BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  AB 843
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   May 6, 2009

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Kevin De Leon, Chair

                 AB 843 (Block) - As Introduced:  February 26, 2009 

          Policy Committee:                              P.E.R. &  
          S.S.Vote:    5-1

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          No     Reimbursable:              

           SUMMARY  

          This bill shifts the burden of proof in appeals of disciplinary  
          actions taken against managerial state employees from the  
          employee to the state. The bill deletes the rebuttable  
          presumption in law that the disciplinary action taken against  
          the managerial employee was free from fraud and bad faith.
           
          FISCAL EFFECT
           
          SPB indicates that the shift in burden could increase state  
          legal-related costs associated with sustaining disciplinary  
          actions. Annual costs are unknown, but could be more than  
          $200,000.

           COMMENTS
           
           1)Background  . Existing law provides that a state employer may  
            take an adverse action (defined as dismissal, demotion,  
            suspension, or other disciplinary action) against a civil  
            service employee based upon specified legal causes for  
            discipline.  The disciplined employee has the right to appeal  
            to the State Personnel Board, which reviews the disciplinary  
            action and makes the final determination as to the whether the  
            disciplinary action should be sustained, modified or revoked.

            For non managerial employees (rank and file and supervisory  
            classifications), the burden of proof is on the  employer  to  
            establish, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the  
            factual basis for the discipline is true and that the penalty  
            imposed is just and proper.









                                                                  AB 843
                                                                  Page  2

            For state employees designated as "managerial," by contrast,  
            the burden of proof is on the disciplined  employee  to disprove  
            the charges, and there is a rebuttable presumption that the  
            action was free from fraud and bad faith.

           2)Rationale  . This bill conforms the due process rights governing  
            adverse actions taken against managerial state employees to  
            those afforded to rank and file and supervisory state  
            employees under current law. Supporters (including CSEA)  
            assert that presumption that employer disciplinary actions are  
            just and proper is refuted by the number of actions that are  
            modified by the SPB.

           3)Previous legislation  . This bill is similar to AB 2314 (J.  
            Horton) of 2004, which was vetoed.  In his veto message,  
            governor Schwarzenegger stated that AB 2314 would encourage  
            more appeals and thus impose added costs and workload on SPB,  
            which was already facing budgetary strains. 

            A  nalysis Prepared by  :    Brad Williams / APPR. / (916)  
            319-2081