Senate Republican Leader Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield) and Senator Brian Jones (R-El Cajon) recently introduced Senate Bill 875 which would allow freelance translators and interpreters to remain as independent contractors. Co-authored by legislative Republicans from both the State Assembly and State Senate, SB 875 would specifically allow interpreters and translators to continue to serve members of the deaf and hard of hearing community.

Legislative Republicans who are co-authors of SB 875 include: Senator Patricia Bates (Laguna Niguel), Senator Andreas Borgeas (Fresno), Senator Ling Ling Chang (Diamond Bar), Senator Brian Dahle (Bieber), Senator John Moorlach (Costa Mesa), Senator Mike Morrell (Rancho Cucamonga), Senator Jim Nielsen (Tehama), Senator Scott Wilk (Santa Clarita), Assemblymember James Gallagher (Yuba City) and Assemblymember Tom Lackey (Palmdale).

“A bad law has put our hard of hearing and deaf communities at risk of not having access to important services. Republicans are offering a solution so independent contractors can once again provide services as interpreters, live closed captioners, or court reporters in settings such as medical facilities, courtrooms, or live television. Republicans will continue our efforts to fight for freelancers in the Capitol,” said Senate Republican Leader Shannon Grove.

“AB 5 has decimated a lot of freelance interpreters and translators who work in a profession that requires them to be on the road often. These folks thrive in their profession working with a wide variety of clients and unpredictable schedules. Now, AB 5 forces them into an ’employee’ category which is wrong and this legislation is the first step in correcting it,” said Senator Brian Jones.

BACKGROUND:

Known as a job killer law, Assembly Bill 5 (2019) went into effect in January 2020. Independent contractors from across the state have been under attack and dealing with the negative impacts of AB 5. KUSI is a San Diego television station and has been sharing stories about the impacts of AB 5 to their viewers, including a story about Marybel Carino who is a court interpreter. Click here to watch the full story.

This article was released by the CA State Senate Republican Caucus.