BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 1180
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Date of Hearing: June 15, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Patrick O'Donnell, Chair
SB
1180 (Jackson) - As Amended April 26, 2016
[Note: This bill is double referred to the Assembly Committee
on Veterans Affairs and, if passed, will be heard by that
committee as it relates to issues under its jurisdiction.]
SENATE VOTE: 37-0
SUBJECT: Public school employees: military veterans: leave of
absence for illness or injury
SUMMARY: Provides school employees who are military veterans
with service-connected disabilities paid leaves of absence for
illness or injury for the purpose of undergoing medical
treatment for those disabilities during their first year of
employment. Specifically, this bill:
1)Provides that, in addition to any other entitlement for leave
of absence for illness or injury with pay, a school employee
hired on or after January 1, 2017, who is a military veteran
with a military service-connected disability rated at 30% or
more by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs shall
be entitled to leave of absence for illness or injury with pay
of up to 10 days for certificated employees and up to 12 days
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for classified employees for the purpose of undergoing medical
treatment for his or her military service-connected
disability.
2)Specifies that credit for leave of absence for illness or
injury shall be credited to a qualifying classified employee
on the first day of employment and shall remain available for
use for the following 12 months of employment.
3)Provides that a leave of absence for illness or injury that is
not used during the 12-month period shall not be carried over
and shall be forfeited.
4)Authorizes governing boards to require submission of
satisfactory proof that a leave of absence for illness or
injury is used for treatment of a military service-connected
disability
5)Provides for a reduction of the leave of absence for part-time
employees as follows:
a) An employee who is employed for less than five days per
week shall be entitled to a percentage of 10 days (for
certificated employees) or 12 days (for classified
employees) of leave equal to the percentage of days
employed per week;
b) A classified employee who is employed five days per week
and less than a full fiscal year is entitled to a
percentage of 12 days equal to the percentage of 12 months
employed; and
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c) A classified employee who is employed less than five
days per week and who is employed for less than a full
fiscal year shall have his or her leave reduced in
proportion to the number of days per week and months per
year employed.
6)Specifies that these provisions shall not be construed to
diminish the obligation of a public school employer to comply
with any collective bargaining agreement entered into by a
public school employer and an exclusive bargaining
representative that provides greater leave of absence rights
to employees than the rights established under this section.
EXISTING LAW: Provides full time certificated employees with
10 days of leave and full time classified employees with 12 days
of leave for illness or injury and authorizes governing boards
to allow additional days of leave. Provides that the leaves of
absence shall be reduced for part time employees in proportion
to the time employed.
FISCAL EFFECT: This bill is nonfiscal.
COMMENTS: This bill provides 10 days of leave for certificated
employees and 12 days of leave for classified employees during
their first year of employment to receive medical treatment for
military service-related disabilities. This is in addition to
the 10 days for certificated employees and 12 days for
classified employees provided in existing law. For part time
employees, the length of the additional leave would be reduced
in proportion to the amount of time actually employed during the
week and year.
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30% disability. According to the Senate Committee on Veterans
Affairs, the United States Department of Veterans Affairs
(USDVA) provides direct health care treatment and monetary
compensation to veterans with service-connected disabilities. A
service-connected disability is an injury or disease certified
by the USDVA as having occurred during active duty, or made
worse by active military service. The USDVA rates disabilities
to facilitate in-patient and out-patient health care and to
evaluate claims for disability compensation. The extent of
health care provided and the amount of disability benefit paid
may vary depending on the condition's rated severity.
A veteran need not be totally disabled in order to be eligible
for compensation. USDVA rates disability along a continuum of 0%
- to - 100% in 10% increments, depending upon the level of
disability determined. The disability percentage also can be
derived by analyzing the composite condition of an individual
veteran with multiple disabilities. The 10% rating is the
lowest for which compensable income is awarded. A veteran with a
100% rating will have one or more disabilities that
significantly interfere with normal life functions. A veteran
with a 0% rating may have a service-connected condition, but the
condition does not interfere with normal life functions. The
majority of disabled veterans are rated between 10% - 30%.
Need for the bill. According to the author's office, "many
school employees accrue their sick leave slowly or face
limitations on how much sick leave they can take in their first
months of employment. Many veterans are returning from Iraq and
Afghanistan with physical and mental health issues that require
medical attention. Veterans Affairs (VA) appointments can be
difficult to schedule and even harder 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."
The bill is intended to provide disabled veterans who are new
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school employees with access to the care they may require during
their first year of employment without having to take unpaid
leave or worry about using up their regular allotment of sick
leave.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
American G.I Forum of California
AMVETS-Department of California
California Association of County Veteran Service Officers
California School Employees Association, AFL-CIO
California Teachers Association
VFW-Department of California
Vietnam Veterans of America, California State Council
Opposition
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None on file
Analysis Prepared by:Rick Pratt / ED. / (916)
319-2087