HOUSE BILL REPORT

                      HB 1364

                           As Passed Legislature

Title:  An act relating to military leave for public employees.

Brief Description:  Providing military leave for public employees and officers called to active duty.

Sponsor(s):  Representatives Forner, D. Sommers, Winsley, Wynne, Mitchell, Edmondson, P. Johnson, Chandler, Vance, Wood, Moyer, Miller, Brumsickle, Bowman, Horn, Paris, Casada, Ballard, Brough, Tate and Lisk.

Brief History:

   Reported by House Committee on:

State Government, February 26, 1991, DP;

Passed House, March 11, 1991, 97-0;

Passed Legislature, 97-0.

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON

STATE GOVERNMENT

Majority Report: Do pass.  Signed by 10 members:  Representatives Anderson, Chair; Pruitt, Vice Chair; McLean, Ranking Minority Member; Bowman, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Chandler; R. Fisher; Grant; Moyer; O'Brien; and Sheldon.

Staff:  Linda May (786-7135).

Background:  Under current law, members of the Washington National Guard or the U.S. military reserves receive up to 15 days of paid military leave per year.  This leave is designated as compensation for "active training duty" and allows state, county and city employees to be paid for what is typically two weeks of military training per year.  Employees receive compensation from the federal government for time spent in active military training.

State, county and city employees also receive compensation from the federal government when they are called into active service.  However, they do not receive paid military leave for active service.  Payment for military leave is restricted to time spent in training.  Employees called into active duty use their annual leave reserves or go on leave without pay status.

Summary of Bill:  A state, county or city employee's 15 days of military leave may be used for either active training duty or when called up for active duty, or for some combination of the two.  The act applies to all public employees who reported for active duty or active training duty on or after August 2, 1990.

Fiscal Note:  Requested February 12, 1991.

Effective Date:  The bill contains an emergency clause and takes effect immediately.

Testimony For:  It is unfair that these individuals are putting their lives on the line and can't even get the same leave benefits as they get for training.  This is probably an oversight from past sessions.  There is a lag time before federal military pay begins, and this bill will help fill the lag.  People are already taking a pay cut by going on military pay rather than receiving their regular pay.  The bill does not increase the number of days of military leave; it just allows leave for active duty as well as training.

Testimony Against:  None.

Witnesses:  Representative Elmira Forner; Howard Vietzke, WA State Council of Fire Fighters; John Willis, Kevin Garland and Brian Dodge, Kent Firefighters Local 1747; Mark Brown, WA Federation of State Employees; and Kathleen Collins, Association of Washington Cities (all in favor).