CA bill introduced to invalidate legislation involving NDAs
File photo of California State Capitol on Sunday, July 17, 2022 in Sacramento, CA. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Republican assemblyman Vince Fong introduced a bill that would invalidate any state legislation that involved non-disclosure agreements.
The bill would also prohibit public employees from signing NDAs in their official capacity when negotiating proposed laws. The proposed bill – AB 2654 – comes after reports that NDAs were used in the final negotiations of the state's controversial fast food minimum wage law.
The law has come under scrutiny as the governor faces allegations he pushed for an exemption for one of his billionaire donors who is also a Panera franchisee.
Newsom's office, which oversaw the negotiations of the fast food bill, said the governor never signed an NDA and did not direct anyone to sign one.
Experts note the NDAs may keep us from ever knowing how the bill finally came together and how the carve-out ended up in the law.