BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 221
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Date of Hearing: June 30, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON VETERANS AFFAIRS
Jacqui Irwin, Chair
SB
221 (Jackson) - As Amended April 20, 2015
SENATE VOTE: 40-0
SUBJECT: State public employees: sick leave: veterans with
service-related disabilities
SUMMARY: Creates a new category of sick leave available to
newly hired state disabled veteran employees. Specifically,
this bill:
1)Requires that in addition to any other entitlement for sick
leave with pay, a state officer or employee hired on or after
January 1, 2016, who is a military veteran with a military
service-connected disability rated at 30 percent or more by
the United States Department of Veterans Affairs shall be
entitled to additional credit for sick leave with pay of up to
96 hours for the purpose of undergoing medical treatment for
his or her military service-connected disability.
2)States that credit for sick leave granted under this
subdivision shall be credited to a qualifying officer or
employee on the first day of employment and shall remain
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available for use for the following 12 months of employment.
3)Clarifies that sick leave credited pursuant to this
subdivision that is not used during the 12-month period shall
not be carried over and shall be forfeited.
4)Allows a department to require submission of satisfactory
proof that sick leave granted under this subdivision is used
for treatment of a military service-connected disability
5)Clarifies that if the provisions of this section are in
conflict with the provisions of a memorandum of understanding
reached pursuant to Section 3517.5 of the Government Code, the
memorandum of understanding shall be controlling without
further legislative action, except that if the provisions of a
memorandum of understanding require the expenditure of funds,
the provisions shall not become effective unless approved by
the Legislature in the annual Budget Act.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Requires that each state officer and employee who is employed
full time be allowed one day of credit for sick leave with pay
following completion of one month of continuous service and
one day of credit for sick leave with pay for each additional
calendar month of service thereafter.
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2)Provides that each state officer or employee is entitled to
this leave with pay, on the submission of satisfactory proof
of the necessity for sick leave as provided by rule of the
California Department of Human Resources (CalHR).
3)Authorizes CalHR to provide by rule for the regulation and
method of accumulation of sick leave for civil service
employees.
4)Provides that CalHR may provide by rule for sick leave or
annual leave without pay for those employees who have used all
sick leave or annual leave with pay to which they are
entitled.
5)States that a memorandum of understanding governing sick leave
shall be controlling without further legislative action,
except that if the provisions of the a memorandum of
understanding require the expenditure of funds, the provisions
shall not become effective unless approved by the Legislature
in the annual Budget Act.
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown at this time, however, Senate
Appropriations Committee estimated:
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Fiscal
Impact:
Unknown, potentially over $50,000 for sick leave credit
(General/Special Funds)
Unknown, potentially minor, administrative costs
(General)
Exact costs will depend on the number of military veterans who
are hired into state service and who have a service-connected
disability rated at 30 percent or higher. Additionally, the
source of funding (General or Special) will depend on the
department that hires the veteran. Assuming the new employee
has a monthly salary of $4,000, the cost of an additional 96
hours in sick leave would be approximately $2,220 per
employee. There will be additional, unknown but likely minor,
costs for administering and tracking this new benefit.
According to CalHR, there were 121 disabled veterans hired in
2013, and 147 disabled veterans hired in 2014. It is not
known if these individuals have a disability rated at 30
percent or more because the department is not currently
tracking this information. ?
COMMENTS: According to the author:
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Newly hired state employees begin their careers with no sick
leave, and accrue it slowly, after their first month of
employment, at a rate of 8 hours per month. As a result,
disabled veterans who have recently entered the workforce may
not have sufficient sick leave to attend medical appointments
on a regular basis.
Many veterans are returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with
physical and mental health issues that require medical
attention. VA appointments can be very hard to get and very
difficult to reschedule. A shortage of mental health
specialists in the VA makes it particularly important to
follow up and attend appointments as soon as they are
received. ?
For these disabled veterans, SB 221 will mean an easier
transition from military to state service. For the state, this
will mean a healthier and more productive workforce, and a way
to show our continued commitment to the men and women who have
served our country.
The State of California has a long standing policy of embracing
diversity in its workforce, including embracing diversity far
beyond the efforts of the federal government and other states.
This holds true in terms of California's hiring of people with
disabilities and reducing barriers to their successful
participation in state employment. There has also been a
consistent state policy, including various versions of a hiring
preference, to support the hiring of veterans both out of
recognition of their service and sacrifice as well as,
unfortunately, what has historically been a higher than average
rate of unemployment. This bill aligns with all of the
foregoing policy considerations. California has also been at
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the forefront of expanding the categories of people entitled to
protection from employment discrimination in housing and
employment.
People with disabilities would generally be entitled to
reasonable accommodation under both the federal Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA) and the California Fair Employment and
Housing Act (FEHA). Military and Veteran status is also a
separate protected category under FEHA. A reasonable
accommodation for any person with a disability could include
time off to attend medical treatment. Reasonable accommodation
is generally the result of a dialog between the employer and
employee and when that dialog works well, it should not be a
cumbersome process most of the time.
However, this bill would remove the need for a request for
reasonable accommodation to attend treatment for a service
connected 30% or greater disability and remove the need for
every similarly situated employee to make similar requests.
Moreover, it will grant the employee paid leave, which would
generally not be the case for leave granted as a reasonable
accommodation.
The author has clearly crafted this measure to strike a balance
between employer and employee. The author has also considered
the costs of implementation and the reasonable need for the
employer to guard against abuse. Careful choices have been made
about allowing the leave to carry over, requiring a 30%
disability minimum, permitting documentation of disability, and
considering the interplay with collective bargaining.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
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Support
American Legion-Department of California
AMVETS- Department of California
California Association of County Veterans Service Officers
California State Commanders Veterans Council
Military Officers Association of America- California Council of
Chapters
National Association of Social Workers
VFW-Department of California
Vietnam Veterans of America-California State Council
Opposition
None on File.
SB 221
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Analysis Prepared by:John Spangler / V.A. / (916)
319-3550