Employer pay data.

Senator Smallwood-Cuevas's pay data reporting legislation expands California's existing requirements to include public employers and sexual orientation demographics starting in 2027. The bill builds upon current mandates that require private employers with 100 or more employees to submit annual reports detailing employee pay data across job categories.

Under the proposed changes, both public and private employers must report the number of employees by race, ethnicity, sex, and sexual orientation across ten job classifications, from executive positions to service workers. The reports must detail how employee pay falls within federal pay bands and include median and mean hourly rates for each demographic combination. Sexual orientation data collection remains voluntary, with employers required to maintain demographic information separately from personnel records.

The legislation modifies enforcement and transparency provisions while maintaining individual privacy protections. Courts must impose civil penalties on non-compliant employers when requested by the Civil Rights Department, with fines up to $100 per employee for first violations and $200 for subsequent infractions. While individually identifiable information remains confidential, the department must publish private employer data in aggregate form that prevents association with specific individuals.