Merit Institute Merit

The California Worker-Merit Credentialing Act (CA-ACSA)

California state companion to ACSA. Extends Cal. BPC licensure recognition provisions, the California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office, the California Workforce Development Board, and Cal. Rev. & Tax. Code workforce credits, with union-neutral worker protections.

THE CALIFORNIA WORKER-MERIT CREDENTIALING ACT (CA-ACSA)

Vehicle: State passage. California Legislature, regular session. Primary referral to Assembly / Senate Business and Professions / Revenue and Taxation / Labor, Public Employment and Retirement.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE

This Act may be cited as the “California Worker-Merit Credentialing Act (CA-ACSA).”

SECTION 2. LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT

The Legislature finds that California licensure recognition operates under various provisions of the Business and Professions Code (Cal. BPC); that the California Community Colleges operate under Cal. Educ. Code Sec. 66000 et seq.; that the California Workforce Development Board operates under Cal. Unemp. Ins. Code Sec. 14000 et seq.; that Cal. Rev. & Tax. Code Div. 2 provides tax-credit authority including the California Competes Tax Credit; and that this Act protects workers by preserving existing labor-law protections under Cal. Lab. Code. This Act extends these frameworks.

TITLE I — DEFINITIONS & COORDINATION WITH CALIFORNIA LAW

Sec. 101. Definitions

  1. (a) “California Recognized Merit Credential” or “CARMC” means a competency-based credential designated by the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges in coordination with the California Workforce Development Board under Sec. 201.
  2. (b) “Federal FRAC” means a Federally Recognized Alternative Credential under Section 202 of the federal ACSA.
  3. (c) “Covered State licensing authority” means an agency issuing an occupational license under Cal. BPC Division 1.5 et seq.

Sec. 102. Coordination with Existing California Law

  1. (a) Consistent with:
  • Cal. BPC (occupational licensing).
  • Cal. Educ. Code Sec. 66000 et seq. (community colleges).
  • Cal. Unemp. Ins. Code Sec. 14000 et seq. (CWDB).
  • Cal. Rev. & Tax. Code Div. 2 (taxation).
  • Cal. Lab. Code (labor law, explicitly preserved).

TITLE II — CALIFORNIA RECOGNIZED MERIT CREDENTIALS

Sec. 201. Designation Authority

  1. (a) The Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, in coordination with the CWDB, shall maintain a California Recognized Merit Credentials registry (“CARMC Registry”) in machine-readable form, updated at least annually, crosswalked to Federal FRAC.

Sec. 202. Degree-Optional State Employment

  1. (a) The State Personnel Board, acting under Cal. Const. Art. VII and Cal. Gov. Code Sec. 18500 et seq., shall apply State Civil Service classifications so that a CARMC-holder satisfies any position qualification stated in terms of a college degree, unless expressly required by California statute.

TITLE III — WORKFORCE-TRAINING TAX CREDIT (Worker-Protective Rewire)

Sec. 301. California Skills-Based Hiring Tax Credit

  1. (a) A new credit is added to Cal. Rev. & Tax. Code Div. 2, modeled on the California Competes framework, equal to a percentage of qualified first-year wages paid to a California-resident employee whose qualifying pathway is a CARMC or Federal FRAC.
  2. (b) Credit availability is conditioned on the employer’s compliance with Cal. Lab. Code Sec. 2750.3 (PAGA/ABC), payment of at least 120% of the applicable minimum wage, and non-interference with protected concerted activity under Cal. Lab. Code Sec. 923.
  3. (c) Coordinated with federal IRC Sec. 45AA; aggregate cap.
  4. (d) Franchise Tax Board administers.

TITLE IV — OCCUPATIONAL LICENSURE PORTABILITY

Sec. 401. Licensure by Demonstrated Competency

  1. (a) Demonstrated-competency pathway accepting CARMC, Federal FRAC, or examination-plus-supervised-experience.
  2. (b) Nothing in this section authorizes a reduction of examination or supervised-experience requirements where those are necessary to protect public health and safety under Cal. BPC.

Sec. 402. Interstate Recognition for Federal-Fund Recipients

  1. (a) Recognition by federally-funded authorities, consistent with Section 401 of the federal ACSA.

TITLE V — IMPLEMENTATION & GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 501. Severability

If any provision is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect the remainder.

Sec. 502. Effective Date

This Act shall take effect January 1 of the year following enactment.

Canonical federal version: ACSA. Other California bills: CA-MEWRA, CA-GT&P, CA-AI-Workforce.