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                                ENGROSSED SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL NO. 6452

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State of Washington                               51st Legislature                              1990 Regular Session

 

By Senate Committee on Ways & Means (originally sponsored by Senators von Reichbauer, Gaspard, McDonald, Newhouse and Lee)

 

 

Read first time 1/31/90.

 

 


AN ACT Relating to the school district and community college employee leave sharing program; and amending RCW 28A.58.0991 and 41.04.665.

 

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

 

        Sec. 1.  Section 6, chapter 93, Laws of 1989 and RCW 28A.58.0991 are each amended to read as follows:

          Every school district board of directors and educational service district superintendent may, in accordance with RCW 41.04.650 through 41.04.665, establish and administer an annual leave sharing program for their certificated and noncertificated employees. For employees of school districts and educational service districts, the superintendent of public instruction shall adopt standards: (1) Establishing appropriate parameters for the program which are consistent with the provisions of RCW 41.04.650 through 41.04.665; and (2)  establishing procedures to ensure that the program does not significantly increase the cost of providing annual leave.  For employees who do not accrue annual leave for vacation purposes, "annual leave" as used in this section includes leave accrued under RCW 28A.58.099(2)(c).

 

        Sec. 2.  Section 4, chapter 93, Laws of 1989 and RCW 41.04.665 are each amended to read as follows:

          (1)  An agency head may permit an employee to receive leave under this section if:

          (a) The employee suffers from, or has  a relative  or  household member suffering from, an illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental  condition  which  is of an extraordinary or severe nature and which has caused, or is likely to cause, the employee to:

          (i) Go on leave without pay status; or

          (ii) Terminate state employment;

          (b) The employee's absence and the use of shared leave  are justified;

          (c)  The employee has depleted or will shortly deplete his or her annual leave and sick leave reserves;

          (d) The employee has abided by agency rules regarding sick  leave use; and

          (e)  The  employee  has  diligently pursued and been found to be ineligible for benefits under chapter 51.32 RCW.

          (2) The agency head shall determine the amount of leave, if  any, which  an employee  may  receive  under  this section.  However, an employee shall not receive a total of more than two hundred sixty-one days of leave.

          (3)  An employee who has an accrued annual leave balance of  more than  ten days may request that the head of the agency for which the employee works transfer a specified amount of annual leave to another employee authorized to receive leave under subsection  (1)  of  this section.   In  no event  may the employee request a transfer of an amount of leave that would result in his or her annual leave account going below ten days.

          (4) An employee of a community college who does not accrue annual leave but does accrue sick leave and who has an accrued sick leave balance of more than sixty days may request that the head of the agency for which the employee works transfer a specified amount of sick leave to another employee authorized to receive leave under subsection (1) of this section.  In no event may such an employee request a transfer of more than ten days of sick leave during any twelve month period, or request a transfer that would result in his or her sick leave account going below sixty days.  Transfers of sick leave under this subsection are limited to transfers from employees who do not accrue annual leave.

          (5) Transfers of leave made by an agency head under subsections (3) and (4) of this section shall not exceed the requested amount.

          (((5))) (6) Leave transferred  under  this section may be transferred from employees of one agency to an employee of the same agency or, with the approval of the heads of both agencies, to an employee of another state agency.  However, leave transferred to or from employees of school districts or educational service districts is limited to transfers to or from employees within the same employing district.

          (((6))) (7) While an employee is on leave transferred under this section, he  or  she shall continue to be classified as a state employee and shall receive the same treatment in respect to salary, wages, and employee benefits as the employee would normally receive if using accrued annual leave or sick leave.

          (a) All salary and wage payments made to employees while on leave transferred under this section shall be made by the agency employing the person receiving the leave.  The value of leave transferred shall be based upon the annual leave value of the person receiving the leave.

          (b) In the case of leave transferred by an employee of one agency to an employee of another agency, the agencies involved shall arrange for the transfer of funds and credit for  the  appropriate  value  of leave.

          (i)  Pursuant  to  rules  adopted  by the  office  of  financial management, funds shall not be transferred under this section if  the  transfer  would  violate any constitutional or statutory restrictions on the funds being transferred.

          (ii)  The  office  of  financial management may adjust the appropriation authority  of  an  agency  receiving  funds under this section only  if  and  to  the extent  that  the  agency's  existing appropriation  authority  would  prevent  it from expending the funds received.

          (iii) Where any questions arise in the transfer of funds  or  the adjustment  of appropriation  authority,  the  director of financial management shall determine the appropriate transfer or adjustment.

          (((7))) (8) Leave transferred under this section shall not be used in any calculation  to determine  an  agency's  allocation  of full time equivalent staff positions.

          (((8))) (9) The  value of any leave transferred under this section which remains unused shall be returned at its original value to the employee or employees who transferred the leave when the agency head finds that the leave is no longer needed or will not be needed at a future  time  in connection with the illness or injury for which the leave was transferred.   To the extent administratively feasible, the value of unused leave which was transferred by more than one employee shall be returned on a pro rata basis.