On July 18, 2023, Attorney General Robert Bona announced that Missouri, Nebraska, and Wyoming will be added to the list of banned travel states. These states have been added to Assembly Bill 1887, the law restricting the funding or sponsoring of state business travel to states with discriminatory laws.
The current list of restricted states are as follows:
- Alabama
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- Florida
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- Missouri (as of August 28, 2023)
- Montana
- Nebraska (as of October 1, 2023)
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- West Virginia
- Wyoming (as of July 14, 2023)
Background
As of January 1, 2017, the CSU Travel Policy and Procedures has been revised to comply with Assembly Bill 1887, which added Section 11139.8 to the Government Code relating to discrimination and was approved by the governor in September, 2016. As a result of this law, it has been determined that SJSU is restricted from requiring employees to travel to certain states, and is prohibited from approving funding or sponsoring travel to those states with laws enacted to void or repeal discrimination protections, or, to authorize or require discrimination.
Exceptions to the prohibitions that may be granted, and of note to SJSU, include the following (see SJSU Travel Guide for the complete list):
- To meet contractual obligations incurred before January 1, 2017.
- To participate in meetings or training required by a grant or required to maintain grant funding.
- For the protection of public health, welfare, or safety, as determined by the CSU or other state agencies.
- The list of affected states is maintained on the California State Attorney General website, State of California Department of Justice. Travelers and approvers are advised to check the website when planning or approving out-of-state travel. Auxiliary funds may be used for travel to restricted states.
If you have any questions, please contact FinanceConnect at financeconnect@sjsu.edu or 408-924-1558.
References
SJSU Travel Guide
CSU Travel Procedures
Assembly Bill 1887
Office of the Attorney General