California Becomes First State to Require Disclosure of Slavery Profits Via Assembly Bill 2599

CFA supported a bill that will soon require certain corporations in California to declare whether they or their predecessors profited from slavery.

Assembly Bill (AB) 2599, The Truth in Disclosure Act authored by Assemblymember Isaac Bryan, applies to corporations that existed before 1965 and do business in California with an annual revenue of $100 million or more. Under the law signed by Governor Gavin Newsom, those businesses must file a sworn affidavit describing any records they possess concerning involvement in slavery and related transactions.

The bill also requires the creation of a public digital platform for the affidavits and related records. AB 2599 is one of the reparations-related bills passed and signed since the California Reparations Task Force report was issued in 2023.

“For too long, corporations benefited from the economic exploitation of slavery while avoiding any public accounting of that history,” Assemblymember Isaac Bryan said in a statement. “AB 2599 changes that. Californians deserve to know which companies built their wealth on the backs of enslaved people—and, now they will.”

No other state requires corporations to report profits from slavery. CFA is proud to support this bill and the reparations movement. We must acknowledge historical injustices and invest in Black communities who still continue to experience impacts from slavery today.

The first affidavits required by this bill are due by January 2029.