NY State Senate Bill 2019-S5803

Senate Bill S5803

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Relates to preserving the ability of firefighters and police officers to negotiate disciplinary procedures

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Civil Service And Pensions Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

View Actions

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2020	referred to civil service and pensions returned to senate died in assembly
Jun 13, 2019	referred to governmental employees delivered to assembly passed senate ordered to third reading cal.1347 committee discharged and committed to rules
May 15, 2019	referred to civil service and pensions

Votes

- Jun 13, 2019 - Floor Vote
  S5803
  
  62
  
  Aye
  
  0
  
  Nay
  
  0
  
  Absent
  
  0
  
  Excused
  
  0
  
  Abstained
  - - Floor Vote: Jun 13, 2019
      
      aye (62)
      
      Addabbo Jr.
      
      Akshar
      
      Amedore
      
      Antonacci
      
      Bailey
      
      Benjamin
      
      Biaggi
      
      Boyle
      
      Breslin
      
      Brooks
      
      Carlucci
      
      Comrie
      
      Felder
      
      Flanagan
      
      Funke
      
      Gallivan
      
      Gaughran
      
      Gianaris
      
      Gounardes
      
      Griffo
      
      Harckham
      
      Helming
      
      Hoylman-Sigal
      
      Jackson
      
      Jacobs
      
      Jordan
      
      Kaminsky
      
      Kaplan
      
      Kavanagh
      
      Kennedy
      
      Krueger
      
      LaValle
      
      Lanza
      
      Little
      
      Liu
      
      Martinez
      
      May
      
      Mayer
      
      Metzger
      
      Montgomery
      
      Myrie
      
      O'Mara
      
      Ortt
      
      Parker
      
      Persaud
      
      Ramos
      
      Ranzenhofer
      
      Ritchie
      
      Rivera
      
      Robach
      
      Salazar
      
      Sanders Jr.
      
      Savino
      
      Sepúlveda
      
      Serino
      
      Serrano
      
      Seward
      
      Skoufis
      
      Stavisky
      
      Stewart-Cousins
      
      Tedisco
      
      Thomas
  Jun 13, 2019 - Rules Committee Vote
  S5803
  
  19
  
  Aye
  
  0
  
  Nay
  
  0
  
  Aye with Reservations
  
  0
  
  Absent
  
  0
  
  Excused
  
  0
  
  Abstained
  - - Rules Committee Vote: Jun 13, 2019
      
      aye (19)
      
      Benjamin
      
      Breslin
      
      Comrie
      
      Flanagan
      
      Gianaris
      
      Griffo
      
      Hoylman-Sigal
      
      Kennedy
      
      Krueger
      
      LaValle
      
      Lanza
      
      Little
      
      Liu
      
      Martinez
      
      Parker
      
      Robach
      
      Savino
      
      Seward
      
      Stewart-Cousins

2019-S5803 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A6109
Current Committee:: Senate Civil Service And Pensions
Law Section:: Civil Service Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§201 & 204-a, Civ Serv L
Versions Introduced in 2017-2018 Legislative Session:: S8270, A10736

2019-S5803 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Preserves the ability of firefighters and police officers to negotiate disciplinary procedures.

2019-S5803 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S5803

SPONSOR: GOUNARDES
 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the civil service law, in relation to
the negotiability of discipline affecting public employees

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To preserve the ability of competitive class public employees to negoti-
ate disciplinary procedures that affect them in their employment.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

This bill amends the Civil Service Law to modify the language relied on
by several courts in holding disciplinary procedures to be outside the
protection of the Taylor Law where any other law commits discipline to
the discretion of local officials and to make clear that police officers
and firefighters in this state are entitled to collectively bargain the
disciplinary procedures that affect them in their employment. The bill
would also restore the provisions of any collective bargaining agree-
ments or interest arbitration awards between public employers and public

employee organizations representing police officers or firefighters
relative to discipline that were invalidated by judicial or administra-
tive decisions.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The fundamental purpose of the Taylor law adopted in 1967 was to make
all terms and conditions of employment in the public sector subject to
collective bargaining. Early Taylor Law decisions established that
disciplinary procedures subject to collective bargaining, and many
collective bargaining agreements containing disciplinary provisions and
procedures were adopted across the State, including those negotiated by
police and fire labor unions. Over time, a series of judicial decisions,
including most notably several cases decided by the Court of Appeals,
found a countervailing policy in favor of strong local control of disci-
pline to override the public policy expressed in the Taylor Law favoring
the collective bargaining of all terms and conditions of employment.
However, the Taylor Law did not repeal or modify any local law or char-
ter provisions vesting control of discipline in local authorities. The
Court of Appeals in its decisions also noted that the several statutes
also contained provisions favoring the local control of police and fire
discipline that would override the Taylor Law presumption of negotiabil-
ity.

Thus, at the present time, all police officers and firefighters in
cities, towns and villages across the state have had their contractual
disciplinary procedures taken away from them without compensation. Their
disciplinary procedure is controlled by local law. These police officers
and firefighters cannot even avail themselves of the rudimentary
protections provided in sections 75 and 76 of the Civil Service Law,
which were adopted in 1958, nine years prior to the Taylor Law. Every
police officer and firefighter employed in any town or village in the
State of New York that has not already been divested of his or her
contractual disciplinary procedure is subject to immediate divestment by
the simple expedient of the passage by the town or village that employs
him or her of a local law declaring local control over police and fire
discipline.

