BILL ANALYSIS �
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1885|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1885
Author: Bonilla (D)
Amended: As introduced
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC EMPLOY. & RETIREMENT COMM. : 3-1, 6/25/12
AYES: Negrete McLeod, Padilla, Vargas
NOES: Walters
NO VOTE RECORDED: Gaines
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 49-20, 5/10/12 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : County employees retirement: reciprocal
benefits
SOURCE : California Professional Firefighters
DIGEST : This bill makes applicable in all counties
operating retirement systems under the County Employees
Retirement Law of 1937 (37 Act) provisions that extend the
reemployment period for reciprocity eligibility for laid
off employees from six months to one year.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Provides for reciprocity of retirement benefits (using
the highest 'final compensation' for the purposes of
calculating retirement benefits) for members of
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specified public retirement systems, including '37 Act
retirement system, who retire concurrently under one of
those systems and another reciprocal retirement system
as long as the break between employment in the two
systems does not exceed six months.
2. Authorizes in a one-year reemployment period for
reciprocity eligibility for employees who are laid off
because of lack of work, a lack of funds, or a reduction
in workforce. This provision is only operative in '37
Act counties where the board of supervisors have adopted
a resolution to make these provisions applicable.
This bill extends the reemployment period for qualifying
for reciprocity eligibility for laid off employees from six
months to one year for all counties operating retirement
systems under the '37 Act.
Comments
According to the author, "In recent years,
fiscally-strapped public agencies up and down California
have been forced to lay-off - or worse, eliminate -
critical public safety positions, including firefighting
positions, in an effort to relieve local budget shortfalls.
Firefighters who are displaced in this regard can have
several years on the job, have spent many months qualifying
for professional work and have completed probationary
periods of up to one year to prove their competency. Under
existing law, a safety member's time of separation between
agencies cannot be longer than six months. So, for
example, if a firefighter is laid-off from a California
Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) contracting
agency due to budget cuts, but later re-hired by a county
that operates a '37 Act retirement system, the firefighter
must be hired and become a member of that county system
within six months from the date on which he was laid-off by
the CalPERS-contracting agency in order to continue to
qualify for a coordination of the benefits accrued in each
system."
According to the bill's sponsor, "In cases where a '37 Act
county re-hires a laid off firefighter previously employed
by another public agency, the existing six-month
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reciprocity cap oftentimes leaves little to no time for
that firefighter to navigate the county's hiring and
selection process, successfully complete its firefighting
academy and officially be hired by the county, all of which
is a pre-requisite for membership in the county's
retirement system. To the extent this re-hiring process
takes longer than six months, the firefighter's public
employment service with his/her former employing public
agency will not be eligible for reciprocity in the county's
retirement system."
Supporters state, "AB 1885 provides '37 Act counties the
additional time needed to ensure that a re-hired
firefighter's previous public employment service is in fact
kept whole in that county system and the benefits continue
to be coordinated with the other system."
This bill is similar to AB 2795 (Negrete McLeod, 2006)
which would have eliminated the current requirement that an
employee have no more than a six month break in service
between employers in order to qualify for reciprocity.
This bill was held in the Assembly Appropriations
Committee.
This bill is also similar to AB 2956 (Wiggins, 2004) which
would have increased the time period for members to move
between retirement systems with reciprocity from six months
to 36 months. Then Governor Schwarzenegger vetoed the
bill, stating in part, "I find no compelling policy reason
why the existing mobility under the current system of
reciprocity is not sufficient. Additionally, in the haste
of last minute amendments, the bill actually creates an
unfair advantage for only one group of members in the
retirement system."
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 6/26/12)
California Professional Firefighters (source)
Service Employees International Union
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ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 49-20, 5/10/12
AYES: Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall, Block,
Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford, Brownley, Buchanan,
Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos, Carter, Cedillo,
Chesbro, Davis, Dickinson, Eng, Feuer, Fong, Fuentes,
Galgiani, Gatto, Gordon, Hall, Hayashi, Roger Hern�ndez,
Hill, Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Lara, Ma, Mendoza, Mitchell,
Monning, Pan, Perea, Portantino, Skinner, Solorio,
Swanson, Torres, Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada, John A.
P�rez
NOES: Bill Berryhill, Donnelly, Beth Gaines, Garrick,
Gorell, Grove, Hagman, Harkey, Knight, Logue, Bonnie
Lowenthal, Mansoor, Miller, Morrell, Nestande, Nielsen,
Norby, Silva, Valadao, Wagner
NO VOTE RECORDED: Achadjian, Conway, Cook, Fletcher,
Furutani, Halderman, Jeffries, Jones, Olsen, V. Manuel
P�rez, Smyth
DLW:mw 6/27/12 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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