BILL ANALYSIS
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 385
Author: Ruskin (D)
Amended: 6/4/07 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC EMP. & RET. COMMITTEE : 3-2, 7/9/07
AYES: Wiggins, Migden, Negrete McLeod
NOES: Ashburn, McClintock
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 11-6, 8/30/07
AYES: Torlakson, Cox, Cedillo, Corbett, Florez, Kuehl,
Oropeza, Ridley-Thomas, Simitian, Steinberg, Yee
NOES: Aanestad, Ashburn, Battin, Dutton, Runner, Wyland
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 48-25, 6/6/07 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Public employees: salaries: professional
scientists
SOURCE : California Association of Professional
Scientists
DIGEST : This bill requires the state and the exclusive
representative for State Bargaining Unit 10, Professional
Scientists, to jointly survey, one year prior to the
expiration of a ratified collective bargaining agreement,
salaries in scientific classifications in California public
agencies and to report their findings to the Legislature
upon completion of the survey.
CONTINUED
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ANALYSIS : Existing law requires the Department of
Personnel Administration (DPA) to set and adjust salaries
for each classification in state service. Additionally, at
least six months before the end of the term of an existing
memorandum of understanding, DPA is required to submit a
report containing the department's finding related to the
salaries of employees in comparable occupations in private
industry and other governmental agencies.
This bill:
1.Requires DPA and the exclusive representative for State
Bargaining Unit 10 (BU 10) jointly survey, one year prior
to the expiration of a ratified collective bargaining
agreement, salaries of comparable occupations in other
public agencies, as specified.
2.Requires the state and the exclusive representative for
BU 10 to meet and confer, pursuant to the Ralph C. Dills
Act, regarding the methodology to be used in conducting
the survey.
3.Requires DPA to submit the resulting report to the
Legislature, upon its completion, containing the survey's
findings, related to the salaries of employees in
comparable occupations in other public sector agencies.
4.Declares that it is the policy of the state to consider
comparable salaries prior to making salary
recommendations and requires DPA to take into
consideration the salary of other scientists in public
employment as determined by the survey.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2007-08 2008-09
2009-10 Fund
Salary survey --
Minor -- General
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Salary increases -- Unknown, potentially
significant -- General
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/31/07)
California Association of Professional Scientists (source)
American Federation of State, County and Municipal
Employees, AFL-CIO
California Conference of Directors of Environmental Health
California Environmental Rights Alliance
California League of Conservation Voters
California State Employees Association
Clean Harbors Environmental Services
Clorox
Consumer Specialty Products Association
Health Officers Association of California
DeMenno/Kerdoon
Philbro-Tech
Professional Engineers in California Government
Safety-Kleen, Inc.
Sierra Club
Union of Concerned Scientists
OPPOSITION : (Verified 8/31/07)
Department of Finance
Department of Personnel Administration
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to supporters, "There is
increasing evidence that substandard state scientific
salaries threaten California's vital environmental and
public health programs because state agencies can't keep or
recruit skilled scientific personnel. According to a
recent Cal/EPA report, '?fair and equitable salaries must
be part of the foundation for securing and keeping our
scientific expertise. If we lose our scientific expertise,
we will go unarmed in the battle against greenhouse gas
emissions, air quality, and the overall protection of our
children's health.' According to recent surveys, state
scientists earn an average about 20 percent less than
scientists working in other branches of government."
Supporters also state that this bill "?will let policy
makers know the current salaries of state-employed
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scientific professionals and help them assess the impact
these salary levels will have on state programs to protect
the environment, natural resources and public health."
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION : The Department of Finance
states, in opposition, "The requirements imposed by this
bill would put additional pressure on the state to tie the
salaries and wages of employees to those in both the public
and private sector. The state has created immense
difficulties for itself by agreeing to pay salary increases
based on what other selected entities pay their employees.
The Department of the California Highway Patrol (CHP)
parity formula ties their pay to that of five local police
and sheriff agencies. The Correctional Officers are tied
to CHP. This creates a General Fund expenditure increase
whenever Los Angeles County sheriffs or Oakland police
officers get a raise. The engineers in Unit 9 are tied to
a salary survey that locks the state into a formula for
four years. These agreements have put employee
compensation increases on autopilot whereby the state has
no ability to control expenditures based on the state's
current fiscal health. These automatic compensation
adjustments result in the state abdicating its
responsibility to determine the appropriate compensation
for its employees."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Arambula, Bass, Beall, Berg, Brownley, Caballero,
Charles Calderon, Carter, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De
Leon, DeSaulnier, Dymally, Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fuentes,
Galgiani, Hancock, Hayashi, Hernandez, Horton, Huffman,
Jones, Karnette, Krekorian, Laird, Leno, Levine, Lieber,
Lieu, Ma, Mendoza, Mullin, Nava, Parra, Portantino,
Price, Richardson, Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Solorio,
Swanson, Torrico, Wolk, Nunez
NOES: Adams, Aghazarian, Anderson, Benoit, Berryhill,
Blakeslee, DeVore, Duvall, Emmerson, Fuller, Gaines,
Garcia, Garrick, Houston, Huff, La Malfa, Maze,
Nakanishi, Niello, Plescia, Sharon Runner, Silva,
Spitzer, Strickland, Walters
NO VOTE RECORDED: Cook, Jeffries, Keene, Smyth, Soto,
Tran, Villines
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JJA:cm 8/31/07 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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