BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 1309
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Date of Hearing: August 8, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
SB 1309 (Negrete McLeod) - As Introduced: February 23, 2012
Policy Committee: PERSS Vote:5-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable:
SUMMARY
This bill, as proposed to be amended, makes statutory changes
necessary to implement the Governor's Reorganization Plan 1 (GRP
1) with respect to the consolidation of the Department of
Personnel Administration (DPA) and the State Personnel Board
(SPB) into a single agency to be known as the California
Department of Human Resources (CalHR). Specifically, this bill:
1)Clarifies that CalHR inherits DPA's powers and duties as well
as those necessary to operate the civil service system in
accordance with the Constitution, merit principle and SPB
rules. Clarifies that laws, programs and rules formerly under
the jurisdiction and administration of DPA and SPB will now be
under the jurisdiction and administration of CalHR.
2)Clarifies that the Board will continue to hear cases and
prescribe rules consistent with the merit principle and will
conduct audits to ensure compliance with the merit principle.
3)States that appointing powers in state agencies and
departments shall provide the Board and CalHR with access to
records and prepare reports as needed to comply with the
Board's authority over the merit system and CalHR's oversight
of non-merit personnel components.
4)Establishes audit authority for the Board over personnel
practices delegated to departments relative to the merit
principle (e.g., exams, promotions, discipline) and provides
enforcement authority to CalHR to perform certain of the
department's personnel functions with compensation to CalHR
for costs related to assuming the those functions.
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FISCAL EFFECT
The Department of Finance has identified total savings of $8.6
million ($3.7 million General Fund) as a result of the
reorganization, mostly due to a 15% reduction in positions equal
to 60.5 PYs when the consolidation is complete. Most reductions
are expected to be achieved through vacancies and attrition over
the next few years. Additionally, 14 existing positions will be
maintained to support the new audit function created in this
bill.
COMMENTS
1)Purpose . The reorganization plan merges DPA and SPB into a
single entity: the California Department of Human Resources,
or CalHR. To be properly reflected in statute, the plan
requires many technical changes. While SB 1308 (Committee on
Public Employment and Retirement) contains many of the
changes, SB 1309 includes technical amendments not included in
SB 1308. Supporters note these changes in SB 1309 ensure that
the SPB non-constitutional functions transferred to CalHR are
reflected in statute, including oversight of bilingual and
interpreter services, administering exams and appointments,
ensuring employment forms comply with federal and state laws
and responsibility over certain civil rights issues (e.g.,
monitoring departments' Equal Employment Opportunity program
obligations).
SB 1309 also contains language to ensure SPB preserves its
constitutional jurisdiction and independence, specifying that
its five-member board maintains oversight and authority over
the civil service merit system, disciplinary appeals process,
and other constitutionally defined duties.
2)Concerns . A coalition of state employee and civil rights
organizations has raised concerns with the some of the
statutory changes being proposed related to the
reorganization. While they support the concept of the
proposed consolidation, they are recommending amendments to
ensure that civil rights within state service are preserved
and strengthened. Some of the proposed amendments were taken
to address their concerns. The coalition still expresses
concerns over the elimination of an annual report to the
Legislature. The report catalogs the discrimination cases
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filed within each state agency.
3)Reorganization . GRP 1, effective July 1, 2012, merges the
day-to-day staff operations of the DPA and SPB organizations
into a new, consolidated agency, CalHR. The intent is to
relocate the two former departments into a single location by
July 1, 2013. GRP 1 retains the independence and autonomy of
the State Personnel Board with regard to hearing matters
related to the merit principle for state civil service
employees, as required in the Constitution.
The California Government Reorganization Process provides the
governor with the authority to develop a reorganization of
state departments using executive order. After the language
is drafted by the Legislative Counsel Bureau it is submitted
to the Little Hoover Commission for review and
recommendations. Thirty days thereafter, the plan is
submitted to the Legislature and becomes effective 61 calendar
days later unless the Legislature passes a resolution
disapproving the plan. Actual statutory language to enact the
reorganization is implemented the following year; however the
reorganization is effective even without statutory updates.
4)Background. Merging the DPA and the SPB is not a new idea.
In 1995, in its report "Too Many Agencies, Too Many Rules:
Reforming California's Civil Service", the Little Hoover
Commission made recommendations to streamline and improve the
state's personnel functions. Also in 1995, in its "Analysis
of the 1995-96 Budget Bill: Reinventing the State Civil
Service," the Legislative Analyst's Office recommended the
Legislature begin the reinvention of the state civil service
system. And, in 1997 the California Research Bureau stated
"the Department of Personnel Administration and the State
Personnel Board have overlapping responsibilities." All of
these reports have recommended the consolidation of the two
entities.
The DPA was created in 1981 and is responsible for all matters
concerning state employer-employee relations related to
salaries, benefits, and position classification. The DPA
represents the governor in collective bargaining with unions
representing rank and file state employees.
The SPB with five members appointed by the governor for
10-year terms was established in the California Constitution
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in 1934. The SPB is responsible for administering the state's
civil service system and ensures that employment decisions are
based on merit. The SPB provides a variety of recruitment,
selection, classification, appellate, goal setting, training,
and consultation services to state departments and local
agencies.
5)Proposed amendments. The proposed amendments delete a
requirement for CalHR to publish a list of hearing
interpreters, clarify that certain appeals for discrimination
on the basis of medical condition, mental disability or
physical disability would continue to be appealed to SPB and
make other technical changes.
Analysis Prepared by : Roger Dunstan / APPR. / (916) 319-2081