BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 1308
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 1308 (Public Employment and Retirement Committee)
As Amended August 21, 2012
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE : 37-0
PUBLIC EMPLOYEES 5-0
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|Ayes:|Furutani, Mansoor, Allen, | | |
| |Ma, Wieckowski | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Codifies the statutory changes that were put into
effect upon passage of the Governor's Reorganization Plan 1 (GRP
1) which consolidates the Department of Personnel Administration
(DPA) and the State Personnel Board (SPB) into a single agency
to be known as the California Department of Human Resources
(CalHR). Specifically, this bill :
1)Combines the day-to-day staff operations of the DPA and SPB
organizations into a new, consolidated agency: CalHR, and
will result in relocating the two former departments into a
single location (ideally by July 1, 2013.).
2)Identifies a staff-reduction goal of 15% - 20% following
consolidation, which will be achieved over approximately three
years through attrition of existing staff in the two
departments.
3)Specifies that the authority of the DPA director is
transferred to the CalHR director, who will be appointed by
the Governor and approved by the Senate.
4)Preserves the constitutionally created, five-member SPB and
its constitutional role as an independent and objective merit
oversight organization, and retains staff dedicated to the
specific work of the SPB, including a board-appointed
executive officer, an appeals division, and legal staff. SPB
will have its own budget, which will not require approval by
CalHR.
5)Transfers appeals of discrimination in state employment that
are not based on violations of the merit principle to the
SB 1308
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Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) (for example,
general complaints of discrimination would go to DFEH; appeals
of state examination results based on gender, race, or other
protected factors would continue to be heard by SPB). These
types of cases comprise fewer than 100 of the 2,500-2,800
cases heard by SPB annually.
6)Preserves intact some of the current operations and divisions
within DPA, such as the labor-relations division and certain
benefit programs, while combining other functions that overlap
with current administration of SPB into two new divisions:
the Personnel Management Division and the Statewide Services
Division.
7)Includes mostly technical statutory changes, but also includes
provisions allowing CalHR to establish disciplinary criteria
applicable to adverse actions taken by appointing bodies, and
stating that SPB, in arriving at a decision or proposed
decision regarding an appeal on a disciplinary matter, shall
give consideration and respect to the disciplinary criteria,
as specified, consistent with its discretion and authority.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Establishes, in the California Constitution, SPB and requires
SPB to, among other things, enforce the civil service
statutes, prescribe probationary periods and classifications,
adopt rules authorized by statute, and review disciplinary
actions and requires the executive officer of the SPB to
administer the civil service statutes under the rules of SPB.
2)Establishes DPA for purposes of managing the nonmerit aspects
of the state's personnel system.
3)Creates, through GRP 1, operative July 1, 2012, CalHR, which
is vested with the duties, purposes, responsibilities, and
jurisdiction exercised by SPB as its designee with respect to
SPB's administrative and ministerial functions.
4)Abolishes, through GRP 1, DPA, and transfers the functions and
duties performed by the DPA to CalHR.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown. This bill is keyed non-fiscal by the
Legislative Counsel.
SB 1308
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COMMENTS : The Assembly Public Employees, Retirement and Social
Security Committee is informed that GRP 1 eliminates certain
functions of SPB relating to investigating and hearing
complaints of discrimination in the civil service. The plan
also authorizes CalHR to establish disciplinary criteria
applicable to adverse actions taken by appointing bodies
pursuant to causes of discipline for employees and individuals
established pursuant to specified provisions of law. The plan
requires SPB to give consideration and respect to any applicable
disciplinary criteria established by CalHR in making certain
decisions relating to disciplinary proceedings.
According to the sponsor, DPA, "SB 1308 repeats the language in
GRP 1 that the Little Hoover Commission and the Legislature
review last year when they considered the reorganization plan.
Following testimony from the Administration, employee
representatives, and non-profit groups, the Little Hoover
Commission and Senate Committees on Governmental Reorganization
and Public Employment and Retirement recommended GRP 1 go into
effect."
DPA concludes that merging DPA and SPB into a single entity,
CalHR, will result in the elimination of 60 positions (15%
reduction) over the next two fiscal years and a savings of $8.6
million ($3.7 General Fund).
A companion measure, SB 1309 (Negrete McLeod) of this year,
makes numerous statutory changes necessary to implement the GRP
1.
Analysis Prepared by : Karon Green / P.E., R. & S.S. / (916)
319-3957
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