BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 933
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Date of Hearing: May 4, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC EMPLOYEES, RETIREMENT AND SOCIAL
SECURITY
Warren T. Furutani, Chair
AB 933 (Allen) - As Amended: April 7, 2011
SUBJECT : Public employment benefits: state safety members.
SUMMARY : Extends industrial death and disability benefits to
state miscellaneous members of the California Public Employees'
Retirement System (CalPERS) employed by a state hospital, as
specified. Specifically, this bill :
1)Extends industrial death and disability benefits to state
miscellaneous members who become injured or die as a direct
result of a violent act from a patient or client at a state
hospital where more than 50% of the patients are committed by
the court.
2)Specifies that this provision will only apply if:
a) The member was performing his or her duties within a
state hospital, the member was within the state hospital
but on a break, or the member was not within the state
hospital but was acting within the scope of his or her
regular duties, as specified; and,
b) The member was employed in a state bargaining unit which
had bargained with the state to add this benefit by a
memorandum of understanding or was an excluded employee or
nonelected officer or employee of the executive branch of
government.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Provides a special death benefit (enhanced monthly payment, or
lump sum payment to a surviving spouse, registered domestic
partner, or children, depending on the employee's age at the
time of death) and industrial disability benefit (50% of final
compensation for life with no minimum years of service
requirement) to state miscellaneous members under the
following limited circumstances:
a) Their death is the result of a violent act against them
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that arose out of and was in the course of official duties.
b) They were injured while employed in a state bargaining
unit which had bargained with the state to add this benefit
by a memorandum of understanding.
c) They were excluded employees or nonelected officers or
employees of the executive branch of government who were
not members of the civil service.
2)Provides a special death benefit and industrial disability
benefit to state miscellaneous members employed by
Metropolitan State Hospital, Napa State Hospital, Patton State
Hospital, Atascadero State Hospital, the California Medical
Facility at Vacaville, Porterville Development Center, Canyon
Springs Community Facility, or Sierra Vista Community
Facility, if the member was injured as a direct consequence of
a violent act by a patient or client while performing his or
her regular duties, as specified, regardless of whether or not
this benefit has been agreed to through a memorandum of
understanding.
3)State miscellaneous members who do not qualify for the
industrial disability benefit must have at least five years of
service in order to qualify for a disability retirement
benefit. Members who have between 5 and 10 years of service,
or 18.5 or more years of service receive a benefit equal to
1.8% multiplied by years of service multiplied by final
compensation. For those members with between 10 and 18.5
years of service the allowance may be improved up to 33 1/3%
of final compensation. If the member is eligible for service
retirement, the member will receive whichever is higher, the
service or disability allowance.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "AB 933 provides disability
benefit parity to state miscellaneous employees that have been
physically attacked and injured while working in a state
hospital that houses patients who have been committed by
criminal courts. The number of patients in the state hospital
system who have committed violent crimes or alleged to have
committed violent crime has been increasing exponentially over
the last decade. In the 1990s the majority of hospital patients
were civil commitments but over the last 15 years the
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demographics at the hospitals have drastically changed and today
85% to 90% of the patients are committed because they have
committed or alleged to have committed a crime. As a result of
the changing demographics and the inadequate security
infrastructure at the hospitals that were never designed to
house this population, the state hospitals have experienced a
dramatic rise in the number of patient attacks on hospital
employees.
"For example, according to information from the Department of
Mental Health, in 2010, there were approximately 8,300
aggressive attacks resulting in over 5,100 injuries at the five
state hospitals. In over 2,200 of these incidents the staff was
the victim and in over 1,000 of those incidents staff injuries
resulted in medical treatment including one death. As reported
by the New Times in San Luis Obispo County, in 2009, Atascadero
State Hospital had 410 assaults on staff, 118 of which required
medical treatment. Metropolitan State Hospital had over 700
attacks on staff in the first six months of 2010 while Napa
experienced 410 assaults on staff during the same time period."
Supporters state, "Despite working in such a dangerous
environment, disability coverage does not cover all employees
working in the state hospitals. Currently, industrial
disability coverage is only available to safety employees and
employees of the Porterville Developmental Center. AB 933
extends disability coverage to all miscellaneous employees that
work in a state hospital where 50% or more of the clients are
sent by California's criminal courts. AB 933 provides equal
protection for the employees that work in a state mental
institution."
According to the Department of Mental Health (DMH), there are
five state hospitals - Atascadero, Coalinga, Metropolitan, Napa,
and Patton - and over 92% of the DMH state hospital population
are forensic patients (referred to the hospital by the criminal
justice system.)
This bill is similar to AB 3306 (Takasugi), Chapter 889,
Statutes of 1994, which provided industrial death and disability
benefits to state miscellaneous employees who are employed at
Metropolitan State Hospital and Napa State Hospital and are part
of a bargaining unit which had bargained with the state to add
this benefit by a memorandum of understanding.
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REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Service Employees International Union, Local 1000 (Sponsor)
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
California Association of Psychiatric Technicians
California Labor Federation
California Statewide Law Enforcement Association
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Karon Green / P.E., R. & S.S. / (916)
319-3957