Several California rules give applicants and employees a way to ask about automated decisions. Most come from the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) regulations on automated decisionmaking technology, abbreviated ADMT. One comes from a new labor law, and one comes from the Civil Rights Council. This post lists the questions people can ask, the section behind each, and what a prepared employer can say.

On scope, the California Privacy Protection Agency says of the CCPA: "It includes California residents that are employees or job applicants." It also says the employee exemptions "expired on December 31, 2022." Whether a given employer is a covered business depends on statutory thresholds, so confirm that with counsel. The ADMT rules require compliance no later than January 1, 2027 (11 CCR section 7200(b)). Our post on the January 1, 2027 deadline covers the timeline.

Question One: Are You Using Automated Technology on My Application, and Why?

The pre-use notice answers this. Under section 7220, the notice goes to the person at or before the point of collection. It must state the specific purpose of the technology, whether the person can opt out or appeal or which exception the business relies on, the right to access information about the technology, and that the business will not retaliate. It must also explain how the technology works: the categories of personal information that affect the output, the type of output, and the alternative process if the person opts out. Section 7220(e)(2) gives resume screening software as one of its examples.

A prepared employer can hand over a notice that names the purpose of the tool in plain terms, not a generic phrase about making decisions.

Question Two: Did a Person Review the Result?

Section 7001(e) defines ADMT as "any technology that processes personal information and uses computation to replace human decisionmaking or substantially replace human decisionmaking." The definition then describes human involvement. The reviewer must know how to interpret the output, must review and analyze it, and must have authority to make or change the decision.

If a tool only produces a score that a trained reviewer weighs and can overrule, the tool may fall outside the definition. If the score alone rejects people, it likely does not. A candidate who asks this question deserves an answer that describes who reviews, what they see, and what they can change. A reviewer who sees only a score, or who has no authority to override it, does not meet the description above, and the answer to the candidate should say so honestly.

Question Three: What Did the System Do With My Information?

The access right in section 7222(b) lets a person ask for three things. The first is the purpose for which the technology was used. The second is the logic, which, in the words of the regulation, "may include the parameters that generated the output as well as the specific output with respect to the consumer." The third is the outcome of the decision, including whether the output was "the sole factor" in the decision or whether other factors were involved. The business may not retaliate for the request.

Section 7222(c) contains a trade-secret carve-out. An employer that relies on it should have counsel review the specific withholding. Under section 7222(f), a denial comes with an explanation of its basis, so silence is not an option.

Question Four: Can I Opt Out?

Section 7221(b)(2) contains a hiring exception. In summary, it covers technology used to assess a person's ability to perform the work, where the business has taken steps to make sure the technology works for that purpose and does not unlawfully discriminate. The exception does not erase the other duties. The notice and the access right still apply.

This matters because many teams assume an exception means silence. It means a different set of obligations, not none.

Question Five: What Data Did You Use About Me as an Employee?

Senate Bill 947 (Labor Code sections 1520 to 1526.7) reaches discipline and termination, not hiring. Section 1522(b)(1) says an employer may not rely solely on an automated decision system for those decisions. Section 1522(d) lets an employee request "a meaningful, objective description of the employee's own data used by the ADS." Under section 1526.7, "This part shall become operative on July 1, 2027." Our post on Senate Bill 947 explains why hiring teams should still read it.

Question Six: What Have You Done to Test for Bias?

No section described here gives an applicant a right to see test results, but the question matters in a claim. Under 2 CCR section 11009(f) of the Civil Rights Council regulations, relevant to any claim or defense is "evidence, or the lack of evidence, of anti-bias testing or similar proactive efforts to avoid unlawful discrimination, including the quality, efficacy, recency, and scope of such effort, the results of such testing or other effort, and the response to the results." An employer that can show dated testing and a documented response is in a stronger position than one that cannot. See what a bias audit should contain and our overview of the Civil Rights Council rules.

How to Prepare Before the Question Arrives

Write a one-page description for each tool. State its purpose, the categories of data it uses, the type of output, and where a person reviews it.

Name an owner. One person should receive requests and know the deadlines described in our post on answering a candidate data request.

Keep the reviewer record. Record who reviewed, what they saw, and whether they changed the result.

Keep the testing file. Store test dates, results, and any change made in response.

Keep the records long enough. See the four-year recordkeeping rule.

How TrueScan HR Helps

TrueScan HR scores a resume against the job description and shows the matched and missing skills, along with a narrative assessment that explains each score. The reviewer makes the decision, and TrueScan HR keeps a scored record for each resume. Enterprise plans include certified weekly bias testing and a 4/5ths adverse impact report.

The Bottom Line

A candidate or employee may ask what the tool is for, whether a person reviewed the result, what data it used, and what testing stands behind it. Each question has a source in California law, and each answer is easier when the records exist before the request arrives.

This post is general information, not legal advice. TrueScan HR is not a law firm. Confirm how these rules apply to your organization with employment counsel.

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