BILL ANALYSIS Ó
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
AB 501 (Campos)
Hearing Date: 8/25/2011 Amended: 4/6/2011
Consultant: Maureen Ortiz Policy Vote: PE&R 3-2
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BILL SUMMARY: AB 501 expands the definition of "public school
employer" or "employer" to include auxiliary organizations
established by the California Community Colleges and joint
powers agencies for the purposes of collective bargaining under
the Education Employment Relations Act (EERA).
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Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 Fund
CCC bargaining expenses -----unknown, potentially
significant--- General*
JPA bargaining --------unknown,
potentially $750-------- General
PERB admin expenses -------------likely minor,
absorbable---------- General
*Counts toward meeting the Proposition 98 minimum funding
guarantee.
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STAFF COMMENTS: SUSPENSE FILE.
The Commission on State Mandates has determined that costs for
collective bargaining are reimbursable by the state. In the
2005-06 fiscal year, the state accrued almost $25 million in
mandated cost obligations for local education agency collective
bargaining claims. The typical cost is about $20,000 to $25,000
per agreement. There are about 70 education-related JPAs in the
state, primarily for purposes of home-to-school transportation
and vocational education services. Assuming half of these JPAs
engage in collective bargaining utilizing the EERA, reimbursable
costs would be approximately $750,000. Additionally, AB 501
AB 501 (Campos)
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could result in an unknown increase in costs to school districts
for wage and benefit increases resulting from the collective
bargaining agreements.
Collective bargaining coverage had been extended to JPAs until
1990 when a Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) decision
found that since JPAs were not specifically included in the
definition of "public school employer" or "employer" for the
purposes of EERA, the JPAs were not required to engage in
collective bargaining with employees. In Castaic Union School
District v. CSEA (2010), the PERB ruled that noon-time duty
aides were ineligible to receive representation rights because
they are neither certificated nor classified public school
employees. Further in SanJose/Evergreen Community College
District (2007), PERB ruled that employees of a JPA consisting
of public schools were not eligible for organization even though
many of these same employees were considered "public school
employees" for purposes of the EERA until the JPA was created,
even though they continued to perform the same work.
AB 501 also extends collective bargaining rights to auxiliary
organizations established at community colleges. Such
organizations are formed to assist community colleges in seeking
grant funds or specialized student services. According to the
Community College League, classified college staff that support
auxiliary organizations are represented by an exclusive
bargaining representative of classified employees. However,
often colleges hire individuals on a short/limited-term basis
specifically to develop the grant proposals.
This bill is similar to AB 1463 (Eng) which was held on this
committee's Suspense File in 2007, however, that bill only
included JPAs.