AB 1993 Take Action

2022 Legislation

Take Action on AB 1993

AB 1993 Employment: COVID-19 vaccination requirements. (Wicks) This bill would require an employer to require each person who is an employee or independent contractor, and who is eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, to show proof to the employer that the person has been vaccinated against COVID-19. This bill would establish an exception from this vaccination requirement for a person who is ineligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine due to a medical condition or disability or because of a sincerely held religious belief.

CURRENT STATUS: Asm. Wicks has put AB 1993 on hold for the moment. Referred to Labor and Employment Committee and Judiciary Committee


Legislator	Email	Capitol	District
Ash Kalra	assemblymember.kalra@assembly.ca.gov	(916) 319-2027	(408) 277-1220
Reginald Byron Jones-Sawyer	assemblymember.jones-sawyer@assembly.ca.gov	(916) 319-2059	(213) 744-2111
Eloise Gomez Reyes	assemblymember.reyes@assembly.ca.gov	(916) 319-2047	(909) 381-3238
Christopher Ward	assemblymember.ward@assembly.ca.gov	(916) 319-2078	(916) 319-2078

Urgent call to action March 25, 2022

AB 1993 will be heard next week (March 30, 2022 at 1:30pm) in Assembly Labor and Employment Committee. Please call and email the Democrat members of the committee to ask them to vote no.

Sample Script: “Hi. I’m calling because AB 1993 is being heard in the Labor and Employment Committee next week. I urge the member to vote no on AB 1993 because …”

It would impair access to employment for those who prefer not to receive a COVID-19 vaccine yet need to provide for themselves and their children.
The currently available COVID-19 vaccines do not prevent infection or transmission and the effectiveness of the vaccines wanes rapidly, so prevention of workplace transmission cannot be achieved with the bill.
The bill does not recognize prior exposure and naturally acquired immunity.
The bill would require employees to reveal personal medical or religious information they would rather keep private.

Step 1. Set Up Meeting

Contact the district office and request meeting. If you do not know who your state representatives are, go to FindYourRep.Legislature.CA.Gov.

If asked what the meeting is about, feel free to state a general concern such as education, health, or the pandemic.

Do not be discouraged if you are offered a meeting with a staffer rather than your legislator, or if it is on zoom vs. in person. Staffers play an important role in the legislative process.

Step 2. Get to Know your Legislator

Read your representatives' bio on their website. What are their interests? What bills have they authored in the past? How have they voted on issues you care about?

Find a common interest in order to establish relatability.

Step 3. Prepare Documents to Take to Meeting

Create your own one page document with the top three concerns you have. Bullet points are helpful as legislators and staffers are dealing with hundreds of bills.

Step 4. Dress and Act Professionally

When meeting with legislators and staffers, the goal is to build positive relationships. This is easy to do if expressing views in polite and respectful ways.

Representatives and their staff are just ordinary people that are generally very personable and friendly.

For a more in depth training on the legislative process and meeting with legislators, watch this video.

TaKe Action 2:
Submit Your Opposition Letter to Policy Committees

Make sure that your position on this bill is heard and put on record by submitting you comments to the California Legislature Position Letter Portal.

(Watch Video Tutorial)

Comments will be shared with the appropriate policy committee members hearing the bill.

Sample Comment:

"I oppose AB 1993 which would require public and private employers to require their employees be fully vaccinated for COVID-19. AB 1993 would create a two tier system resulting in a group of second class citizens that would not have the same rights and privileges as others. It would impair access to employment for those who prefer not to receive a COVID-19 vaccine or booster yet need to provide for themselves and their children."

You might add a personal experience or talking points outlined below.

Talking Points for AB 1993

Specific Ask: Oppose AB 1993 or abstain from voting on the bill.

Main Talking Points

AB 1993 would create a two tier system resulting in a group of second class citizens that would not have the same rights and privileges as others. AB 1993 would impair access to employment for those who prefer not to receive a COVID-19 vaccine or booster yet need to provide for themselves and their children.
The currently available COVID-19 vaccines do not prevent infection or transmission and the effectiveness of the vaccines wanes rapidly, so prevention of workplace transmission cannot be achieved with the bill.
It is unethical to coerce a person under duress to receive a medical treatment they do not want in order to benefit the state or other individuals. All medical interventions come with known and unknown risks and the principle of voluntary and informed consent (or refusal) is crucial to the integrity of our public health policies and our medical system.
AB 1993 does not recognize prior exposure and naturally acquired immunity.
The bill would require employees to reveal personal medical or religious information they would rather keep private.