(CelebrityAccess MediaWire) – Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed Senator Kevin Murray’s bill to raise the surety bond talent agencies must deposit with the labor commissioner from $10,000 to $50,000.
Murray’s efforts were sponsored by the Screen Actor’s Guild, who approached the senator after receiving numerous complaints from actors about defunct agencies that claim an inability to repay overdue wages, leaving actors without legal recourse.
“There are a lot of people in Los Angeles who are just working every day to try to make a living,” Murray, an entertainment lawyer and a former agent at William Morris, told BackStage.com. “Often they’re represented by smaller agencies, and if there’s a bad time at the agency, those artists who did work and are owed money can be left holding the bag.” –by CelebrityAccess Staff Writers
