Portantino, Holden Want Changes to AB 5, the Controversial New Law Affecting Freelancers

State Sen. Anthony Portantino and Assemblyman Chris Holden spoke out on Monday about why they think a controversial new gig-economy law – Assembly Bill 5 – needs to be tweaked to protect many freelance workers who have seen diminished job opportunities in what is widely acknowledged as an “unintended consequence” of the legislation.

In response to requests from Pasadena Now, Pasadena’s Democratic representatives in Sacramento said they would support changes to AB 5, which was authored by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego) and went into effect on Jan. 1.

But Portantino and Holden also expressed their disagreement with a recent push by Assembly Republicans to hasten such tweaks.

AB 5 requires that companies who hire freelancers treat them as employees, eligible for benefits. However, the response has been than many freelance opportunities have vanished. Under the law, freelance journalists would be limited to 35 contributions per year to any individual employer.

“The discussions around AB 5 and the very necessary exemptions and revisions are serious and ongoing, but the effort to suspend the constitution last week was not an actual attempt to solve the problem,’’ Portantino said in his statement to Pasadena Now.

“My colleague Jerry Hill in the Senate and Assembly Member Gonzalez in the Assembly are working on efforts to protect many legitimate independent workers. Clearly, the many folks in the arts are just one industry where we expect significant changes to AB 5 and I will also be providing input as these two actual bills work through the committee process.”

For his part, Holden told Pasadena Now, “The intention of AB 5 is to protect and reclassify victimized and misclassified workers, and the legislation will prove to be impactful on that end. However, aspects of the new law have created unintended consequences for a number of professions that need to be addressed.’’

“This year,’’ Holden added, “there are numerous bills that would make changes to current law established by AB 5, and through the legislative process, we will look at each one closely.”

One such remedy in the Legislative pipeline is an amendment to AB 5 suggested by Gonzalez herself. It would exempt still photographers, photojournalists, freelance writers, editors and newspaper cartoonists, as well as the eliminate the 35-submission limit.

“After more than a year of meetings, fact-findings and discussions with freelance writers and journalists, we’re making changes,’’ Gonzalez said last week.

The law has impacted journalists, artists and musicians. In January, the Sierra Madre Playhouse was forced to cancel a production of Charlotte’s Web. Other performing arts groups, including the Pasadena Symphony and POPS, are monitoring the law.

Last week, Republicans tried to fast-track AB 1928, co-authored by Assembly Members Kevin Kiley (R-Rockland) and Melissia Melendez (R-Murrieta), that bill would suspend the provisions of AB 5 until lawmakers can better sort out protections for freelancers. However, the motion to put AB 1928 up for an immediate vote failed by a 55-15 margin along party lines in the Assembly, with Holden voting with the majority.

The Kiley/Melendez bill remains alive, but will have to go through the usual legislative process if it is to be a corrective to AB 5’s flaws.

After the Assembly shot down his urgency motion, Kiley said, “The Assembly consciously chose to keep enforcing a law that everyone, including the author, acknowledges has major problems and is destroying people’s lives. I’ve never been more ashamed of this legislative body.”