(Excerpt)The state Senate leader, John Burton, stood before the podium at a news conference in Sacramento the other day to declare that a law requiring California firms to provide health insurance for employees won't go down without a fight.

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The legislation, SB2, was enacted by former Gov. Gray Davis shortly before he was recalled last year. It's now the target of a business-backed referendum that will come before voters in November.

"We passed a law to ensure that every Californian who works hard and plays by the rules gets affordable health care on the job," Burton, D-San Francisco, told reporters. "We're not going to let those protections get ripped away before they even have a chance to take effect."

That won't be easy. Burton and other backers of SB2, including labor unions and medical associations, are facing deep-pocketed opponents who see millions in political donations as a small price to pay for stopping a law they estimate will cost companies about $5.7 billion a year.

Make no mistake: SB2 is not perfect. Despite the whopping price tag, it would end up insuring only about a seventh of roughly 7 million uninsured Californians. It is at best a stopgap measure until a more comprehensive solution to the state's health care problem comes along.

That said, SB2 would extend health insurance to more than a million people, and that's no small accomplishment.

According to public records, the business community, led by the restaurant and retail industries, has already donated millions of dollars to Californians Against Government Run Healthcare, an umbrella organization for foes of SB2.

The biggest individual corporate donor by far is fast-food giant McDonald's, which pays its thousands of hourly workers close to minimum wage and typically charges them for access to health coverage. As of the end of May, McDonald's and its franchisees had contributed at least $663,000 to repeal SB2.

In the first quarter of 2004, records show, more than 200 donations from McDonald's and its franchisees were reported on just five different dates, suggesting a highly coordinated effort by the company to fill the anti-SB2 coffers.

Bill Whitman, a McDonald's spokesman, declined to discuss the company's efforts to mobilize franchisees. All he'd say is that "we're always talking to our operators about what's important to our collective businesses."

In a separate statement, McDonald's said "mandated health care" under SB2 "could limit our ability to reinvest in the California economy" and "jeopardize our ability to provide employment opportunities in this state."

Beginning in January 2006, SB2 would require all California companies with 200 or more workers to provide state-approved health insurance or pay a fee to the state comparable to the cost of coverage. It would extend its reach to businesses with at least 50 employees a year later.

According to a study funded by the California Chamber of Commerce, which opposes SB2, this would cost companies with 200 or more employees $5,718 per worker. Smaller companies would be forced to pay $2,276 per worker.

The second-largest corporate donor is Macy's West, which has contributed at least $300,000 to the anti-SB2 committee. The firm said in a statement that it opposes the law "because it does nothing to control health care costs and instead forces companies to spend billions of dollars whether they can afford it or not."

The California Retailers Association says major department stores are fighting SB2 primarily because they're against its provision that health insurance also be provided to employees' dependents.

Macy's is followed on the anti-SB2 donor list by Carl's Jr. and its franchisees ($217,500); Darden Restaurants, owner of the Olive Garden and Red Lobster chains ($125,000); and Outback Steakhouse and its franchisees ($116, 000).

Among companies that have each contributed at least $100,000 to roll back SB2 are Nordstrom, Target, Sears and Office Depot. Firms donating between $25, 000 and $55,000 include Wendy's International, Marriott International and In-N- Out Burgers.

The biggest single donor to the anti-SB2 committee is the California Restaurant Association, which has given at least $1.2 million to stop SB2 in its tracks.

"We can't not fight this law," said Jot Condie, president of the association and co-chair of Californians Against Government Run Healthcare. "Our members have done the math, and the economics just don't pencil out."
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Source: San Francisco Chronicle