Some bills have already been signed into law Legislators approve bill to rein in shadow agencies By SHERRY HALBROOK While it’s difficult to recall a more sluggish session of the state Legislature than this one has been, a number of non-budgetary bills of interest to PEF members have passed in both houses. At this writing, only a few of these bills have been sent to the governor for his approval or veto. Bills which have been sent to him and signed into law include: • S3322/A6614, which extends for two years provisions of the state Civil Service Law which create a procedure for enjoining improper practices temporarily if irreparable harm could occur while a case is being decided. • S3069/A5802, which extends for two years Taylor Law agency-fee provisions for public-employee unions. • S4259/A5733, which extends for two years provisions of state law allowing payments of existing pension supplements to retired public employees. One bill of importance to many PEF members was signed by the governor in early August. That bill is S5491/A9113, which would give deferred-compensation accounts in savings plans authorized under Section 457 of the federal tax code the same protection from creditors that is already given to individual retirement accounts and certain other pension plans. Two of the bills still waiting to be sent to the governor are especially important, because PEF worked to get them introduced and supported by the legislators. Spotlighting shadow agencies Bill S2360/A4382 deals with the “shadow agencies” that compete with civil-service employees to conduct the state’s business. This bill, which deals with eight specific public authorities and public benefit corporations, would: • Require each of these shadow agencies to file annual budget reports with the state Legislature and to make these reports available to the public under the terms of the state Freedom of Information Law; • Require legislative approval before any functions now being performed by a state agency can be transferred to one of the named shadow agencies; and • Require all new employees of these shadow agencies be hired under classified civil service. “This bill doesn’t solve all of the problems we have with shadow agencies, but it would subject them to greater public accountability and, hopefully, restrict their growth,” says PEF Legislative Director Brian Curran. Extending leave for injuries State Civil Service Law would be amended by Bill S3323/A6615 to give public employees injured on the job more time to heal before coming back to work. Currently, the law guarantees the injured worker a cumulative total of at least one year of leave with civil-service status in their position before they could be fired. The amendment would change the guaranteed leave from one cumulative year to two consecutive years. Other bills PEF supports • S1518A/A2709A would allow paid leave for public employees who are asked by the Red Cross to serve as disaster-relief volunteers. • S114/A4138 would allow paid leave for state employees donating their organs or bone marrow • S884/A2153 would grant employees of Roswell Park Cancer Institute the right to take civil-service promotional exams — an issue currently being litigated by PEF. • S4085A/A7696A would grant public employees the right to non-attorney union representation during investigations by the Office of the State Inspector General. • S2366/A4378 would authorize a hazardous-duty pay differential for state Transportation Department employees working near traffic. The Communicator Home Page

Judge rules facilities must stop sharing pharmacist A state Supreme Court judge in Erie County has wasted no time in agreeing with PEF in a case where a pharmacist was being shared between two state facilities without her consent or the approval of the state Department of Civil Service. PEF associate counsel Harold Eisenstein presented PEF’s argument that Buffalo Psychiatric Center violated Civil Service Law and state Department of Civil Service Rules and Regulations when it agreed with Western New York Children’s Psychiatric Center to share the services of BPC pharmacist and PEF member Karen Nicosia. Western NY Children’s PC did not have enough pharmacists to regularly staff its pharmacy and wanted to borrow a BPC pharmacist, rather than hire one. State Supreme Court Justice Peter Notaro didn’t wait for written briefs, but ruled in favor of PEF from the bench after hearing oral arguments in the case. He agreed with PEF that transferring the pharmacist, even temporarily, between the two facilities without her written consent and the approval of the Civil Service Department was against the law. The judge ordered the two facilities to end the practice. And, as a result, the children’s center has hired an additional pharmacist. Notaro also ordered the state to reimburse PEF for its costs in the case. The state is appealing the decisi on. — Sherry Halbrook