California Senate Bill (SB) 795, introduced by Senator Laura Richardson, was a 2026 legislative proposal aimed at restricting professional athletes’ access to workers’ compensation benefits in the state.

Proposed SB 795 would have revised the Labor Code to state that the workers’ compensation system does not apply to the claim of a professional athlete involving occupational disease or cumulative trauma if that athlete was exempt, as specified, and, during the last 365 days of their career as a professional athlete, was not hired as a professional athlete in California, unless over the course of their entire career as a professional athlete, (1) the athlete worked for 2 or more seasons for a California-based team or teams, as defined, or worked 20% or more of their duty days in California or for a California-based team, and (2) worked for fewer than 7 seasons for any team other than a California-based team during their professional athletic career. The bill would state that the team’s principal place of business is not relevant to whether a team is based in California. As most recently amended, the proposed law would provide that these changes apply to claims for benefits filed on or after September 30, 2026.

Reports indicated the push came largely from the business/team side rather than a broad public concern: the NFL teams headquartered in California – the Rams, Chargers, and 49ers – reportedly supported the bill, with Richardson indicating in a bill summary that the NFL and these three California teams back it, though none of them confirmed this in public statements.

Issues related to workers’ compensation costs reportedly have historically influenced league and team decisions about where to locate – for example, the UFL has no California teams, and workers’ comp costs contributed to the end of one iteration of the Arena Football League. This suggests part of the impetus was making California a more attractive/affordable state for professional athletic franchises relative to others with less generous athlete workers’ comp exposure.

The legislation immediately faced fierce pushback from major sports organizations, including the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) and the San Francisco 49ers players who publicly argued the bill unfairly singled out high-risk jobs.

NFLPA, the lead opponent, called it “anti-player legislation,” stating it strips players of “the constitutional rights and legal protections afforded to every other worker in the state” and accused California’s pro sports teams of “seeking to evade that system for financial gain, denying injured athletes the care they are owed.” They closed with a call to “reject SB 795 and stand with the players who make the game possible.”

The National Hockey League Players’ Association – NHLPA – joining in solidarity: posted that “All workers deserve workers’ compensation protection,” joining the NFLPA “and other players’ associations in asking lawmakers to reject this bill.”

The Major League Soccer Players Association – MLSPA – stated it stands with the NFLPA in strongly opposing SB 795, calling workers’ compensation “a critically important and hard-earned protection for all workers who take part in high-risk jobs,” and urged lawmakers to reject the bill.

The 49ers players – the full 90-man roster – signed a joint statement with the NFLPA, saying “Football takes a real toll on our bodies, and workers’ compensation was built for high-risk jobs like ours.” They added that the bill “singles out professional athletes and tells us we deserve fewer protections than every other worker in the state.”

The bill passed the State Senate in January 2026 but underwent major amendments in the Assembly by May. Following intense union opposition, the bill died in late June 2026 when its first Assembly Insurance Committee hearing was canceled at the author’s request, entirely pulling the bill from consideration.

“California SB 795, a bill that would have significantly restricted professional athletes’ access to workers’ compensation benefits, has been pulled from consideration and will not move forward for a vote,” the NFLPA said in an email to agents. “This is a meaningful win for your clients and helps keep critical protections in place for injuries sustained during their careers. Protecting the health, safety and legal rights of active and former players remains a top priority, and we will continue to fight against efforts that threaten those protections.”