HOUSE BILL REPORT

HB 1376

BYRepresentatives Vekich, Patrick, Smith, R. King, Sayan and Walker

Clarifying the public employment relations commission jurisdiction with public utility districts.

House Committe on Commerce & Labor

Majority Report:  Do pass.  (8)

      Signed by Representatives Vekich, Chair; Cole, Vice Chair; Jones, R. King, Leonard, Prentice, Smith and Walker.

Minority Report:  Do not pass.  (2)

      Signed by Representatives Patrick, Ranking Republican Member; and Wolfe.

House Staff:Chris Cordes (786-7117)

AS REPORTED BY COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE & LABOR FEBRUARY 3, 1989

BACKGROUND:

Under public utility district law, PUD's and their employees are authorized to collectively bargain with the same rights and privileges as are accorded to private industry.  The public employees' collective bargaining law (PECB) applies to PUD collective bargaining except as otherwise provided in the public utility district law.

In 1988, the Washington state supreme court held that the Public Employment Relations Commission, under the PECB, has jurisdiction over labor disputes arising between public utility district employers and their employees.  The court found that the limited PECB exemption for public utility districts applies only to the extent that the district's own collective bargaining provisions conflict with the PECB.

SUMMARY:

Public utility districts that are subject to the collective bargaining provisions of the public utility district law are exempted from coverage under the public employees' collective bargaining law.

Fiscal Note:      Not Requested.

House Committee ‑ Testified For:    Jim Boldt, Washington PUD Association.

House Committee - Testified Against:      Marvin Schurke, Public Employment Relations Commission; and Joe Daniels, Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers.

House Committee - Testimony For:    There is a long history of collective bargaining in the public utility districts based on the private sector model.  The parties have always assumed that the Public Employment Relations Commission did not have jurisdiction and they have negotiated dispute resolution procedures in their contracts.

House Committee - Testimony Against:      For public policy reasons, a neutral regulatory agency has always been given authority to protect the rights of the parties under the collective bargaining process.  If public utility district collective bargaining is removed from the Public Employment Relations Commission's jurisdiction, there will be no neutral agency to ensure that the bargaining process treats all parties fairly.