S-3855.4  _______________________________________________

                    SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 6600

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington   57th Legislature        2002 Regular Session

By Senate Committee on Labor, Commerce & Financial Institutions (originally sponsored by Senator Prentice)

READ FIRST TIME 02/04/2002.

Authorizing unclassified position appointments in city or town police departments.

    AN ACT Relating to authorizing unclassified position appointments in city or town police departments; and adding a new section to chapter 41.12 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 41.12 RCW to read as follows:

    (1) The classified civil service and provisions of this chapter include all certified police officers and other employees of the police department in each city or town except the chief and an additional number of positions, designated the unclassified service, in every city or town determined as follows:

                                      Unclassified

          Department Personnel    Position Appointments

              1 through 10                  2

              11 through 20                 3

              21 through 50                 4

             51 through 100                 5

             101 through 250                6

             251 through 500                8

              501 and over                 10

    (2) The unclassified position appointments authorized by this section must include selections from the following positions up to the limit of the number of positions authorized:  Assistant chief, deputy chief, bureau commander, and administrative assistant or administrative secretary.  The initial selection of specific positions to be exempt shall be made by the appointing authority, who shall notify the civil service commission of his or her selection.  Subsequent changes in the designation of which positions are to be exempt may be made only with the concurrence of the appointing authority, and the mayor or the city administrator, and the civil service commission, and then only after the civil service commission has heard the issue in open meeting.  Should the position or positions initially selected by the chief to be exempt, as unclassified under this section, be under the classified civil service at the time of the selection, and should the position be occupied, the employee occupying the position has the right to return to the next highest position or a like position under classified civil service.

    (3) The classified civil service and provisions of this chapter include all full paid employees of the police department of each city, town, or municipality coming within its purview, except those individuals appointed as police chief and the executive staff personnel, including the assistant chief, deputy chief, bureau commander, and administrative assistant or administrative secretary to a department with six or more commissioned officers, including the police chief.  All appointments to and promotions in the department shall be made solely on merit, efficiency, and fitness except as provided in RCW 35.13.360 through 35.13.400, which shall be ascertained by open competitive examination and impartial investigation.  No person shall be reinstated in or transferred, suspended, or discharged from any such place, position, or employment contrary to the provisions of this chapter except those exempted positions.

    (4) This section does not apply to cities and towns in which the police chief is a mandated civil service position.

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