California’s BASED Act Stalls After Even Committee Vote

*TL;DR: A 3-3 tie in a California Senate committee killed the BASED Act, halting a proposal to bar dominant platforms from favoring their own products.

Context California has been reshaping its antitrust toolkit, passing a merger‑review law, raising penalties for state antitrust breaches, and banning certain algorithmic pricing tactics. The latest effort, the Blocking Anticompetitive Self‑preferencing by Entrenched Dominant Platforms Act (BASED Act), sought to extend that push into the digital arena.

Key Facts The bill targeted platforms with at least $1 trillion in market value and 100 million monthly active U.S. users. It would have made it unlawful for these firms to condition access on purchases of their own services or to block users from sharing data with third parties. Critics warned the language could outlaw common features such as fast‑shipping guarantees, pre‑installed apps, and integrated map links. The measure failed to advance when the Senate Privacy, Digital Technologies and Consumer Protection Committee split 3‑3 on April 20, leaving the proposal dead in the water.

What It Means The defeat shows the difficulty of crafting sweeping competition rules without clear evidence of market harm. While the BASED Act mirrored federal attempts like the 2022 American Innovation and Choice Online Act, it also diverged by presuming illegality without a harm test, a departure from a century of antitrust practice. The outcome does not signal an end to California’s aggressive stance; lawmakers are now eyeing the COMPETE Act, which would broaden prohibitions to all businesses, potentially affecting small retailers as well as tech giants. The state’s Law Revision Commission continues to study broader antitrust reforms, suggesting further proposals may surface.

Looking Ahead Watch for the Assembly’s vote on the COMPETE Act and any new statewide antitrust initiatives that could reshape competition rules beyond the tech sector.