BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �



                                                                  SB 609
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   July 6, 2011

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Felipe Fuentes, Chair

                SB 609 (Negrete McLeod) - As Amended:  March 24, 2011 

          Policy Committee:                             PERSS Vote:4-2

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program: 
          No     Reimbursable:              No

           SUMMARY  

          This bill requires that the decision of an administrative law 
          judge regarding recognition or certification of an employee 
          organization be deemed the final order of the board provided 
          that the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) does not issue 
          a ruling that supersedes the decision on or before 180 days 
          after an appeal of is filed.  

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          There would be minor and absorbable costs to PERB for changing 
          their administrative procedures and regulations to comply with 
          the bill's requirements.  

          Although there may not be direct costs associated with this 
          bill, it could have the effect of causing PERB to re-prioritize 
          cases regarding the recognition or certification of an employee 
          organization in order to complete a full determination of those 
          cases within 180 days.  This is unlikely to have a significant 
          impact at this point on PERB operations as these types of cases 
          are a small part of the business that comes before PERB.  In 
          addition, only a small number are appealed.  According to PERB, 
          of the 95 cases filed since January 1, 2009 involving Petitions 
          for Recognition or Certification, only three have involved an 
          appeal filed with the Board.  Of these three, one appeal was 
          decided after 52 days, another in 279 days, and the third is 
          still pending.

           COMMENTS  

           Purpose  .  According to the author's office, when some aspect of 
          a PERB representation petition is disputed, it has the effect of 








                                                                  SB 609
                                                                  Page  2

          delaying employee choice as to representation.  The author 
          argues that an employer that raises a dispute to an initial 
          representation petition can avoid recognition and bargaining for 
          years, by which time employees have become disillusioned and the 
          employer has been able to unilaterally make significant changes 
          in wages, benefits and working conditions without having to 
          negotiate with the employee's chosen representative.



           Analysis Prepared by  :    Roger Dunstan / APPR. / (916) 319-2081