BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



          SENATE COMMITTEE ON BUDGET AND FISCAL REVIEW 
                              Senator Mark Leno, Chair
                                2015 - 2016  Regular 

          Bill No:            AB 1630         Hearing Date:     
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          |Author:   |Committee on Budget                                   |
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          |Version:  |August 30, 2016    As amended                         |
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          |Urgency:  |No                     |Fiscal:    |Yes              |
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          |Consultant|Anita Lee                                             |
          |:         |                                                      |
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                             Subject:  State employment

          Summary: Provides legislative ratification for the memoranda of  
          understanding (MOU) agreed to by the state and Bargaining Unit  
          (BU) 2, which includes attorneys and hearing officers  
          represented by California Attorneys, Administrative Law Judges,  
          and Hearing Officers in State Employment (CASE). 

          Existing Law:
          
          1)Establishes the Ralph C. Dills Act, which requires the state  
            to collectively bargain with the exclusive representatives of  
            employee groups (i.e. bargaining units) regarding wages and  
            working conditions, and to define negotiated agreements in  
            MOUs.

          2)Establishes the California Department of Human Resources  
            (CalHR) as the official representative of the Governor in all  
            matters related to collective bargaining with state employees.

          3)Requires that any MOU between the state and an exclusive  
            representative must be ratified by the Legislature.

          4)Establishes the California Public Employees' Retirement System  
            (CalPERS), which administers health and retirement benefits  
            for state employees.

          5)Requires the Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO) to analyze all  
            state MOUs and to provide analyses of an MOU and its fiscal  
            impact to the Legislature within 10 days of receipt of an MOU  







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            from CalHR.

          6)Provides that fully vested state retirees (e.g., with 20 or  
            more years of state employment) are entitled to an employer  
            contribution for retiree health care equal to 100 percent of  
            the weighted average premium of the four health plans most  
            highly utilized by all members. Dependents are eligible for a  
            contribution based on 90 percent of the average additional  
            premiums paid for dependents during the benefit year in which  
            the formula is applied. This is referred to as the 100/90  
            formula.

          7)Requires that Medicare-eligible retirees enroll in Medicare  
            and choose a Medicare-coordinated health plan. Since these  
            plans may be cheaper than non-Medicare (or "Basic" plans),  
            thus resulting in some portion of the employer contribution  
            going unused, current law requires that any unused portion of  
            the 100/90 formula contributions may be applied to reimburse  
            retirees for the costs of Medicare Part B premiums. These  
            reimbursements are made in the form of an additional payment  
            to the retiree on the retirement warrant up to the cost of the  
            Part B premium. Whether or not a retiree receives the Medicare  
            Part B reimbursement in full or in part depends upon the cost  
            of that retiree's health plan.

          8)Provides that most state employees (those hired after 1985 or  
            1989, depending on class) must work for 10 years to receive 50  
            percent of the 100/90 formula, with an additional five percent  
            per year of service until, after 20 years, they are vested to  
            receive 100 percent of the 100/90 formula. Individuals hired  
            prior to 1985 or 1989 could be subject to either five year or  
            10 year vesting for full coverage of the 100/90 formula.

          9)Provides that retirees who were covered in certain bargaining  
            units while actively employed will receive an employer retiree  
            health contribution based on the 80/80 formula (i.e., 80  
            percent of the weighted average premium of the four health  
            plans most highly utilized by all members).

          10)         Provides that the employer contribution for active  
            state employee health care shall be determined through  
            collective bargaining. 

          Proposed  








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          Law:  AB 1630 would ratify the proposed BU 2 MOU provisions,  
          effective July 1, 2016 through July 1, 2019, and affect  
          approximately 3,890 full-time equivalent positions. This bill  
          provides the following:



          HEALTH BENEFITS
           1)Employer Contribution for Active State Employees  . The state's  
            monthly consolidated benefit contribution for each employee  
            shall continue to be a flat dollar amount equal to 80 percent  
            of the weighted average of the basic health benefit plan  
            premiums of the four largest enrolled basic health plans. For  
            each employee with enrolled family members, the employer shall  
            continue to contribute an additional flat dollar amount equal  
            to 80 percent of the weighted average of the additional  
            premiums. The flat dollar amounts shall be adjusted as  
            appropriate, pursuant to the formulas on January 1, 2017;  
            January 1, 2018; and January 1, 2019.  


