Effective January 1, 2027, AB 2321 amends Labor Code Section 6314 making it a crime to willfully “interfere” with a Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) inspection. The new law amends several other Labor Code sections, strengthening coordination among Cal/OSHA, first responders, law enforcement agencies, district attorneys, and other prosecutors. It also broadens the circumstances in which Cal/OSHA’s Bureau of Investigation (BOI) can review a case for potential criminal referral.
Taken together, AB 2321 creates significant new potential criminal exposure related to Cal/OSHA inspections. Serious workplace incidents, especially those involving serious exposures, are more likely to trigger coordinated criminal investigations involving Cal/OSHA’s BOI and local prosecutors. In line with the recent expansion of the BOI staff, a larger percentage of serious workplace accidents may be referred to district attorneys by Cal/OSHA. Employers should assume that a serious incident could trigger criminal scrutiny much earlier in the investigative process.
Amendment to Labor Code section 6314 makes it a crime to willfully resist, prevent, impede, or interfere with the Cal/OSHA chief or an authorized representative performing inspection and investigation duties. It would also apply to willful violations of court orders relating to those duties.
A violation could be punished by up to six...
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