SB 1504: Public employment: retirement savings plans, employment conditions, and training.

(1)Under existing law, the Department of Human Resources succeeds to and is vested with all the powers and duties previously performed by the Department of Personnel Administration. Existing law authorizes the Department of Human Resources to establish a deferred compensation plan that permits state officers and employees, participating pursuant to written agreement, to provide for a deferral of their wages. Existing law requires the department to permit officers and employees participating in a tax-deferred retirement savings plan to invest in a range of specified investment options.

This bill would revise these provisions generally to refer to tax-advantaged retirement savings plans and would eliminate the requirement that the participation agreement be written. The bill would delete specific references to investment options that must be offered and instead require the department to offer a broad range of investments. The bill would grant the department the exclusive authority to determine the investment products provided in the core portfolio, subject to certain requirements. The bill would also require the department to offer a brokerage option. The bill would additionally update various references to the Department of Personnel Administration to instead refer to the Department of Human Resources.

(2)Existing law provides that when an employer discharges an employee, or he or she quits, as specified, the wages earned and unpaid at the time of discharge are due and payable immediately. Existing law, applicable to the state, permits an employee, when he or she is discharged, quits, or retires, to elect that unused vacation and leave, as specified, be applied to the employees state sponsored supplemental retirement plan or received as a lump sum. Subject to certain requirements, a state employee may elect different options to defer payment into the next calendar year.

This bill would provide that certain election options described above apply only to leave if the employee is terminated or leaves employment after November 1 of a calendar year, and would prescribe conditions regarding when payments would be deferred, deposited, or tendered. The bill would make various conforming changes, including to conform with federal regulation.

(3)Existing law requires the Department of Human Resources to devise plans for, and cooperate with, appointing powers in the conduct of supervisor and career executive assignment employee training programs.

This bill would extend that requirement to training of managers.

(4)Existing law requires supervisory training to be successfully completed within the term of the probationary period or within 6 months of the employees initial appointment, except if doing so creates additional costs or if training cannot be completed due to limited availability of training courses. Existing law specifies that, upon completion of the initial appointment training, supervisory employees are required to be provided biannually a minimum of 20 hours of leadership training and development, as prescribed by the department.

This bill would require those initial supervisory training hours to be completed no later than the term of the probationary period. The bill also would revise the requirement of 20 hours of subsequent leadership training and development to instead make it a biennial, rather than a biannual, requirement.