BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    




                   Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
                           Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair

                                           656 (DeSaulnier)
          
          Hearing Date:  5/11/2009        Amended: As Introduced
          Consultant:  Maureen Ortiz      Policy Vote: PE&R 5-2
          _________________________________________________________________ 
          ____
          BILL SUMMARY:   

          SB 656 provides that a local bargaining unit which is comprised  
          of a majority of persons who are peace officers will be excluded  
          from the jurisdiction of the Public Employment Relations Board  
          (PERB) for purposes of dispute resolutions. 
          _________________________________________________________________ 
          ____
                            Fiscal Impact (in thousands)

           Major Provisions         2009-10      2010-11       2011-12     Fund
                                                                  
          Dispute resolution                        -----minor savings to  
          PERB------                 General

          Dispute resolution                        ------- minimal costs  
          to courts------              General
          _________________________________________________________________ 
          ____

          STAFF COMMENTS: 
          
          The Judicial Council has indicated that SB 656 will not result  
          in any increase in costs to the courts, and PERB may experience  
          very minor savings.

          The Public Employment Relations Board resolves disputes and  
          enforces the statutory duties and rights of employers and  
          employees under the Educational Employment Relations Act, the  
          Higher Education Employer-Employee Relations Act, the Ralph C.  
          Dills Act, and the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act.

          Currently, PERB has jurisdiction over unfair labor disputes of  
          all miscellaneous employees, however, pursuant to SB 739 (Solis,  
          Chapter 910 of 2000), law enforcement agencies are excluded from  
          PERB and therefore, are under the direct jurisdiction of the  
          courts.  However, it has been noted that there are certain  










          bargaining units which are comprised of both miscellaneous  
          employees and employees with peace officer status, and the  
          existing statute is not clear as to the jurisdiction of those  
          employees' disputes.  In those units, PERB has asserted  
          jurisdiction over cases that affected the entire unit, whereby,  
          an individual peace officer under a mixed bargaining unit may  
          file grievances directly with the California Supreme Courts.

          SB 656 provides that "mixed units", those bargaining units  
          comprised of both peace officer and miscellaneous employees,  
          shall be exempted from PERB's jurisdiction if the majority of  
          the unit is comprised of peace officers.