With the 2024 legislative session just around the corner, CBPA is calling for suggestions for new legislation or revisions to existing law that would benefit the commercial real estate industry. To play an active role in the legislative process, it’s crucial for our industry to not just oppose bad bills, but to propose solutions to problems impacting our industry.

If you have any ideas for potential legislation to be sponsored by our industry, please contact CBPA’s Senior Director of Government Relations Skyler Wonnacott at swonnacott@cbpa.com. We appreciate your feedback!

In September, the Governor and California Legislature made yet another attempt to stop the highly popular Taxpayer Protection Act (TPA), which would restore the popular provisions established in Proposition 13. Their latest attempt seeks to have the measure removed from the November 2024 ballot.

CBPA President & CEO Matthew Hargrove and the fellow co-chairs of TPA were featured in a recent Orange County Register article responding to the anti-Proposition 13 lawsuit and the ongoing attempts to stifle the ability for Californians to vote on this measure.

California’s business tax climate remains the third worst among the 50 states, the Washington, D.C.-based Tax Foundation reported October 24. Our state maintained its longstanding position of having a business tax climate that is worse than 47 other states, but ahead of New York and New Jersey.

California ranks 45th in corporation tax, 49th in personal income tax, 47th in sales tax, 22nd in property tax, and 30th in unemployment insurance tax, the foundation said. The top three states in the ranking are Wyoming, South Dakota, and Alaska.

AB 2188 (Quirk-Silva; D-La Palma), makes it illegal for an employer to discriminate, terminate, or otherwise penalize an employee or applicant for the use of cannabis off the job and away from the workplace. The bill was signed into law in 2022 but does not go into effect until January 1, 2024.

SB 700 (Bradford; D-Los Angeles) prohibits employers from asking job applicants about cannabis use, including in job applications or interviews. Information received about the applicant’s cannabis use from criminal history is off limits unless the employer is specifically allowed to consider it under the Fair Chance Act. SB 700 also takes effect on January 1, 2024.

Employers are encouraged to update their handbooks and policies accordingly and consult with an employment attorney for more information.