Governor Rolph Signs California Recovery Bills

The two California Recovery Bills passed'at the short session of the legislature which work in accord with the National Recovery Act were signed by Governor Rolph on August 4. As each bill declared an emergency, they became efiective on the Governor's signature. They remain in effect for two years unless the Governor declares the emergency at an end.

Assembly Bill No. 2432, The California Industrial Recovery Act, sets up national codes as the standard in California when intrastate, or local, business affects interstate, or national, business.

Assembly Bill No. 2400, Supplement to the California Industrial Recovery Act, covers intrastate business not operating under the national code. Local business associations are allowed to form codes for submission to the Commissioner of Corporations, and if it has the concurrence of the Director of the Department of Industrial Relations, the Commissioner approves the code and all members of the trade group must comply. Collective bargaining is allowed under the code. A filing fee of $25 must be paid for the code submitted, and employers must pay a license fee not to exceed 25 cents for each employee per annum.

Following are the texts of the two bills: California Industrial Recovery Act ministration and enforcement of the said act and to prescribe their authorities, duties and responsibilities. section l. A State "t*tK:liila^lttn1'"11'."." productive of widespread unemployment and disorganization of trade and industry, which burdens commerce, affects the public welfare, and undermines the standards of living of the people of this State and Nation, is hereby declared to exist. It is hereby declared to be the policy of the State of California to cooperate with and assist the National government in promoting the rehabititation of trade and industry and in eliminating unfair competitive practices, and to establish a parity in the maximum hours of labor and the minimum rates of pay and the other conditions of employment and standards of fair competition within this State between those in trades and industries or subdivisiorrs thereof engaged in transactions in or afiecting intrastate commerce in this State and those engaged therein in transactions in or afiecting interstate or foreign commerce.

Nothing in this act contained shall be held to afiect or supersede any contract or agreement as to any standard or standards of conditions of employment agreed upon or established by means of collective bargaining between employers and employees, or by and between or with organizations of employers or of employees, where any such standard of condition of employment is higher or more advantageous to employees under such collective agreement than the corrisponding standard provided under a fair code of competition established under the National Industrial Recovery Act, and where such standard otherwise will promote aird efiectuate the policy of said act, or to prevent employers and employees from making any such contracts or agreements which do not violate the terms of such code.

Section 3. Any person, firm, association or corporation, or agent, manager, superintendent or officer thereof, who shall violate any provision of this act shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and for each and every such violation shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500) or by imprisonment for not to exceed six (6) months or both. Each and every day's continuance of such violation shall constitute a separate oftense. In addition to, and entirely independent and apart from any other penalty provided, the violation of this act is hereby declared to be a public nuisance and may be enjoined or abated in an action filed and prosecuted in the superior court of the State of California in any county, or city and county, in which such violation may occur. Such action may be filed and prosecuted by the Attorney General of the State of California or by the district attorney of any county or. city and county in the name of the people of the State of California.

Section 2. It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, association or corporation engaged in the State of California in intrastate commerce in any business within any trade or industry or subdivision thereof, or in any transaction affecting intrastate commerce, to fail to comply, as to such commerce, with the terms of any code of fair competition approved, prescribed or issued for said trade or industry or subdivision thereof under Title I of that certain act of Congress of the United States entitled "An Act to encourage National industrial recovery, to foster fair competition, and to provide for the construction of certain useful works and for other purposes," approved June 16, 1933, and commonly known as the National Industrial Recovery Act, or with the terms of any agreement entered into by such person, firm, association or corporation. under the authority of said title, or with the terms or conditions of any license issued to such person, firm, association or corporation, pursuant to said titte. It shall be unlawful to engage in intrastate commerce in the State of California in any business within any trade or industry or subdivision thereof except upon the terms prescribed in licenses issued under said title to others engaged in such trade or industry or subdivision thereof while the carrying on of business within such trade'or,industry or subdivision thereo{ shall by announcement under said title be subject to license. It shall be lawful for any such person, firm, association or corporation to do or omit any act or thing required or permitted to be done or omitted by any of such terms.

To efiectuate the policy set forth in section 2 (a) of Title I of the National Industrial Recovery Act, the President of the United States is hereby authorized to appoint and utifize such State and local officers and emptoyees as he may find necessary in the ad-

Section 4. In furtherance of the purposes hereof any department of the State of California and any governing body of any political subdivision, municipal or other public corporation or of any district and any public officer or person charged with (1) the letting of contracts for the construction, alteration, or repair of public works, or (2) the purchasing of materials or supplies for public use (1) shall in letting contracts for the construction, alteration, or repair of pubtic works cause to be inserted in each such contract for an expenditure in excess of five hundred dollars a clause providing that the contractor shall give a preference of fifteen per cent to supplies, articles, and materials mined, produced, manufactured, or supplied in observance of any code of fair competition approved, prescribed, or issued under the said Title I of the National Industrial Recovery Act, or under any similar law of the State of California, or in pursuance of any agreement entered into or approved under said laws, or in conformity with the terms prescribed in any licenses issued under said laws, as the case may be, and which concerns such trade or industry and subdivision thereof as may be involved, and, (2), in the purchasing of materials or supplies for public use, shall give a preference of ten per cent to any bidder who expressly agrees to furnish only such materials or supplies so mined, produced, manufactured. or supplied.

Any contractor or person who furnishes materials or supplies for public use or on public works, in violation of any such clause in his contract shalt not be entitled to payment for the materials or supplies furnished, to the extent of such violation. Nothing contained in this act shatt, however, be construed to repeal or in any way modify the terms of any public works labor law now in effect in this State or heretofore approved or of any other law for the protection of workers in this State. The provisions of this act shall instead be construed to supplement such laws.

Section 5. This act shall cease to be in effect at the expiration of two years from the date of its enactment, or sooner and when the emergency, recognized by section I of this act, has ended if the Governor by proclamation shall so declare.

Section 6. If any section, sentence, clause or part of this act is for any reason held to be unconstitutional. such decision shall not afiect the remaining portions of this act. The Legislature hereby declares that it would have passed this act and each section, sentence, clause or part hereof, irrespective of the fact that one or more sections, sentences, clauses or parts hereof be declared unconstitutionat.

Section 7. This act may be known and cited as the California Industrial Recovery Act.

Section 8. This act is hereby declared to be an urgency measure necessary for the immediate preservation of public peace, health and safety within the meaning of section I of Article IV of the Constitution of the State of California and shall therefore go into immediate effect. A statement of the facts constituting such necessity is as follows:

There exists throughout the State of California and throughout the United States widespread unemployment and disorganization of .industry- amounting to an economiC emergency whiih is in- juriously affecting the morale and standard of living and threatens the safety and industrial peace of the public. In order to relieve these conditions it is necessary that this State cooperate with the Federal government in requiring the people and iniustries of this State without distinction as between inlraitate commerce and interstate or foreign commerce immediately to assume the burdens contemplated ly said act of Congress and immediately to allow the peoplf and industries of this State to secure the idvantages and benefits of said act of Congress.

Supplement to the California Industrial Recovery Act (Assembly Bilf 2400)

Section l. A State and National emergency productive of widesqr3qd_ unemployment and disorganization of trade and industry, which burdens commerce, affects the public welfare, and undermines the standards of living of the people of this State and Nation, is hereby _declared,to ,exist. It is hereby declared to be the poiicy of the State of California to cooperate with and assist the Nalionil government in promoting the rehabilitation of trade and industrv and in eliminating unfair competitive practices.

Section 2. The provisions of this ait shall apply only to those engaged in the State of California in any business within any trade or industry or subdivision thereof for which no code of faii competition is approved, prescribed or issued under Title I of that certain act of Congress of the United States entitled "An act to encourage. National industrial recovery to foster fair competition. and to provide for the construction of certain useful works and for other purposes," approved June 16, 1933, and commonly known as the National Industrial Recovery Act and to which trade or industry or subdivision thereof the provisions of no code of fair competitioir which_ is approved, prescribed or issued under said act of Congress have been made applicable by any law of this State.

Irr the event that any code is approved, prescribed or issued under Title I of the said act of Congress commonly known as the National Industrial Recovery Act for any trade or industry or subdivision thereof, such code shall supersede any code or codes approved under the provisions of this act for such trade or industry or subdivision thereof and shall immediately become the code of fair competition provided for in this act for the, said trade or industry or subdivision thereof and shall be enforceable as such under the provisions hereof.

To eftectuate the policy set forth in section 2 (a) of Title I of the National Industrial Recovery Act, the President of the United States is hereby authorized to appoint and utilize such State and local officers and employees as he may find necessary in the administration and enforcement of the said act and to prescribe their authorities, duties and responsibilities.

Section 3. Upon the application to the Chief of the Division of Corporations by one or more trade or industrial associations or groups, the chief may approve, in the manner herein provided, a State code or codes of fair competition for the trade or industry or subdivision thereof represented by the applicant or applicants. if the chief finds (l) that such associations or groups impose no inequitable restrictions on admission to membership therein and are truly representative of such trades or industries or subdivisions thereof, (2) that such State code or codes are not designed to prornote monopolies or to eliminate or oppress small enterprises and will not operate to discriminate against them, and will tend to effectuate the policy of this act, and (3) that the trade or industry or subdivision thereof represented by such applicant or applicants is one to which the provisions of this act apply; provided, that such State code or codes shall not permit monopolies or monopolistic practices; provided, that where iuch State code or codes affict the services and welfare of persons engaged in other steps of the ecorromic proces,s, nothing in this section shall deprive such persons of the right to be heard prior to approval by the chief of such code or codes. The board may, as a condition of his approval of any