Washington State House of Representatives Office of Program Research	BILL ANALYSIS
State Government

HB 1376

Brief Description:  Exempting certain veterans affairs personnel from the state civil service law.

Sponsors:  Representatives Armstrong, McDermott, McMorris, D. Schmidt, Haigh and Woods; by request of Department of Veterans Affairs.

Brief Summary of Bill

$Designates additional exempt positions for the Department of Veterans' Affairs.

Hearing Date:  2/7/01

Staff:  Steve Lundin (786‑7127).

Background: 

State voters approved Initiative Measure No. 207 in 1960 establishing a civil service system of personnel administration for most state employees.  The civil service system is based upon merit principles to appoint, promote, transfer, layoff, recruit, retain, classify and pay, remove, discipline, and train employees.

Employees who are subject to the civil service system are referred to as classified employees, while employees who are not subject to the civil service system are referred to as unclassified or exempt employees.  Among others, exempt employees include all employees of the legislative and judicial branches of government, elected officials, state patrol officers, members of boards or commissions, the executive head of each agency.  In addition, exempt employees in each state agency with 50 or more employees include deputy agency heads, assistant directors or division directors, and not more than three principal policy assistants who report directly to the agency head or deputy agency heads.

The Washington Personnel Resources Board may exempt additional state employee positions from the civil service laws by following a specified procedure.  These additional exemptions may not exceed one percent of the employees covered by the civil service system.

In addition, a number of exempt positions are expressly designated for various state agencies.  The civil service system of personnel administration expressly does not apply to the director, the deputy director, and no more than two assistants in the Department of Veterans' Affairs.

Summary of Bill: 

Additional express exempt positions are designated for the Department of Veterans' Affairs.  These additional positions are either:

$A confidential secretary for the deputy director, a confidential secretary for each assistant director, and a confidential secretary for each veterans facilities superintendent; or

$Each assistant director, each veterans facilities superintendent, and a confidential secretary for the deputy director.

Rulemaking Authority:  No express authority.

Effective Date:  Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Appropriation:  None.

Fiscal Note:  Requested on January 30, 2001.