This bill would legislatively overrule the judicial decisions on this
issue declaring it to be the public policy of the State of New York that
for police officers and firefighters, disciplinary procedures are terms
and conditions of employment subject to mandatory negotiation under the
Taylor Law. It would also restore those collective bargaining provisions
that were previously declared invalid on grounds of public policy by
prior judicial or administrative decisions.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

S.8270B of 2018 - Passed Senate, died in Assembly

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2019-S5803 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5803
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 15, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sen. GOUNARDES -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions
 
 AN  ACT to amend the civil service law, in relation to the negotiability
   of discipline affecting public employees
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Legislative  findings  and  declarations. The legislature
 hereby finds, declares and reaffirms that  the  1967  Public  Employees'
 Fair Employment Act establishes that the public policy of the state, and
 the  purpose  of  the  act,  is  to  promote  harmonious and cooperative
 relationships between government and its employees and  to  protect  the
 public  by  assuring, at all times, the orderly and uninterrupted opera-
 tion and functions of government. Included among  the  policies  adopted
 was  the  requirement that the state, local governments, and other poli-
 tical subdivisions negotiate and enter  into  agreements  with  employee
 organizations  about  terms  and conditions of employment. Over the many
 years subsequent to the enactment of  such  act,  the  negotiability  of
 discipline,  including  disciplinary procedures, has been fully endorsed
 by the public employment relations  board  and  disciplinary  procedures
 have  been incorporated into collective bargaining agreements throughout
 the state. The legislature now declares that this practice of  negotiat-
 ing  fair  disciplinary  protections and procedures for public employees
 must continue.
   A recent court of appeals' decision involving police officers  in  the
 city of Schenectady has erroneously declared that the "public policy" of
 the  state  is  to  prohibit  absolutely the negotiation of disciplinary
 procedures in certain places where there exist legislative enactments on
 the subject of discipline. The legislature declares a necessity for  the
 enactment  of this act to ensure that discipline, including disciplinary
 procedures, will continue as a mandatory subject of  collective  negoti-
 ation, and that collective bargaining agreements addressing that subject
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD07900-01-9

 S. 5803                             2
 
 remain  valid  and  enforceable  and  to enhance the prohibition against
 strikes and the protection  against  the  destruction  of  vital  public
 services delivered by public employees throughout the state.
   § 2. Subdivision 4 of section 201 of the civil service law, as amended
 by chapter 606 of the laws of 1992, is amended to read as follows:
   4. The term "terms and conditions of employment" means:
   (A)  salaries,  wages, hours and other terms and conditions of employ-
 ment provided, however, that such term shall not  include  any  benefits
 provided by or to be provided by a public retirement system, or payments
 to  a  fund  or insurer to provide an income for retirees, or payment to
 retirees or their beneficiaries. No such retirement  benefits  shall  be
 negotiated  pursuant  to  this  article,  and any benefits so negotiated
 shall be void.
   (B) IN ADDITION, THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT FOR FIREFIGHT-
 ERS AND POLICE OFFICERS SHALL INCLUDE  DISCIPLINE,  DISCIPLINARY  PROCE-
 DURES  INCLUDING  ALTERNATIVES  TO  ANY  STATUTORY  DISCIPLINARY SYSTEM,
 PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT ANY RIGHT OF FIREFIGHTERS  AND  POLICE  OFFICERS
 UNDER THE TERMS OF ANY STATE LAW TO ELECT COVERAGE UNDER EITHER A STATU-
 TORY DISCIPLINARY SYSTEM OR A DISCIPLINARY SYSTEM ESTABLISHED BY COLLEC-
 TIVE  NEGOTIATIONS  SHALL  NOT  BE  IMPAIRED,  UNLESS ANY SUCH STATE LAW
 AUTHORIZES EXCLUSIVITY OF A NEGOTIATED DISCIPLINARY SYSTEM AND  PROVIDED
 FURTHER  THAT  NO PROVISION CONTAINED IN THE TOWN LAW, GENERAL CITY LAW,
 SECOND CLASS CITIES LAW, GENERAL MUNICIPAL LAW, MUNICIPAL HOME RULE LAW,
 COUNTY LAW, OR OTHER STATE, LOCAL, SPECIAL LAW OR CHARTER PROVISION,  OR
 ANY  SPECIAL  POLICE  ACT  OR  OTHER SPECIAL ACT CREATED BY LOCAL LAW OR
 CHARTER OR OTHERWISE CREATED, OR THIS CHAPTER SHALL  PREVENT  OR  IMPAIR
 THE  RIGHT TO COLLECTIVE BARGAINING FOR OR TO MODIFY DISCIPLINARY PROCE-
 DURES.
   § 3. Section 204-a of the civil service law is amended by adding a new
 subdivision 4 to read as follows:
   4. THE TERMS OF ANY CURRENT OR EXPIRED  AGREEMENT  OR  INTEREST  ARBI-
 TRATION AWARD BETWEEN ANY PUBLIC EMPLOYER AND ANY PUBLIC EMPLOYEE ORGAN-
 IZATION  REPRESENTING  FIREFIGHTERS  OR  POLICE OFFICERS RELATING TO THE
 DISCIPLINE OF ANY FIREFIGHTERS OR POLICE OFFICERS SHALL BE DEEMED  VALID
 AND ENFORCEABLE FROM THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS SUBDIVISION.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.

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