What's happening
This bill ensures that disciplinary procedures for police officers, except for use of force cases, remain negotiable in union contracts.
Why it matters
Reaffirms the right of police unions to negotiate disciplinary procedures. (except in use of force cases), which could strengthen union influence over how officers are disciplined for most types of misconduct.
Overrides certain court decisions that limited local negotiation on police discipline. , potentially reversing previous rulings that took disciplinary control away from union contracts when local laws predate 1958.
Excludes use-of-force incidents from negotiable discipline. , signaling a state-level priority to maintain stricter, standardized oversight for police use-of-force cases, while all other discipline (like insubordination or misconduct) remains subject to bargaining.
May impact public transparency and accountability. by allowing key aspects of police discipline to be settled privately at the bargaining table, rather than through public policy or uniform state standards—except when it comes to the use of force.
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Who cares
Police unions
The bill would make alternatives to statutory or regulatory disciplinary procedures a mandatory bargaining subject for police officers, except for charges alleging unlawful, unauthorized or excessive force on the job.
Municipal governments and police departments
Public employers would have to negotiate these disciplinary alternatives despite contrary general or special laws, rules or regulations.
Police officers facing disciplinary charges
The bill would preserve rights under state law to choose a statutory or negotiated disciplinary system, unless state law requires or permits the negotiated system to be exclusive.
Headline styles
Let Police Bargain Discipline
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to civil service and pensions
- Referred to civil service and pensions
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1329
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 14, 2019
Introduced by Sen. GALLIVAN -- 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 disciplinary procedures affecting police officers
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, 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 such 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 operation and functions of government. Included among the policies adopted in 1967, and continuing to date, is the requirement that public employers negotiate and enter into agreements with employee organizations about terms and conditions of employment. Over the many years since the public employees' fair employment act became the law and the declared public policy of this state, matters pertaining to employee discipline, including disciplinary procedures, have been negotiated into many collective bargaining agreements covering all types of public employees, including police officers. The legislature now declares that this practice of allowing and requiring the negotiation of fair disciplinary protections and procedures for all public employees must continue. Despite the clarity of this state's policy and law requiring negotiations about terms and conditions of employment, a few court decisions have erroneously held that the law and "public policy" of the state is to prohibit absolutely the negotiation of disciplinary procedures for police officers whenever there exists laws on the subject of police officer discipline that were enacted before 1958 when section 75 of the civil service law was enacted. The legislature declares a necessity for the enactment of this act to ensure that disciplinary procedures will
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02969-01-9
S. 1329 2
continue as a mandatory subject of collective negotiations for police officers to enhance the prohibition against strikes and to protect the delivery of vital public services.
§ 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. (a) The term "terms and conditions of employment" means salaries, wages, hours and other terms and conditions of employment 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) (i) Notwithstanding any other general or special law, rule or regulation to the contrary, "terms and conditions of employment" shall include for all employees who are police officers under law alternatives to any statutory or regulatory disciplinary provisions relating to the adjudication and disposition of disciplinary charges except those charges alleging a police officer has used unlawful, unauthorized or excessive force in the course of employment.
(ii) Nothing in this subdivision shall impair the right of a public employee under any state law to elect coverage under either a statutory disciplinary system or an alternative disciplinary system established by collective negotiations, unless any such state law requires or authorizes exclusivity of a negotiated disciplinary system.
§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the civil service law, in relation to the negotiability of disciplinary procedures affecting police officers
Purpose
This legislation will make disciplinary procedures a mandatory negoti- able term and condition of employment for police officers except for procedures pertaining to disciplinary charges alleging an officer used unlawful, unauthorized or excessive force in the course of employment.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 of the bill establishes the legislative findings and declara- tions.
Section 2 amends the civil service law to require that "terms and condi- tions of employment" must include for employees who are designated police officers alternatives to any statutory or regulatory disciplinary provisions relating to adjudication and disposition of disciplinary charges, except for those charges alleging unlawful, unauthorized or excessive force in the course of employment.
Section 3 establishes the effective date.
Justification
In 2006, the Court of Appeals held, generally, that matters pertaining to police officer discipline are prohibited and unenforceable whenever there are other laws existing before the enactment of Section 75 of the Civil Service Law in 1958 that delegate power and authority over police officer discipline to government officials. Provisions in collective bargaining agreements pertaining to police discipline also have been held void and unenforceable on this same rationale as a matter of public policy.
Although the Court of Appeals has noted the strong and sweeping, policy under the State Taylor Law requiring collective bargaining over all public employees terms and conditions of employment, the Court has concluded that the Taylor Law's expressly declared public policy and its express substantive terms are trumped by a countervailing, implicit policy found in police officer discipline laws that pre-date the Taylor Law by decades that the Court believes favor management authority over police disciplinary matters.
This bill will ensure that there can be collective bargaining regarding alternatives to the statutory and regulatory disciplinary systems the Court of Appeals has held pre-empt collective bargaining when police officers are facing disciplinary charges except when the disciplinary charges allege that a police officer has used unlawful, unauthorized or excessive force in the course of employment. Police officers, like all other employees, should have at least the chance to bargain for a disci- plinary proceeding held before a neutral party with a decision by a neutral party. This bill would restore in the noted circumstance the right to negotiate alternatives to these antiquated statutory and regu- latory police disciplinary systems and it otherwise leaves the negotia- bility of matters pertaining to police officer discipline unaffected and controlled by existing law. This bill, thus, strikes a fair compromise between the rights of police officers to bargain their terms and condi- tions of employment and the employers' interests in controlling the discipline of their police officers.
Legislative history
2017-18: S.8683/A.10371a Referred to Civil Service and Pensions/Referred to Governmental Employees
Fiscal implications
None
Effective date
This Act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.