June 23, 2026
SB 1123 (Wiener), legislation opposed by Orange County Business Council, has been pulled from the Assembly Economic Development, Growth and Household Impact Committee after concerns emerged regarding its impact on California’s regulatory review process.
Current law requires state agencies to conduct a Standardized Regulatory Impact Assessment (SRIA) for major regulations with economic impacts exceeding $50 million. Established with bipartisan support in 2011, the SRIA process provides policymakers and stakeholders with independent analysis of costs, benefits and alternatives while ensuring assumptions and methodologies are reviewed by the Department of Finance.
OCBC opposed SB 1123 because it would have fundamentally changed how major regulations are evaluated. Rather than triggering a SRIA based on the overall economic impact of a regulation, the bill would have allowed agencies to offset projected costs with anticipated benefits when determining whether additional analysis was required. In practice, this change would have meant many of California’s most significant regulations could avoid the independent review and transparency provided through the SRIA process.
Recent regulations involving plastic packaging, consumer privacy and cap and trade all triggered SRIA analysis because of their far-reaching economic implications. Under SB 1123, those same regulations may not have been subject to the same level of scrutiny despite carrying billions of dollars in costs and affecting consumers, employers and industries across California.
The existing SRIA framework does not prevent regulations from moving forward. Instead, it provides decisionmakers and stakeholders with reliable economic information and allows the Department of Finance to review agency assumptions to ensure analyses are methodologically sound.
At a time when California continues to consider complex and consequential regulations, maintaining transparency and accountability remains critical. OCBC was proud to join a coalition opposing SB 1123 and appreciates the legislators who raised concerns about the bill and helped preserve a process that promotes informed policymaking and public confidence.
Thoughtful regulations require thoughtful analysis. Preserving the SRIA process helps ensure California’s policies are built on transparency, sound data and accountability.
For questions, please email Amanda Walsh, Vice President of Government Affairs.
