BILL ANALYSIS Ó
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
SB 259 (Hancock)
Hearing Date: 01/19/2012 Amended: 03/14/2011
Consultant: Maureen Ortiz Policy Vote: P.E.&R. 3-2
_________________________________________________________________
____
BILL SUMMARY: SB 259 expands the definition of employees under
the Higher Education Employer-Employee Relations Act to include
student employees whose employment is contingent upon their
status as students.
_________________________________________________________________
____
Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 Fund
Collective bargaining $639
$6,500 $6,500 General
Salary compensation ----potentially $11,681
annually------ Gen/Fed*
dependent on
collective bargaining
*Approximately 85% funding come from Federal grants and Private
sources
_________________________________________________________________
___
STAFF COMMENTS: SUSPENSE FILE.
The intent of SB 259 is to authorize graduate student Research
Assistants who are employed by the University of California to
collectively bargain for benefits. There are approximately
14,000 Research Assistants (RAs) employed by the University of
California (UC), and about 85% of the funding comes from
non-State sources such as Federal funds and private grants, with
the remaining costs coming from the General Fund. The UC
estimates initial costs associated with collective bargaining to
be $638,915, and ongoing administrative costs of approximately
$6.5 million annually for additional necessary staffing
requirements at each of the ten campuses. Administrative costs
stem from the need to provide additional staff support to
> (>)
Page 1
bargain a contract, develop policy and educational materials,
and implement training programs for the campuses. These costs
would likely be paid from the General Fund. In addition, the
UC cost estimate above for salary compensation is based on
funding each research assistant at a midpoint range of Level 5
if the RAs receive a compensation increase as a result of their
new contract. Though the research assistant positions are
mostly funded from grants and federal monies, those grants are
in limited supply and any increases in costs would likely result
in fewer RA positions being offered.
The University of California already extends health insurance
benefits and tuition fee waivers to Research Assistants.
Teaching Assistants, which are subject to collective bargaining,
are additionally provided a child care subsidy as a result of
their negotiated contract. If child care is ultimately
negotiated as a paid benefit to RAs through the collective
bargaining process, the total costs of that benefit would be
approximately $150,000 ($22,500 from the General Fund). This
estimate is based on a comparable number of RAs using the child
care subsidy as the Teacher Assistants have done.
The Higher Education Employer-Employee Relations Act (HEERA)
provides a statutory framework to regulate labor relations
between the University of California (UC), the
California State University (CSU), and Hastings College of Law
and their employees. HEERA is administered and enforced by the
Public Employment Relations Board (PERB).
PERB's decision in Regents of the UC & Association of Student
Employees, UAW, et al (1998) (PERB Order No. 1301-H) rendered a
determination that under the current statutory language, UC's
12,000 Teaching Assistants (TAs), Readers, and Tutors had
bargaining rights but, the Research Assistants (RAs) did not.
This inequity creates a continuity problem when student
employees change positions from TAs to RAs, and back again since
while employed as RAs, they are not covered by a contract and
consequently lose child care subsidies and other rights and
benefits.
Aside from providing eligibility for UC Research Assistants to
participate in a collective bargaining process, the provisions
of SB 259 may create a fundamental change in the faculty-student
relationship which is currently more of an academic
> (>)
Page 2
mentor-mentee relationship. The University of California
indicates that this relationship would change to one of
employer-employee, and could have a severely negative impact on
the University's mission of teaching, research and service.
Student employees who work jobs equivalent to RAs at CSU are
covered under HEERA by voluntary agreement between the UAW and
CSU.
Universities that are awarded federal grant monies for research
activities are always provided with funds to cover costs
associated with indirect costs. The resources required to
conduct extramural research include those elements which are
distinguishable on a project-by-project basis (such as
consumable supplies, salaries of active participants, equipment
purchased for the project) and those that are better calculated
on an institutional basis rather than cost-out by project (e.g.
research administration and accounting, purchasing, library,
space, maintenance).
The Federal Office of Management and Budget, in document
OMB-A-21 , defines allowable direct and indirect costs for
federal grants and contracts. Direct costs are those that can be
specifically identified with the project, whereas Indirect cost
items are associated with general infrastructure support.
Indirect costs are real costs to the University associated with
carrying out extramurally funded research.
There are eight areas of general infrastructural support
described as indirect costs:
o Departmental Administration: Administrative
support such as staff salaries, supplies, and other
general expenses at the college, department, and
program levels. This indirect cost pool is commonly
the largest of the eight factors built into the
indirect cost rate
o Building use: Calculated using a depreciation
schedule, and including debt service costs
> (>)
Page 3
o Equipment: Calculated using depreciation
schedules based on "useful life"
o Operations and Maintenance: Utilities,
repairs, custodial, environmental health and safety,
general facilities management costs
o Library: Administration, purchase of books
and periodicals
o General Administration: General
administrative offices' expenses
o Student Service Administration: A portion of
student services, including admissions, counseling,
health services, etc.
o Sponsored Projects Administration: Typically,
grant and contract office expenses and associated
accounting.
While it has not been determined whether the University of
California can charge costs associated with collective
bargaining activities to contracts and grants as indirect costs,
the UC has determined over the last two years that there has
been insufficient indirect cost recovery to pay for the actual
expenses of conducting research. Furthermore, the amount of
grant monies received, whether for direct or indirect costs,
will not change as a result of the enactment of this bill.
> (>)
Page 4