AB 566, as amended, Wieckowski. Courts: personal services contracting.
The Trial Court Employment Protection and Governance Act establishes a trial court employee personnel system that provides authority to hire trial court personnel, regulates the classification and compensation of trial court employees, labor relations, and personnel files, and requires each trial court to establish a system of employment selection and advancement and an employment protection system.
Existing law authorizes state agencies to use personal services contracts to achieve cost savings if specified standards are satisfied, including, among other things, the contract does not cause the displacement of civil service employees and the contract is awarded through a publicized, competitive bidding process. The State Personnel Board is required to review a proposed contract upon the request of an employee organization for compliance with those standards.
This bill, until January 1, 2020, would establish specified standards if a trial court intends to enter into a new contract, or renew or extend an existing contract, for any services that are currently or customarily performed by that trial court’s employees. Among other things, the bill would require the trial court to clearly demonstrate that the contract will result in actual overall cost savings to the trial court for the duration of the entire contract as compared with the trial court’s actual costs of providing the same services. The bill would require a contract for services in excess of $100,000 annually to include specific, measurable performance standards and provisions for audits on performance and cost savings, as specified.
This bill would provide that these standards apply to any contract entered into, renewed, or extended after the effective date of this measure. The bill would provide that its provisions do not apply to a contract under specified circumstances, including when services are incidental to a contract for the purchase or lease of real or personal property.
This bill would require each trial court to provide a report by February 1, 2014, to the chairperson of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee and the chairpersons of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Assembly Judiciary Committee if the trial court entered into a contract between July 1, 2013, and the effective date of this measure for services that were provided or are customarily provided by its trial court employees if the contract has a term extending beyond March 31, 2014. This report would be required to include specified information relating to these contracts, including an analysis of whether the contract resulted in the displacement of trial court employees.
The bill would provide that its provisions are severable.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 71621 is added to the Government Code,
2to read:
(a) If a trial court intends to enter into a new contract,
4or renew or extend an existing contract, for any services that are
5currently or customarily performed by that trial court’s employees,
6all of the following requirements shall apply:
7(1) The trial court shall clearly demonstrate that the contract
8will result in actual overall cost savings to the trial court for the
9duration of the entire contract as compared with the trial court’s
10actual costs of providing the same services. In comparing costs,
11all of the following shall occur:
12(A) The trial court’s additional cost of providing the same
13services as
proposed by the contract shall be included. These
14additional costs shall include the salaries and benefits of additional
15staff that would be needed and the cost of additional space,
16equipment, and materials needed to perform the services.
17(B) The trial court’s indirect overhead costs shall not be included
18unless those costs can be attributed solely to the function in
19question and would not exist if that function was not performed
20by the trial court. For the purposes of this subparagraph, “indirect
21overhead costs” means the pro rata share of existing administrative
22salaries and benefits, rent, equipment costs, utilities, and materials.
23(C) The cost of a contractor providing a service for any
24continuing trial court costs that would be directly associated with
25the contracted function shall
be included. Continuing trial court
26costs shall include, but not be limited to, costs for inspection,
27supervision, and monitoring.
28(2) The contract shall not be approved solely on the basis that
29savings will result from lower contractor pay rates or benefits.
30Contracts shall be eligible for approval if the contractor’s wages
31are at the industry’s level and do not materially undercut trial court
32pay rates.
33(3) The contract shall not cause an existing trial court employee
34to incur a loss of his or her employment or employment seniority,
P4 1a reduction in wages, benefits, or hours, or an involuntary transfer
2to a new location requiring a change in residence.
3(4) The contract shall not be approved if, in light of the services
4provided
by trial courts and the special nature of the judicial
5function, it would be inconsistent with the public interest to have
6the services covered by the contract performed by a private entity.
7(5) The contract shall be awarded through a publicized,
8competitive bidding process.
9(6) The contract shall include specific provisions pertaining to
10the qualifications of the staff that will perform the work under the
11contract, as well as assurances that the contractor’s hiring practices
12meet applicable nondiscrimination standards.
13(7) The contract shall provide that it may be terminated at any
14time by the trial court without penalty if there is a material breach
15of the contract and notice is provided within 30 days of termination.
16(8) If the contract is for services in excess of one hundred
17thousand dollars ($100,000) annually, all of the following shall
18occur:
19(A) The trial court shall require the contractor to disclose all of
20the following information as part of its bid, application, or answer
21to a request for proposal:
22(i) A description of all charges, claims, or complaints filed
23against the contractor with a federal, state, or local administrative
24agency during the prior 10 years.
25(ii) A description of all civil complaints filed against the
26contractor in a state or federal court during the prior 10 years.
27(iii) A
description of all state or federal criminal complaints or
28indictments filed against the contractor, or any of its officers,
29directors, or managers, at any time.
30(iv) A description of any debarments of the contractor by a
31public agency or licensing body at any time.
32(B) The trial court shall include in the contract specific,
33measurable performance standards and provisions for a
34performance audit by the trial court, or an independent auditor
35approved by the trial court, to determine whether the performance
36standards are being met and whether the contractor is in compliance
37with applicable laws and regulations. The trial court shall not renew
38or extend the contract prior to receiving and considering the audit
39report.
