California Legislature Passes Corporate Slavery Disclosure Bill

The legislation targets companies doing business in California with annual gross receipts of at least $100 million. Under the proposed law, these corporations must submit sworn affidavits regarding their historical ties to slavery, with all filings subject to perjury penalties and housed in a publicly searchable state database. Supporters, led by the California Legislative Black Caucus and the Alliance for Reparations, Reconciliation, and Truth, argue that the act provides a necessary paper trail to link historical exploitation to modern corporate wealth.

Assemblymember Isaac Bryan, the bill's author, framed the measure as a moral imperative, contending that the public deserves to see which entities built their fortunes on the labor of enslaved people. The bill follows a series of state reparations efforts initiated after the 2023 release of a 1,100-page report by the California Reparations Task Force. If signed, AB 2599 will join a growing list of legislative actions in California aimed at addressing the systemic legacies of anti-Black discrimination and historical harm.