20250SB__079596AMD INTRODUCED 2025-02-21 AMENDED_SENATE 2026-01-05 AMENDED_ASSEMBLY 2026-05-18 AMENDED_ASSEMBLY 2026-06-18 2025 SB AMD Introduced by Senator Richardson (Coauthor: Senator Arreguín) (Coauthors: Assembly Members Ávila Farías, Ellis, Quirk-Silva, and Blanca Rubio) LEAD_AUTHOR SENATE Richardson COAUTHOR SENATE Arreguín COAUTHOR ASSEMBLY Ávila Farías COAUTHOR ASSEMBLY Ellis COAUTHOR ASSEMBLY Quirk-Silva COAUTHOR ASSEMBLY Blanca Rubio

An act to amend

Section 3600.5 of the Labor Code, relating to workers’ compensation. workers’ compensation Workers’ compensation: professional athletes. Existing law establishes a workers’ compensation system, administered by the Administrative Director of the Division of Workers’ Compensation, to compensate an employee, as defined, for injuries sustained in the course of employment.

Existing law provides that an injury may be either “specific,” occurring as the result of one incident or exposure that causes disability or need for medical treatment, or “cumulative,” occurring as repetitive mentally or physically traumatic activities extending over a period of time, the combined effect of which causes any disability or need for medical treatment.

Existing law exempts an employee hired outside of this state and their employer from the occupational disease and cumulative injury provisions of this state’s workers’ compensation laws if (1) the employee is a professional athlete, defined for purposes of these provisions to include an athlete who is employed at the minor or major league level in the sport of baseball, basketball, football, ice hockey, or soccer, (2) that professional athlete is temporarily within this state doing work for their employer, and (3) the employer has furnished workers’ compensation insurance under the laws of the state other than California that covers the professional athlete’s employment while in this state, except as specified.

Existing law deems a professional athlete to be temporarily within the state doing work for their employer if, during the consecutive days immediately preceding the professional athlete’s last day of work for the employer within the state, the professional athlete performs less than 20% of their duty days, as defined, in the state.

This bill would revise and recast the above provisions to state that the professional athlete and their employer are exempt from the workers’ compensation system for any claim that involves occupational disease or cumulative injury made by the athlete, if the athlete did not perform any work in California or the athlete was temporarily within the state working for their employer. The bill would state that a professional athlete is temporarily within this state if the professional athlete performs less than 20% of their duty days in California, during the last consecutive days of their career.

The bill would define a professional athlete as anyone who is paid to play baseball, flag or tackle football, basketball, hockey, soccer, lacrosse, softball, volleyball, rugby, or cricket.

Existing law also exempts a professional athlete and their employer from the occupational disease or cumulative injury provisions of this state’s workers’ compensation laws when all of the professional athlete’s employers in their last year of work as a professional athlete are exempt from these provisions unless the professional athlete has, over the course of their professional athletic career, (1) worked for or more seasons for a California-based team or teams, as defined, or worked 20% or more of their duty days in California or for a California-based team, and, (2) worked for fewer than seasons for any team other than a California-based team.

Existing law defines a “California-based team” to mean a team that plays a majority of its home games in California.

This bill would revise these provisions to state that the workers’ compensation system does not apply to the claim of a professional athlete involving occupational disease or cumulative trauma if that athlete was exempt, as specified, and, during the last days of their career as a professional athlete, was not hired as a professional athlete in California, unless over the course of their entire career as a professional athlete, (1) the athlete worked for or more seasons for a California-based team or teams, as defined, or worked 20% or more of their duty days in California or for a California-based team, and (2) worked for fewer than seasons for any team other than a California-based team during their professional athletic career.

