emitchell asked

Should the law requiring that larger California employers provide their workers with health insurance be blocked?

In a defeat for business groups, a Sacramento County judge blocked a March voter referendum to overturn a law requiring that larger California employers provide their workers with health insurance. Superior Court Judge Lloyd Connelly ruled that petitions used by business groups to collect signatures lacked adequate notice of what the referendum would do. He also said a summary prepared by the attorney general's office was misleading. The summary failed to disclose that the statute wouldn't apply to employers with 20 to 49 workers unless the Legislature passed a subsequent tax break for those business owners. The attorney general's office will have to review the ruling before it decides how it will proceed, said spokeswoman Hallye Jordan. But the California Chamber of Commerce said it will definitely appeal the ruling, which blocks counties from validating the more than 620,000 signatures collected for the referendum. The chamber and other business groups oppose the health insurance law because they say it is too expensive and will force businesses to lay off workers or leave the state.

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