BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 2493 Page 1 ASSEMBLY THIRD READING AB 2493 (Atkins) As Introduced May 31, 2016 Majority vote ------------------------------------------------------------------ |Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------| |Insurance |10-0 |Daly, Travis Allen, | | | | |Calderon, Chu, | | | | |Cooley, Cooper, | | | | |Dababneh, Frazier, | | | | |Gatto, Rodriguez | | | | | | | |----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------| |Appropriations |15-0 |Gonzalez, Bloom, | | | | |Bonilla, Bonta, | | | | |Calderon, Chang, | | | | |Daly, Eggman, Eduardo | | | | |Garcia, Roger | | | | |Hernández, Holden, | | | | |Quirk, Santiago, | | | | |Weber, Wood | | | | | | | | | | | | ------------------------------------------------------------------ AB 2493 Page 2 SUMMARY: Authorizes enhanced temporary disability benefits (commonly referred to as "4850 time") for rank and file and supervisory firefighters employed by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFIRE). Specifically, this bill: 1)Grants firefighter employees of CalFIRE, whether they are rank and file or supervisory employees, the right to a leave of absence for up to one year, in lieu of other disability benefits provided by the Labor Code, with full pay in the event of a disabling injury that arises out of, or occurs in the course of, employment. 2)Provides that the benefit is available to the employees who are engaged in active firefighting duties. EXISTING LAW: 1)Provides for a comprehensive system of employer-paid benefits to be provided to employees who suffer illness or injury that arises out of, or in the course of, employment. 2)Includes temporary disability benefits (TD) for up to 104 weeks if an employee is temporarily unable to work during recuperation from the workplace illness or injury. 3)Establishes a minimum and a maximum amount that an employee may receive, which is adjusted annually to reflect rising wage levels. Currently the minimum benefit is $165 per week, and the maximum benefit is $1103. The benefit is calculated based on 2/3 of an employee's average weekly wages, subject to the maximum cap. 4)Provides specified public safety officers (most peace officer AB 2493 Page 3 and firefighter employees of local governments and special districts) with an enhanced temporary disability benefit for up to the first year of temporary disability. These safety officers receive their full salary (tax free) during the first year of temporary disability. (Labor Code Section 4850.) 5)Provides this same enhanced disability benefit to officers of the California Highway Patrol. (Labor Code Section 4800.5.) 6)Provides this same enhanced benefit to employees of the Department of Justice who are in the "state peace officer/firefighter" classification, whose principal duties involve active law enforcement, and to harbor police employed by the San Francisco Harbor Commission. (Labor Code Section 4800.) 7)Provides this same benefit to firefighters employed by the University of California fire department, whose primary duties consist of active firefighting and prevention services, and law enforcement officers of the University of California Police Department, whose primary duties consist of active law enforcement. (Labor Code Sections 4804.1 and 4806.) 8)Provides, for employees of the California State University Police Department whose principal duties consist of active law enforcement, an enhanced industrial disability leave for up to one year in an amount equal to his or her "net take home salary," defined as the salary received after state and federal income taxes, and employee retirement contributions, have been deducted. (Labor Code Section 4816.) 9)Provides CalFIRE firefighters, as a result of collective bargaining, injured during active firefighting activities, with a TD benefit similar to that received by California State AB 2493 Page 4 University police (essentially regular TD but without the cap). FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, CalFIRE estimates approximately $1.2 million annually based on increased benefit payments and increased leave time and overtime costs. CalFIRE also estimates increased oversight staffing needs of between $120,000 and $350,000 annually, depending on workload. COMMENTS: 1)Purpose. The purpose of the bill is to treat CalFIRE firefighters fairly by providing them with benefits similar to the benefits available to most other firefighters in California. According to the author, "A firefighter is a firefighter, regardless of what entity issues their badge." The risk factors faced by CalFIRE firefighters are the same as the firefighters employed by other agencies, and the benefits available to CalFIRE firefighters ought to be the same. 2)Temporary disability benefits. The goal of TD is to approximate an employee's take home pay during the period after injury when the employee is temporarily unable to work. This goal is implemented by basing the weekly TD benefit on 2/3 of the employee's average weekly wages. Because there is a cap, employees who make more than approximately $1600 per week do not reach this 2/3 goal, but because the benefit is tax free, most employees receive an adequate TD benefit while they are recovering. CalFIRE firefighters injured while actually fighting a fire receive, as a result of collective bargaining, a TD benefit that is calculated similarly to regular TD, but not subject to the cap. AB 2493 Page 5 3)Special public safety benefits. Most public safety officers (peace officer, sheriff, and firefighter employees generally) receive certain special workers' compensation benefits that other employees do not receive. Most notably, this class of employee has the benefit of a range of "presumptions" that certain illnesses or injuries are automatically deemed to be work related. All other employees are required to prove that their condition is work related. The second significant special workers' compensation benefit is granted by Labor Code Sections 4800 through 4850 - commonly referred to as "4850 time" - and this law grants defined employees up to one year of full salary in lieu of the regular method for calculating TD benefits. 4)Tax advantages. Because these benefits are paid due to disability, they are not subject to either state or federal taxes. This rule applies to regular TD benefits, and to 4800-4850 benefits. Because of the tax-free status of this benefit, a public safety officer takes home substantially more in weekly benefits than they normally earn while working - i.e., normal take home pay plus what would have been paid in taxes. Public employers have long complained that this creates a disincentive in getting injured public safety officers to return to work, even if they are able, due to the financial loss they would suffer when they return. 5)Collective bargaining? If a public agency wants to grant employees certain benefits of employment, it is able to accomplish that goal without need for a statutory change. In fact, the City of Los Angeles has provided "4850-like" benefits to a range of employees without need of a statute mandating the benefit for those employees. CalFIRE fighters have, in fact, already utilized collective bargaining to obtain a "better than regular TD" benefit. It may be the case that the collective bargaining process, and not legislation, is the better approach to enhancing the benefits of this class of employee. AB 2493 Page 6 6)Recent legislation. In 2013, SB 527 (Block), Chapter 66, was signed into law. SB 527 added lifeguards employed by the City of San Diego to the list of public safety employees entitled to 4850 time. Proponents of that bill argued that the San Diego lifeguards performed duties comparable to Los Angeles County lifeguards, who already have this benefit. The City of San Diego was in support of SB 527. Last year, AB 1451 (Chavez) sought to provide 4850 benefits to a class of lifeguards employed by the City of Oceanside, arguing that other lifeguards employed by San Diego and Los Angeles who performed comparable duties already receive this benefit. Governor Brown vetoed AB 1451. The veto message stated: "This bill adds full-time lifeguards employed by the City of Oceanside to the list of employees who are entitled up to one year of leave, paid at full salary without payroll tax deductions, if they suffer an illness or injury that arises out of their job duties. "Recent data indicates public employers' costs related to this disability leave benefit have increased at an alarming rate. These cost figures give me pause to extend this benefit further in state law. If the City of Oceanside wishes to offer full salary in lieu of temporary disability for one year to their regular full-time lifeguards, they are free to do so by means of the collective bargaining process. Eligibility for this benefit is best left to the City of Oceanside, not the state, to determine." AB 2493 Page 7 Analysis Prepared by: Mark Rakich / INS. / (916) 319-2086 FN: 0003213