The bill would state that the team’s principal place of business is not relevant to whether a team is based in California. The bill would provide that these changes apply to claims for benefits filed on or after September 30, 2026. MAJORITY NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION

Section 3600.5 of the Labor Code is amended to read: 3600.5. (

a) If an employee who has been hired or is regularly working in the state receives personal injury by accident arising out of and in the course of employment outside of this state, the employee or their dependents, in the case of the employee’s death, shall be entitled to compensation according to the law of this state. (b)

(1) An employee who has been hired outside of this state and their employer shall be exempted from the provisions of this division while the employee is temporarily within this state doing work for their employer if the employer has furnished workers’ compensation insurance coverage under the workers’ compensation insurance or similar laws of a state other than California, so as to cover the employee’s work while in this state if both of the following apply: (

A) The extraterritorial provisions of this division are recognized in the other state. (

B) The employers and employees who are covered in this state are likewise exempted from the application of the workers’ compensation insurance or similar laws of the other state.

(2) In any case in which paragraph (1) is satisfied, the benefits under the workers’ compensation insurance or similar laws of the other state, and other remedies under those laws, shall be the exclusive remedy against the employer for any injury, whether resulting in death or not, received by the employee while working for the employer in this state. (c)

(1) Notwithstanding subdivision (

a) or (b), or any other law, and except as provided in subdivision (d), the professional athlete and their employer are exempt from this division for any claim that involves occupational disease or cumulative injury made by a professional athlete if the professional athlete did not perform any work in California or was temporarily within this state doing work for their employer.

(2) For purposes of this subdivision, a professional athlete is temporarily within this state if the professional athlete performs less than percent of their duty days in California during the consecutive days immediately preceding the professional athlete’s last day of work for the employer within the state. (d)

(1) Notwithstanding subdivision (

a) or (b), or any other law, the professional athlete and their employer are exempt from this division for any claim that involves occupational disease or cumulative injury made by a professional athlete if the professional athlete was exempt pursuant to subdivision (

c) or any other law and was not hired in California during the last days of their career as a professional athlete, unless both of the following conditions are satisfied: (

A) The professional athlete has, over the course of their professional athletic career, worked for two or more seasons for a California-based team or teams, or the professional athlete has, over the course of their professional athletic career, worked percent or more of their duty days either in California or for a California-based team.

The percentage of a professional athletic career worked either within California or for a California-based team shall be determined solely by taking the number of duty days the professional athlete worked for a California-based team or teams, plus the number of duty days the professional athlete worked as a professional athlete in California for any team other than a California-based team, and dividing that number by the total number of duty days the professional athlete was employed anywhere as a professional athlete. (

B) The professional athlete has, over the course of their professional athletic career, worked for fewer than seven seasons for any team or teams other than a California-based team.

(2) When subparagraphs (

A) and (

B) of paragraph (1) are both satisfied, liability for the professional athlete’s occupational disease or cumulative injury shall be determined in accordance with

Section 5500.5. (

e) An employer of professional athletes, other than a California-based team, shall be exempt from

Article 4 (commencing with

Section 3550) of

Chapter 2, and subdivisions (

a) to (c), inclusive, of

Section 5401. (

f) For purposes of this section, the following

definitions apply to claims of a professional athlete: (1) “California-based team” means a team that plays a majority of its home games at a designated venue in California.

An employer’s principal place of business is not relevant to whether a team is based in California. (2) “Duty day” means a day in which any services are performed by a professional athlete under the direction and control of their employer pursuant to a player contract. (3) “Hired” means the date that the professional athlete executes their player contract and is employed by the team. (4) “Professional athlete” means anyone paid to participate in or play the sport of baseball, flag or tackle football, basketball, hockey, soccer, lacrosse, softball, volleyball, rugby, or cricket.

(5) The term “season” means the period from the date of the first preseason team activity for that contract year, through the date of the last game the professional athlete’s team played during the same contract year. (

g) The amendments made to this

section by the act adding this subdivision apply to all claims for benefits pursuant to this division filed on or after September 15, 2013. The amendments made to this

section by the act adding this subdivision shall not constitute good cause to reopen any final decision, order, or award. (

h) If any provision of this

section or the application thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of this

section that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this

section are severable. (

i) This

section applies to any claim for benefits pursuant to this division filed on or after September 30, 2026. The amendments made to this

section by the act adding this subdivision shall not constitute good cause to reopen any final decision, order, or award.