ACR192

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman LINDA STENDER

District 22 (Middlesex, Somerset and Union)

Assemblyman REED GUSCIORA

District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)

Assemblyman HERB CONAWAY, JR.

District 7 (Burlington)

Assemblyman TIMOTHY J. EUSTACE

District 38 (Bergen and Passaic)

Assemblyman DANIEL R. BENSON

District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)

Assemblyman WAYNE P. DEANGELO

District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman Mosquera, Assemblyman Coughlin, Senators Gordon, Greenstein and Turner

SYNOPSIS

Invalidates Civil Service Commission job banding rule.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

As introduced.

A Concurrent Resolution concerning legislative review of rules and regulations pursuant to Article V, Section IV, paragraph 6 of the Constitution of the State of New Jersey and invalidating the Civil Service Commission job banding rule.

Whereas, Pursuant to Article V, Section IV, paragraph 6 of the Constitution of the State of New Jersey, the Legislature may review any rule or regulation adopted or proposed by an administrative agency to determine if it is consistent with the intent of the Legislature, and invalidate an adopted rule or regulation or prohibit the adoption of a proposed rule or regulation if it finds that the rule or regulation is not consistent with legislative intent; and

Whereas, Upon finding that a rule or regulation, either proposed or adopted, is not consistent with legislative intent, Article V, Section IV, paragraph 6 provides that the Legislature shall transmit its findings in the form of a concurrent resolution to the Governor and the head of the Executive Branch agency which promulgated, or plans to promulgate, the rule or regulation, and the agency shall have 30 days from the time the concurrent resolution is transmitted to amend or withdraw the rule or regulation; and

Whereas, If the agency does not amend or withdraw the existing or proposed rule or regulation, Article V, Section IV, paragraph 6 provides that the Legislature may invalidate or prohibit the adoption of the proposed rule or regulation, following a public hearing held by either House on the invalidation or prohibition, the placement of a transcript of the public hearing on the desks of the members of each House of the Legislature in open meeting followed by the passage of at least 20 calendar days, and a vote of a majority of the authorized membership of each House in favor of a concurrent resolution invalidating or prohibiting the adoption of the rule or regulation; and

Whereas, The Civil Service Commission adopted a new rule, N.J.A.C.4A:3-3.2A, entitled “Job Banding Program,” which was filed with the Office of Administrative Law on February 28, 2013 and published in the New Jersey Register on March 18, 2013, and, after the adoption of substantial changes, was adopted by the commission at its meeting on May 7, 2014 and became effective on June 2, 2014 upon publication in the New Jersey Register; and

Whereas, On June 16, 2014, Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 116 received final approval by the Legislature and was filed with the Secretary of State, and transmitted to the Governor and the Chair of the Civil Service Commission; and

Whereas, Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 116 expressed the Legislature’s finding that the Civil Service Commission’s new rule N.J.A.C.4A:3-3.2A, “Job Banding Program,” was not consistent with legislative intent and informed the commission, pursuant to Article V, Section IV, paragraph 6 of the Constitution of the State of New Jersey, that the commission shall have 30 days following transmittal of that concurrent resolution to amend or withdraw the new rule or the Legislature may, by passage of another concurrent resolution, exercise its authority under the Constitution to invalidate the regulation in whole or in part; and

Whereas, The new rule is contrary to the spirit, intent, and plain meaning of the provision in the New Jersey Constitution that requires that promotions of public employees be based on merit and fitness to be ascertained, as far as practicable, by examination, which, as far as practicable, shall be competitive. The new rule is not consistent with the legislative intent that the public policy of this State is to select and advance employees on the basis of their relative knowledge, skills and abilities, ensure equal employment opportunity at all levels of public service, and protect career public employees from political coercion. The new rule is not consistent with the legislative intent that a competitive promotional examination process be established, maintained, and administered by the Civil Service Commission to ensure that promotions are based on merit and fitness and are not based on patronage or discriminatory reason. The new rule is not consistent with the intent of the Legislature as expressed in the language of the Civil Service Act, including the spirit, intent, or plain meaning of N.J.S.A.11A:3-1, N.J.S.A.11A:4-1, or N.J.S.A.11A:4-8; and

Whereas, On July 16, 2014, the Civil Service Commission approved proposed amendments to the job banding rule that would make only minor changes and are not responsive to the Legislature’s finding, expressed in Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 116, that job banding is not consistent with legislative intent as expressed in the language of the Civil Service Act; and

Whereas, The amendments proposed on July 16, 2014 do not in any way limit the Legislature’s ability to proceed with invalidating the job banding rule pursuant to Article V, Section IV, paragraph 6 through passage of this resolution; and

Whereas, Prior to voting on a concurrent resolution to invalidate an adopted rule or regulation or prohibit the adoption of a rule or regulation, a public hearing shall be held on invalidating or prohibiting the adoption of the proposed rule and the transcript of that hearing shall be placed on the desk of each member of the Senate and each member of the General Assembly; now, therefore,

Be It Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey (the Senate concurring):

1. The Legislature invalidates, in whole, N.J.A.C.4A:3-3.2A, the rule adopted by the Civil Service Commission and entitled “Job Banding Program,” pursuant to the power set forth in Article V, Section IV, paragraph 6 of the Constitution of the State of New Jersey, which became effective on June 2, 2014.

2. The Legislature recognizes that the Civil Service Commission further amended N.J.A.C.4A:3-3.2A and submitted such amendments for filing to the Office of Administrative Law on July 16, 2014. As the Legislature has invalidated N.J.A.C.4A:3-3.2A in its entirety as set forth in section 1 of this concurrent resolution, any subsequent amendments to said regulation shall be deemed null and void.

3. Copies of this concurrent resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State shall be transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the General Assembly to the Governor, the Chair of the Civil Service Commission, and the Office of Administrative Law.

4. This concurrent resolution shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

Pursuant to Article V, Section IV, paragraph 6 of the Constitution of the State of New Jersey, this concurrent resolution invalidates, in whole, the rule proposed by the Civil Service Commission to establish a job banding program, specifically N.J.A.C. 4A:3-3.2A, which was adopted by the commission on May 7, 2014 and became effective on June 2, 2014 upon publication in the New Jersey Register. In addition, this concurrent resolution expressly provides that any amendments to that rule adopted by the Commission, including the amendment filed by the commission with the Office of Administrative Law on July 16, 2014, are null and void.

As required by the Constitution, the Legislature has previously informed the commission, through Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 116 of 2014, of the Legislature’s finding that the job banding rule is not consistent with legislative intent.