Bills to address California freelance law

California State Sen. Scott Wilk has said that he is coauthoring two bills to help newspapers and freelance journalists continue to operate in California by exempting them from the state’s new anti-independent contracting law, Assembly Bill 5.

Assembly Bill 5 took effect at the beginning of 2020. It caps freelancers at a max of 35 stories per year to maintain independent status.

Senator Wilk, R-Antelope Valley, has joined Senator Patricia Bates, R-Laguna Niguel, in authoring Senate Bills 867 and 868 to address separately the concerns of newspapers and freelance journalists. Both bills are pending referral to Senate policy committees.

“I am committed to finding a way for Californians to continue working in the way that works for them,” said a statement from Wilk’s office. “Last year the governor and majority party left many industries and professions scrambling to survive when Assembly Bill 5 was passed and signed into law — including newspapers and freelance journalists,” said Wilk. “Today we are taking a first step in fixing the new law’s many flaws by helping California’s newspapers and journalists continue in their traditional way of doing business.”

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