S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
5052
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
I N S E N A T E
April 4, 2019
___________
Introduced by Sen. THOMAS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to salary
adjustments according to plan and step-ups or increments
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 3 of section 3669 of the
public authorities law, as amended by chapter 355 of the laws of 2018,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) During a control period, upon a finding by the authority that a
wage freeze is essential to the adoption or maintenance of a county
budget or a financial plan that is in compliance with this title, the
authority, after enactment of a resolution so finding, may declare a
fiscal crisis. Upon making such a declaration, the authority shall be
empowered to order that all increases in salary or wages of employees of
the county and employees of covered organizations which will take effect
after the date of the order pursuant to collective bargaining agree-
ments, other analogous contracts or interest arbitration awards, now in
existence or hereafter entered into, requiring such salary increases as
of any date thereafter are suspended. Such order may also provide that
all increased payments for holiday and vacation differentials, and shift
differentials for employees of the county and employees of covered
organizations which will take effect after the date of the order pursu-
ant to collective bargaining agreements, other analogous contracts or
interest arbitration awards requiring such increased payments as of any
date thereafter are, in the same manner, suspended. Such order may also
provide that all increased payments for salary adjustments according to
plan and step-ups or increments be suspended; provided, however, when
(i) the county executive provides a four year financial plan approved by
the county legislature pursuant to paragraph (a) of subdivision two of
section thirty-six hundred sixty-seven of this title and the authority
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11072-01-9
S. 5052 2
determines, pursuant to paragraph (b) of such subdivision, that such
financial plan is complete and complies with the standards set forth in
such subdivision, and (ii) the authority makes a certification to the
county setting forth revenue estimates agreed to by the authority in
accordance with such determination, the salary adjustments according to
plan and step-ups or increments, not including cost of living increases,
shall not be suspended for each year in which the four year financial
plan has been certified. This [section] INABILITY TO SUSPEND THE SALARY
ADJUSTMENTS ACCORDING TO PLAN AND STEP-UPS OR INCREMENTS shall be appli-
cable to county employees and employees of covered organizations, wheth-
er or not they are covered by a collectively negotiated agreement, if an
individual employee or members of an employee's bargaining unit previ-
ously participated in a wage freeze implemented by the authority under
this section and such wage freeze was subsequently lifted by the author-
ity by the issuance of a resolution, pursuant to paragraph (b) OR (C) of
THIS subdivision [three of section thirty-six hundred sixty-nine of this
title], certifying that the suspension of their wage increases or an
agreement by the collective bargaining representative or by such unrep-
resented employee was an acceptable and appropriate contribution toward
alleviating the fiscal crisis of the county. IRRESPECTIVE OF THE DURA-
TION OF ANY APPROVED OR ACCEPTED FOUR-YEAR FINANCIAL PLAN, FOR EMPLOYEES
WHO ARE MEMBERS OF A BARGAINING UNIT, THIS INABILITY TO SUSPEND THE
SALARY ADJUSTMENT ACCORDING TO PLAN AND STEP-UPS OR INCREMENTS SHALL
TAKE EFFECT OCTOBER FIRST, TWO THOUSAND SIXTEEN AND SHALL BE IN EFFECT
FOR EMPLOYEES FOR THE DURATION OF THE NEXT COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREE-
MENT SUCCEEDING EITHER (I) THE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT IN EFFECT
ON NOVEMBER SIXTH, TWO THOUSAND EIGHTEEN OR (II) THE MOST RECENTLY
EXPIRED COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT PRIOR TO NOVEMBER SIXTH, TWO
THOUSAND EIGHTEEN; WHICHEVER IS LATER. IF THE SUCCEEDING COLLECTIVE
BARGAINING AGREEMENT'S DURATION IS MODIFIED, EXTENDED, OR RENEWED, THIS
MODIFICATION, EXTENSION OR RENEWAL DOES NOT MODIFY, EXTEND OR RENEW THE
TERM OF THE INABILITY TO SUSPEND SALARY ADJUSTMENTS ACCORDING TO PLAN
AND STEP-UPS OR INCREMENTS. FOR EMPLOYEES WHO ARE NOT MEMBERS OF A
BARGAINING UNIT, THIS INABILITY TO SUSPEND THE SALARY ADJUSTMENT ACCORD-
ING TO PLAN AND STEP-UPS OR INCREMENTS SHALL BE EFFECTIVE OCTOBER FIRST,
TWO THOUSAND SIXTEEN THROUGH DECEMBER FIRST, TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-ONE.
For the purposes of computing the pension base of retirement allowances,
any suspended salary or wage increases and any suspended other payments
shall not be considered as part of compensation or final compensation or
of annual salary earned or earnable. The suspensions authorized here-
under shall continue until one year after the date of the order and, to
the extent of any determination of the authority that a continuation of
such suspensions, to a date specified by the authority, is necessary in
order to achieve the objectives of the financial plan, such suspensions
shall be continued to the date specified by the authority, which date
shall in no event be later than the end of the interim finance period,
provided that such suspensions shall terminate with respect to employees
who have agreed to a deferral of salary or wage increase upon the
certification of the agreement by the authority pursuant to paragraph
(b) of this subdivision.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the same date and in the same
manner as chapter 355 of the laws of 2018, takes effect.
