Assembly BillChaptered/SignedGovernment
AB 2129: State employees: compensation: firefighters.
What AB 2129 does, verified September 29, 2026
This bill aims to improve compensation for firefighters in the state by requiring the state to bargain in good faith with firefighters to reach a competitive range of salaries. The state must consider the average salary for corresponding ranks in 20 listed California fire departments when determining compensation. The bill also requires the state to conduct an annual survey of salaries and benefits for fire departments and to provide a cursory survey of salaries for fire chiefs. Any salary increase for firefighters must be implemented through a memorandum of understanding, and the state must consider internal comparisons when determining compensation.
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Last action: Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 581, Statutes of 2026. (2026-09-27)Alert me
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| Sep. 27, 2026 | Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 581, Statutes of 2026. |
| Sep. 27, 2026 | Approved by the Governor. |
| Sep. 08, 2026 | Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 3:30 p.m. |
| Aug. 28, 2026 | Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 75. Noes 1. Page 6780.). |
| Aug. 25, 2026 | In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending. |
Latest bill textChaptered version, September 27, 2026 · 800 words
Assembly Bill No. 2129
CHAPTER 581
An act to add Section 19827.4 to the Government Code, relating to state employees.
[ Approved by Governor September 27, 2026. Filed with Secretary of State September 27, 2026. ]
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2129, Flora. State employees: compensation: firefighters.
Existing law provides that in order for the state to recruit skilled firefighters for the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, it is the policy of the state to consider prevailing salaries and benefits prior to making salary recommendations. Existing law requires the Department of Human Resources, in order to provide comparability in pay, to take into consideration the salary and benefits of other jurisdictions employing 75 or more full-time firefighters who work in California.
This bill would require the state to bargain in good faith with firefighters who are rank-and-file members of State Bargaining Unit 8, employed by the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, to reach a competitive range within 15% of the average salary for corresponding ranks in 20 California fire departments agreed to by the exclusive bargaining representative for Bargaining Unit 8 and the Department of Human Resources. The bill would require the state and the exclusive representative for State Bargaining Unit 8 to jointly survey the estimated average salaries for those 20 fire departments and report the findings, as provided.
The bill would provide that nothing in the bill creates an entitlement to an automatic salary increase. The bill would require any salary increase for firefighters under these provisions to be implemented through a memorandum of understanding, in accordance with specified procedures governing collective bargaining agreements. The bill would include legislative findings and declarations related to its provisions.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:(a) Historic fires of the past decade have resulted in well over 100 deaths, caused billions of dollars in damage, destroyed entire communities, and placed overworked firefighters at risk.
(b) Firefighters with the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL-FIRE) have the most diverse work responsibilities of any firefighters, which includes fire of all types, floods, earthquakes, and all natural disasters.
(c) CAL-FIRE must compete with higher paying local departments to retain their firefighters.
(d) Climate change is creating an environment where wildfires burn with greater ferocity and that trend is systemic.
(e) The mental health of CAL-FIRE firefighters is placed at risk by the extremely long hours working under extreme duress, sometimes for a month on duty without a day off.
(f) The physical risk of working long hours at point zero at these fires that burn for weeks and send dangerous particulates into the air causes immediate and long-term physical and mental health risks.
SEC. 2.
Section 19827.4 is added to the Government Code, to read:19827.4.
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, in order to recruit and retain the highest qualified and skilled firefighters for the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the state shall bargain in good faith with firefighters who are rank-and-file members of State Bargaining Unit 8 to reach a competitive range within 15 percent of the average of the salary for corresponding ranks in the 20 California fire departments, agreed to by the exclusive bargaining representative for Bargaining Unit 8 and the Department of Human Resources.(b) (1) The state and the exclusive representative for State Bargaining Unit 8 shall jointly survey the estimated average salaries of the fire departments agreed to as provided in subdivision (a), and shall report the findings in accordance with subdivision (c) of Section 19826.
(2) A salary adjustment contemplated by this section shall only be implemented upon agreement between the state and the exclusive representative through a memorandum of understanding.
(c) When determining compensation for uniformed classifications of the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, it is the policy of the state to consider the salary of corresponding ranks within the comparable jurisdictions agreed to as provided in subdivision (a), as well as other factors, including internal comparisons.
(d) Nothing in this section creates an entitlement to an automatic salary increase.
(e) Any increase in salary for firefighters who are members of State Bargaining Unit 8 resulting from this section shall be implemented through a memorandum of understanding negotiated pursuant to the Ralph C. Dills Act (Chapter 10.3 (commencing with Section 3512) of Division 4 of Title 1).
(f) If the provisions of this section are in conflict with the provisions of a memorandum of understanding reached pursuant to Section 3517.5, the memorandum of understanding shall be controlling without further legislative action, except that if the provisions of a memorandum of understanding require the expenditure of funds, the provision shall not become effective unless approved by the Legislature and the annual Budget Act.
Text of AB 2129 as chaptered, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions