New California Bill Protects Public-Sector Employees' Social Media Accounts

December 10, 2012 By News Staff

A new measure introduced in California last week -- Assembly Bill 25 -- would prohibit public-sector employers in the state from asking employees or job applicants for access to personal social media accounts, such as Facebook and Twitter, reported The Sacramento Bee, which also said the bill should be a "slam-dunk."

Assemblywoman Nora Campos (D-San Jose) authored the bill, and wrote a similar measure that was virtually unopposed during the Legislature's last session, and was signed in September by Gov. Jerry Brown.

AB 25 makes minor tweaks to that law, set to take effect Jan. 1. The original law failed to specify that public-sector employers may not request social media usernames or passwords from employees or prospective employees, according to The Bee. Campos' amendment also bans disciplining, terminating or otherwise retaliating against anyone who refuses a request for their social media information.

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