P5 1(C) The contract shall include provisions for an audit by the
2trial court, or an independent auditor approved by the trial court,
3to determine whether and to what extent the anticipated cost
4savings have actually been realized. The trial court shall not renew
5or extend the contract before receiving and considering the audit
6report.
7(9) The contract shall be awarded only if the amount of savings
8clearly justifies the size and duration of the contracting agreement.
9(b) For purposes of subdivision (a), “services that are
10customarily performed” includes services that have been
11historically performed bybegin insert thatend insert trialbegin delete courtend deletebegin insert
court’send insert employees.
12(c) This section does not preclude a trial court or the Judicial
13Council from adopting more restrictive rules regarding the
14contracting of court services.
15(d) This section does not apply to a contract in any of the
16following circumstances:
17(1) The contract is between a trial court and another trial court
18or a government entity for services to be performed by employees
19of the other trial court or employees of the government entity.
20(2) The contract is for a new trial court function and the
21Legislature has specifically mandated or authorized the
22performance of the services by independent contractors.
23(3) The services contracted for are of such a highly specialized
24or technical nature that the necessary expert knowledge, experience,
25and ability are not available from the court’s trial court employees.
26(4) The services are incidental to a contract for the purchase or
27lease of real or personal property. Contracts described in this
28paragraph, known as “service agreements,” shall include, but not
29be limited to, agreements to service or maintain office equipment
30or computers that are leased or rented. Contracts described in this
31paragraph shall not include agreements to operate equipment or
32computers, except as necessary to service or maintain that
33equipment.
34(5) The legislative, administrative, or legal goals and purposes
35cannot
be accomplished through the utilization of trial court
36employees because of the need to protect against a conflict of
37interest or to ensure independent and unbiased findings in situations
38where there is a clear need for an independent, outside perspective.
39(6) Due to an emergency, a contract is necessary for the
40immediate preservation of the public health, welfare, or safety.
P6 1(7) The contractor will conduct training courses for which
2appropriately qualified trial court employee instructors are not
3available from the court, provided that permanent instructor
4positions shall be filled through the process for hiring trial court
5employees.
6(8) The services are of such an urgent, temporary, or occasional
7nature that the delay
incumbent in their implementation through
8the process for hiring trial court employees would frustrate their
9very purpose. This paragraph shall not apply to the services of
10official court reporters, but individual official reporters pro tempore
11may be used by a trial court when the criteria of this paragraph are
12satisfied.
13(9) The contract is a personal services contract developed
14pursuant to rehabilitation programs in accordance with Sections
1519403 and 19404 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, pursuant
16to habilitation programs in accordance with Chapter 13
17(commencing with Section 4850) of Division 4.5 of the Welfare
18and Institutions Code, or pursuant to a program vendored or
19contracted through a regional center or the State Department of
20Developmental Services in accordance with the Lanterman
21Developmental Disabilities Services Act
(Division 4.5
22(commencing with Section 4500) of the Welfare and Institutions
23Code), and the contract will not cause an existing trial court
24employee to incur a loss of his or her employment or employment
25seniority; a reduction in wages, benefits, or hours; or an involuntary
26transfer to a new location requiring a change in residence.
27(10) The contract is for the services of any court interpreter.
28Contracts for the services of any court interpreter, and restrictions
29on contracting out interpreter services, shall be governed by the
30Trial Court Interpreter Employment and Labor Relations Act
31(Chapter 7.5 (commencing with Section 71800)) and any
32memorandum of understanding or agreement entered into pursuant
33to that act, or by the other provisions of this chapter, the Trial Court
34Employment Protection and Governance Act, and any
35memorandum
of understanding or agreement entered into pursuant
36to that act, as applicable.
37(e) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2020,
38and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
39is enacted before January 1, 2020, deletes or extends that date.
Section 71621 of the Government Code, as added by
2Section 1 of this act, shall apply to any contract entered into,
3renewed, or extended after the effective date of this act.
(a) Each trial court shall provide a report by no later
5than February 1, 2014, to the chairperson of the Joint Legislative
6Budget Committee and the chairpersons of the Senate Judiciary
7Committee and Assembly Judiciary Committee if the trial court
8entered into a contract between July 1, 2013, and the effective date
9of this act, for services that were provided or are customarily
10provided by its trial court employees and that contract has a term
11extending beyond March 31, 2014. The report shall provide the
12following information for each of these contracts:
13(1) A copy of the contract.
14(2) An analysis of whether the contract would have been
15permissible under the standards set forth in Section 71621 of the
16Government Code, as added by Section 1 of this act.
17(3) An analysis of whether the contract resulted in the
18displacement of trial court employees.
19(4) An analysis of whether the contract involves the use of
20contractors to perform the type of services that were customarily
21performed by trial court employees.
22(b) It is the intent of the Legislature to consider the reduction
23of future budget appropriations to each trial court by the amount
24of any contract analyzed pursuant to subdivision (a) if the
25Legislature concludes that the contract would not have been
26permissible under the standards
provided in Section 71621 of the
27Government Code, as added by Section 1 of this act.
The provisions of this act are severable. If any
29provision of this act or its application is held invalid, that invalidity
30shall not affect other provisions or applications that can be given
31effect without the invalid provision or application.
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