California is considering a bill which would amend the 2018 regulation requiring female representation on publicly traded company boards headquartered in the state to include directors from under-represented communities. Assembly Member Chris Holden submitted the amendment to AB 979 on June 29th.
Under the amendment, corporations will be required to have a minimum of one director from an underrepresented community by the end of 2021 at the latest. The bill defines a "director from an underrepresented community" to mean an individual who is African-American, Hispanic, or Native American only.
By the close of the 2022, the required minimum number of minority directors would be tiered based on the size of the board as follows:
- Three, if the board has nine or more directors;
- Two, if the board has between four and eight directors; and
- One, if the board has fewer than four directors.
The Secretary of State would be tasked with reporting requirements like those for the existing female representation regulation. Violators could face significant fines. The bill has been assigned to the California Senate Committee on Rules.
