Senate File 459 - Introduced SENATE FILE 459 BY COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT (SUCCESSOR TO SF 297) A BILL FOR An Act concerning employment of and merit system protection 1 for administrative law judges, workers’ compensation 2 commissioners, and the administrator of the administrative 3 hearings division of the department of inspections and 4 appeals. 5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 6 TLSB 1616SV (2) 86 ec/rj

S.F. 459 Section 1. Section 8A.412, subsection 11, Code 2015, is 1 amended to read as follows: 2 11. Professional employees under the supervision of the 3 attorney general, the state public defender, the secretary 4 of state, the auditor of state, the treasurer of state, and 5 the public employment relations board. However, employees of 6 the consumer advocate division of the department of justice, 7 other than the consumer advocate, and administrative law judges 8 appointed or employed by the public employment relations board, 9 are subject to the merit system. 10 Sec. 2. Section 8A.415, subsection 1, paragraph b, Code 11 2015, is amended to read as follows: 12 b. If not satisfied, the employee may, within thirty 13 calendar days following the director’s response, file an 14 appeal with the public employment relations board. The 15 hearing shall be conducted in accordance with the rules of the 16 public employment relations board and the Iowa administrative 17 procedure Act, chapter 17A . Decisions rendered shall be 18 based upon a standard of substantial compliance with this 19 subchapter and the rules of the department. Decisions by the 20 public employment relations board constitute final agency 21 action. However, if the employee is an administrative law 22 judge appointed or employed by the public employment relations 23 board, the employee shall not file an appeal with the public 24 employment relations board and the response of the director 25 shall constitute final agency action. 26 Sec. 3. Section 8A.415, subsection 2, paragraph b, Code 27 2015, is amended to read as follows: 28 b. If not satisfied, the employee may, within thirty 29 calendar days following the director’s response, file an appeal 30 with the public employment relations board. The employee has 31 the right to a hearing closed to the public, unless a public 32 hearing is requested by the employee. The hearing shall 33 otherwise be conducted in accordance with the rules of the 34 public employment relations board and the Iowa administrative 35 -1- LSB 1616SV (2) 86 ec/rj 1/ 4

S.F. 459 procedure Act, chapter 17A . If the public employment relations 1 board finds that the action taken by the appointing authority 2 was for political, religious, racial, national origin, sex, 3 age, or other reasons not constituting just cause, the employee 4 may be reinstated without loss of pay or benefits for the 5 elapsed period, or the public employment relations board 6 may provide other appropriate remedies. Decisions by the 7 public employment relations board constitute final agency 8 action. However, if the employee is an administrative law 9 judge appointed or employed by the public employment relations 10 board, the employee shall not file an appeal with the public 11 employment relations board and the response of the director 12 shall constitute final agency action. 13 Sec. 4. Section 10A.801, subsection 3, paragraph a, Code 14 2015, is amended to read as follows: 15 a. The department shall employ a sufficient number of 16 administrative law judges to conduct proceedings for which 17 agencies are required, by section 17A.11 or any other provision 18 of law, to use an administrative law judge employed by the 19 division. An administrative law judge employed by the division 20 shall not perform duties inconsistent with the judge’s duties 21 and responsibilities as an administrative law judge and shall 22 be located in an office that is separated from the offices of 23 the agencies for which that person acts as a presiding officer. 24 Administrative The administrator and all administrative law 25 judges shall be covered by the merit system provisions of 26 chapter 8A, subchapter IV . 27 Sec. 5. Section 86.2, subsection 1, paragraphs a and b, Code 28 2015, are amended to read as follows: 29 a. Chief deputy workers’ compensation commissioners for 30 whose acts the commissioner is responsible, who are exempt from 31 who shall be appointed and serve pursuant to the merit system 32 provisions of chapter 8A, subchapter IV , and who shall serve at 33 the pleasure of the commissioner unless the commissioners are 34 otherwise covered by a collective bargaining agreement . 35 -2- LSB 1616SV (2) 86 ec/rj 2/ 4

S.F. 459 b. Deputy workers’ compensation commissioners for whose 1 acts the commissioner is responsible and who shall serve at the 2 pleasure of the commissioner be appointed and serve pursuant 3 to the merit system provisions of chapter 8A, subchapter IV, 4 unless the commissioners are otherwise covered by a collective 5 bargaining agreement . 6 Sec. 6. Section 96.6, subsection 3, paragraph b, Code 2015, 7 is amended to read as follows: 8 b. Appeals from the initial determination shall be heard 9 by an administrative law judge employed by the department who 10 shall be covered by the merit system provisions of chapter 11 8A, subchapter IV, unless the administrative law judge is 12 otherwise covered by a collective bargaining agreement . An 13 administrative law judge’s decision may be appealed by any 14 party to the employment appeal board created in section 15 10A.601 . The decision of the appeal board is final agency 16 action and an appeal of the decision shall be made directly to 17 the district court. 18 EXPLANATION 19 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 20 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 21 This bill concerns administrative law judges, workers’ 22 compensation commissioners, and the administrative hearings 23 division of the department of inspections and appeals. 24 Code section 8A.412 is amended to provide that 25 administrative law judges appointed or employed by the public 26 employment relations board are subject to the merit system 27 provision of Code chapter 8A. 28 Code section 8A.415 is amended to provide that if an employee 29 subject to the merit system is an administrative law judge 30 appointed or employed by the public employment relations board, 31 a response by the director of the department of administrative 32 services concerning a grievance or discipline involving the 33 employee is considered final agency action and the employee 34 shall not appeal that response to the public employment 35 -3- LSB 1616SV (2) 86 ec/rj 3/ 4

S.F. 459 relations board. 1 Code section 10A.801 is amended to provide that the 2 administrator of the administrative hearings division of the 3 department of inspections and appeals is covered by the merit 4 system as provided in Code chapter 8A. 5 Code section 86.2 is amended to provide that chief deputy 6 workers’ compensation commissioners and deputy workers’ 7 compensation commissioners shall be appointed and serve 8 pursuant to the merit system provision of Code chapter 8A 9 unless the commissioners are otherwise covered by a collective 10 bargaining agreement. Current law provides that chief deputy 11 commissioners are exempt from the merit system and that all 12 chief deputy and deputy commissioners serve at the pleasure of 13 the workers’ compensation commissioner. 14 Code section 96.6 is amended to provide that an 15 administrative law judge employed by the department of 16 workforce development for unemployment compensation cases shall 17 be covered by the merit system provisions of Code chapter 18 8A unless the judge is otherwise covered by a collective 19 bargaining agreement. 20 -4- LSB 1616SV (2) 86 ec/rj 4/ 4