California Compliance and Regulatory Resources

States such as California, with mandates for workplace retirement plans, have seen an increase in implementation three times faster than in non-mandated states.¹ Paychex aims to make things simple by offering resources that can help California businesses with their compliance. Uncover the mandates your business may need to adhere to, including offering retirement programs, pay transparency, and more.

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Compliance Topics

State Tax Rates and Limits

State Supplemental Withholding Rate*

1.1% to 14.63%

2024 CA Withholding Tables

State Unemployment Taxable Wage Base Limit

$7,000

State Unemployment Rate Range for Employers

1.5% to 6.2%

State Unemployment New Employer Rate

3.40%

State Hourly Minimum Wage

$16.50 (effective Jan. 1, 2025. Special rules apply to minimum wage standards for CA. Refer to state laws.)

State Minimum Wage for Tipped Employees

N/A

CA wage and hour information

Paid Family Leave

Employers can choose to offer the state-run California Paid Family Leave plan, which is part of the existing State Disability Insurance (SDI) program, or if they currently receive their SDI from a private insurance carrier, their Paid Family Leave would be included in the SDI.

Employees fund the state program through mandatory payroll deductions to the SDI program.
Employers must provide 8 weeks of paid leave, with variances based on certain qualified instances.

State Tax ID Registration

Withholding and SUI Registration

Registration instructions for California state withholding and SUI are on one form.
- Complete the Power of Attorney (POA) form to use with your registration.
- The registration application may be processed immediately or take up to ten business days depending on the complexity of the application. You will receive an email once your Employer Payroll Tax account number is available with the format XXX-XXXX-X (8 digits).

Entering your account numbers in Paychex Flex: Enter your new account number in your Paychex Flex® account to ensure that your Paychex account is updated and email your registration confirmation document to your Paychex Service Professional.

Refer to the Updating Tax Agency IDs in Paychex Flex instructions to update the information in the application.

Pay Transparency

In effect since Jan. 1, 2023, employers with 15 or more employees, with at least one of the employees currently located in the state, must comply with the California pay transparency law.

Upon request, must disclose pay scale for positions available to applicants and employees.
Required to include a pay scale for a position when they post or advertise any job if the position might ever be filled in California, either in-person or remotely.
Records (job title, wage history) must be kept for duration of employment plus three years after separation.

Note: Employers with one or more employees must provide pay scale to employees in their current position upon request. Employers with 100 or more employees are required to provide annual pay data reports to the Civil Rights Department with additional details.

For more information

State-Facilitated Retirement Programs

CalSavers

Visit our retirement hub to learn more.

Workplace Safety

Cal/OSHA

California has an OSHA-approved state plan covering only state and local government workers. Private-sector employers and their workers are covered by federal OSHA.

Workers' Compensation

Coverage is mandatory for employers with any employees
Certain licensed contractors are required to obtain coverage or certify as self-insured even if they do not have employees

DOL Website

https://www.dir.ca.gov/

Regulatory and Legislative Compliance Podcast

Paid sick leave, industry-specific minimum wages, non-competitive agreements, workplace protections, and more. Director of Compliance Mike Trabold provides insights on what to expect in 2024.