United States of America: Governor vetoed Bill amending Labor Code to regulate automated decision systems in employment

On 13 October 2025, the Governor of California vetoed Senate Bill No. 7, which would have added Part 5.5.5 (commencing with Section 1520) to Division 2 of the California Labour Code to regulate the use of automated decision systems (ADS) in employment. The Bill would have applied to public and private employers using ADS for employment-related decisions, including discipline, promotion, termination, and work monitoring. It would have required employers to provide written notice at least 30 days before deploying an ADS, maintain an updated list of systems in use, and notify job applicants if an ADS was used in hiring. Employers would have been prohibited from using ADS outputs to infer protected characteristics or to serve as the sole basis for discipline or termination without human review. Workers would have had the right to request a copy of the previous 12 months of data used by an ADS and to be free from retaliation for exercising those rights. Enforcement would have been carried out by the Labour Commissioner, with civil penalties of USD 500 per violation. Notices for ADS already in use would have been required by 1 April 2026. Following the veto, the Bill was returned to the California State Senate, where consideration of the Governor’s veto remains pending.