521 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, and unpaid wages at the Civil Code rate. A new 'date of delinquency' was established as the day after the settlement agreement is executed.

The bill now states that the provision that mere vehicle ownership does not make a person an independent contractor is declarative of existing law, and that specified provisions described in the bill's findings are also declarative of existing law.

Chapter number 659 was assigned and the Governor's approval and filing date (October 11, 2025) were added to the document header.

Legislative process markings were removed, including Senate passage date (September 13, 2025), Assembly passage date (September 12, 2025), and the Governor's receipt date line.

Page headers changed from 'SB 809' format to 'Ch. 659' format, and the document header was updated to the authenticated electronic legal material format used for chaptered bills.

The deadline for the Labor Commissioner to execute or approve settlement agreements under the amnesty program was extended from January 1, 2027 to January 1, 2029. The reclassification deadline for contractors seeking additional documentation requirements was also changed from January 1, 2026 to January 1, 2029.

A new provision allows an eligible construction contractor to negotiate a settlement agreement directly with a labor union representing its drivers or with any city attorney, then submit that agreement to the Labor Commissioner for review and approval. The Labor Commissioner may approve but is not required to approve such agreements.

The application requirement was changed from 'doing either of the following' (application OR self-audit report) to 'doing both of the following' (application AND self-audit report), making both steps mandatory for program participation.

The term 'motor carrier construction contractor' was changed to simply 'construction contractor' in the settlement agreement requirements, removing the 'motor carrier' qualifier and potentially broadening which contractors are covered by the wage/benefit/tax payment obligation.

The deadline for the Labor Commissioner to execute a settlement agreement with an eligible construction contractor was extended from January 1, 2027 to January 1, 2029. This gives construction trucking companies two additional years to take advantage of the amnesty program and resolve misclassification liabilities.

References to 'or other tools' were removed from the provision (Section 2775.5) stating that mere ownership of a vehicle does not make a person an independent contractor, and from Section 2802.2(a) which extends employer indemnification duties. The bill now addresses only vehicles, not other tools or equipment.

In the settlement agreement requirements, the term 'motor carrier' was corrected to 'motor carrier construction contractor' for precision in identifying who must pay wages, benefits, and taxes owed.

The legislative counsel's digest was reorganized: the sentence stating that existing law exempts specified occupations from the Dynamex ABC test was moved from before the ABC test description to after it, improving the logical flow of the summary. No statutory language was changed.