          2)Employer Contribution for Future Retirees  . Employees first  
            hired on or after January 1, 2017, will receive an employer  
            contribution for retiree health benefits based on an "80/80"  
            formula. Retirees and their dependents enrolled in a basic  
            health benefit plan will receive an employer contribution  
            equal to 80 percent of the weighted average premium of the  
            four largest basic health benefit plans based on state active  
            employee enrollment. Retirees and their dependents enrolled in  
            a Medicare health benefit plan will receive an employer  
            contribution equal to 80 percent of the weighted average  
            premium of the four largest Medicare health benefit plans  
            based on state retiree enrollment.  


          3)Prefunding of Other Post-Employment Benefits.  The state and BU  
            2 members will prefund retiree healthcare with the goal of  
            reaching 50 percent cost sharing of actuarially-determined  
            total normal cost for employer and employees by July 1, 2019.  
            The state and employees will each make the following  
            contributions:  


           








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               a)     Effective July 1, 2017, 0.7 percent of pensionable  
                 compensation.  


               b)     Effective July 1, 2018, an additional 0.6 percent  
                 for a total of 1.3 percent of pensionable compensation. 


               c)     Effective July 1, 2019, an additional 0.7 percent  
                 for a total of 2.0 percent of pensionable compensation. 


           1)Post-Employment Health and Dental Vesting Schedule.  All  
            employees first employed by the state on or after January 1,  
            2017, will be subject to an extended vesting schedule  
            providing 50 percent of the employer contribution upon  
            completion of 15 years of state service, increasing five  
            percent for each additional year of service, until the  
            employee is 100 percent vested at 25 years of state service.  


          2)Medicare Part B Supplemental Benefit.  All employees first  
            hired on or after January 1, 2017, will no longer be eligible  
            to use the employer contribution for a retiree health benefit  
            plan for Medicare Part B premiums.  


           COMPENSATION


          1)General Salary Increase (GSI).


             a)   Effective the first day of the pay period following  
               ratification, BU 2 employees shall receive a five percent  
               GSI.


             b)   Effective July 1, 2017, BU 2 employees shall receive a  
               five percent GSI.










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             c)   Effective July 1, 2018, BU 2 employees shall receive a  
               four percent GSI.


          MISCELLANEOUS


          1)Prohibits the implementation of a furlough program or a  
            mandatory personal leave program during the first year of the  
            agreement. Any furlough during the second or third year must  
            be authorized by the Legislature.


          2)Effective May 1, 2017, and depending on the availability of  
            departmental funds,  the amount of leave that can be cashed  
            out each year increases from 20 hours to 80 hours.


          3)Removes the requirement that a new employee must work two  
            years before receiving the full employer health contribution  
            for dependents.


          4)Effective the first day of the pay period following  
            ratification, the lodging reimbursement rate increases from  
            $150 to $250 for San Francisco.


          5)Incorporates the Wounded Warriors Transitional Leave Act  
            (Senate Bill 221, Chapter 794, Statutes of 2015), which  
            provides up to 96 hours of additional sick leave for an  
            employee hired on or after January 1, 2016, who is a military  
            veteran with a service-connected disability rated 30 percent.


          6)Increases the pension contribution rates by one percent for BU  
            2 excluded employees for the purpose of ensuring the same  
            contribution rate as BU 2 rank and file employees. 


          OTHER PROVISIONS


              1)   Chief Sergeant-at-Arms.  This bill also classifies the  








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               chief sergeant-at-arms of the Assembly as a peace officer  
               in CalPERS for the purpose of ensuring that the Assembly  
               chief sergeant-at-arms and the rank and file sergeants are  
               subject to the same retirement benefit formulas. The chief  
               sergeant-at-arms of the Senate will continue to be excluded  
               from the peace officer classification in CalPERS.


          This change is due to the passage of the Public Employees'  
          Pension Reform Act of 2013, which closed the Legislator's  
          Retirement System to new members and inadvertently resulted in a  
          new chief sergeant-at-arms (now classified as a "miscellaneous"  
          member in CalPERS) receiving a retirement benefit formula lower  
          than that provided to rank and file sergeants who are classified  
          as peace officers in CalPERS. 


          Fiscal Effect: According to CalHR, BU 2's MOU results in the  
          following costs:


                 Fiscal Year 2016-17:  $24.2 million ($6.6 million  
               General Fund)


                 Total Incremental:  $109.1 million ($29.7 million  
               General Fund)


                 Total Budgetary:  $309 million( $84.1 million General  
               Fund)


          In addition, according to CalHR, roughly $4 million General Fund  
          a year will be absorbed within departmental resources for costs  
          associated with leave cash out. 



          Support:   None on file.
          
          Opposed:  None on file.
          
          








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