A Sacramento Superior Court judge on Friday temporarily blocked California's Department of Industrial Relations from implementing a law that would allow the state to bargain wages and working conditions on behalf of fast-food workers in California. The legislation, known as AB 257 or the FAST Recovery Act, is being contested by a committee of franchisees and counter-service restaurant operators, who launched the referendum effort against it after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the bill in September. The group announced earlier this month it had submitted more than enough petition signatures to block the law from going into effect, qualifying it for voters to ultimately decide on the 2024 ballot. California's Secretary of State's Office has said Jan. 25 was the deadline for counties to report their random sample verification results of those signatures. From there, the measure could either qualify, fail or move to a full check of signatures, depending on the results.On Dec. 27, the Department of Industrial Relations informed the attorneys representing opponents of AB 257 that it intended to implement the law regardless of the referendum effort underway, noting if and when the referendum qualifies for the ballot, it would then be put on hold. In response, the committee against AB 257, called Save Our Local Restaurants, filed a lawsuit against the state Thursday, arguing the secretary of state had issued a notice on Dec. 9, stating the referendum petition filed against AB 257 contains more than the minimum number of required signatures. The group also noted in the referendum process, the California Constitution prohibits laws from going into effect until voters decide. "Above all, today’s decision by the Sacramento Superior Court protects the voices of over one million California voters who exercised their democratic right in asking to vote on a piece of legislation before bearing its burden," reads a statement from the Save Our Local Restaurants coalition. "This process has been preserved for more than 100 years and was in grave risk of being suppressed. While this pause is temporary, the impact is beyond just one piece of legislation and keeps intact for the time being California’s century-old referendum process."A hearing on the issue is set for Jan. 13.