Taking a Time Out -- Politically Speaking

Last Saturday, the WFSE Executive Board voted to adopt a resolution that suspends our endorsement process for 2009, withholds certain contributions, and creates a member-driven process to reconsider how our political program will work. I was expecting a vigorous discussion but the resolution was adopted overwhelmingly.

State workers suffered a terrible beat-down during the 2009 Legislative Session. In truth, we expected that to a large degree. We're in the middle of a global economic crisis, and sacrifices from state workers needed to be part of the solution. Faced with a $9 billion deficit, the Legislature and the Governor decided to balance the budget with $4 billion in one-time federal stimulus dollars and $4.5 billion in budget cuts. Included was $1.2 billion taken directly out of the pockets of state workers.

Taking $1.2 billion from state workers might be understandable, but the manner in which they chose to make those cuts was highly objectionable. The cuts to our health care benefits and to pension funding threaten the long-term economic security of every state worker. We offered a number of proposals to mitigate those cuts (cuts in WMS, closure of tax loopholes, forwarding a revenue proposal to voters, etc.) to no avail.

Making matters worse were actions taken by the Legislature and the Governor that had nothing to do with saving money: undermining our collective bargaining rights, privatizing child welfare services, adopting a budget proviso intended to close institutions in DD, JRA and DOC, and rejecting the worker privacy bill. None of these issues were about money. Instead, they were about values.

The truth is, legislators from both parties caused us great harm. It was a bipartisan beat-down. And we came away feeling like there were a lot of politicians who have been telling us over the years that they share our values, but who proved otherwise by their actions this year.

Our union and our members have been challenged like never before, and we need to decide how we are going to respond. The resolution adopted by the board is intended to provide a rational, member-driven process for considering what our endorsement process and our political program should look like in the future. I'm getting a lot of good feedback, and ideas are being put on the table, so WFSE members should keep sending us their thoughts and suggestions.

I really don't know how this will all evolve or what our next political model will look like. But one thing I do know that we're not backing down! -- Dennis

...And the train keeps a rollin'... WMS and Disability Retirement

We have had some calls wondering where a few projects left over from the Legislative session were at, so we thought we'd update our reader, and maybe he/she will spread the word.

EHB 2049, the WMS study bill called for a study of WMS/EMS. We are happy to be able to report that the state auditor, Brian Sonntag's office will be conducting the state wide performance study. We are very excited about the opportunity to work with the great staff team over at SAO. We can count on an unbiased and thorough examination of the issue that will be performed by a competent and professional team. The auditor’s office is ready to proceed with the study right away and they are in the first stages of making that happen.

I have been told that some of the state agencies have run into trouble trying to collect data about WMS/EMS bonus' and performance pay. I am not sure what the issues are, whether it is about them not having kept track of the data, or if it is some kind of IT problem, but I am told that it may be a while before they are ready to comply with the reporting requirements. Luckily, that won't slow down Sonntag's crew. The bill's sponsor, Representative Larry Seaquist of the 26th district, is still very much involved. We have spoken to him several times since the end of the legislative session, and he continues to show support and interest in keeping the project moving forward.

Another holdover issue is the disability retirement study. This is a study that was funded by the legislature to be performed by the Washington State Institute of Public Policy. This study will focus on the feasibility of the state providing a benefit to those members of the public employees’ retirement system (to include teachers) who suffer a catastrophic health event and can no longer hold meaningful employment. The other focus of the study will be the potential for employee paid insurance benefit that would cover the penalty a state employee would suffer if they had to retire early due to a catastrophic health event. The idea is similar to disability insurance currently available to some state employees. The current program stops coverage in the event that one could not return to work. This proposal would kick in at that time and cover the actuarial penalty to the employees retirement benefit.

There will have to be some limits to these benefits, to hold down cost. A few that have been suggested are that eligibility would be limited to those employees with 15 years of service or more, the level of disability has to be profound enough that the person can no longer hold down any meaningful employment (similar to the current SSI standards) and the insurance feature would be an "{opt out" policy offered at the beginning of an individuals employment.

WSIPP has started study on the issue and should have findings by November or so. By August they should have a pretty good idea of what the universe looks like, so we should be able to tell you more about it then. If the study offers conclusions that seem economically feasible, then you could expect us to forward legislation to make it happen.

Well, that is all for now. Have a great independence day and remember: Democracy is not a spectator sport. You have to play to win. Get in the game...what are you waiting for?

Debating the Direction Of the WFSE Political Program

The sense of anger and betrayal among our members since the conclusion of the 2009 Legislative Session is widespread and deep. Our members feel like they were thrown overboard by elected officials (from both parties) that we had endorsed and supported.

A couple of weeks ago an old friend reminded me that when things are going badly, the first response should be to look in the mirror. Right now it sure seems like what we have been doing isn't working any more. As a result, we are re-examining our entire legislative and political program, looking for new strategies that will allow us to advance our members' interests more effectively.

The WFSE Legislative & Political Action Committee, responsible for leading this discussion, met last night and after a hearty debate agreed unanimously to forward a resoultion to the Executive Board that would suspend our regular endorsement process and establish a series of workshops where WFSE leaders could consult with experts regarding the various strategic options at our disposal.

To be clear, the committee was not unanimous on whether the resolution should ultimately be adopted -- there were articulate arguments on both sides -- but they all agreed it was important for the Executive Board to debate and decide this issue. The next scheduled Board meeting is July 18.

I'm pasting a copy of the entire resolution below. I'd love to hear what WFSE members think. -- Dennis

WHEREAS, the 2009 Legislative Session resulted in tremendous harm to all WFSE members and state workers; and

WHEREAS, we understand the state is facing the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression and that we, as state employees, must make sacrifices. Still, the Governor and the Legislature chose cuts that threaten the long-term security of all state workers. Our pension system has now been under-funded four out of the past eight years and the cuts in health care benefits might never be regained; and

WHEREAS, the harm to state employees as a result of massive budget cuts is bad enough by itself, yet the Governor and the Legislature repeatedly took actions(1) that were hurtful to our members that didn’t have anything to do with saving money: and

WHEREAS, we understand and respect that it is the right and the obligation for our elected officials to make difficult policy decisions, and that there are always going to be times when WFSE members disagree with those decisions; and

WHEREAS, our members are united by certain core principles, and actions by the Governor and the Legislature this past session to weaken collective bargaining rights, close institutions and privatize state services are in direct conflict with our principles; and

WHEREAS, it seems clear now that we have, over the years, supported a lot of elected officials who really don’t share our values. As a result, we need to reconsider how we conduct our entire legislative and political action program.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, WFSE will suspend its normal endorsement process and take no action in the 2009 special elections for the Legislature, although this is by no means intended to discourage WFSE locals from participating in local government elections; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, WFSE will make no contributions to any candidate for the office of Governor or State Legislature, or any committees controlled by the Governor or Legislators, for the duration of the 2009 calendar year; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, the Legislative & Political Action Committee will conduct a series of three workshops this year. The committee will bring in experts from outside our union to discuss with us a variety of political strategies including, but not limited to: revenue options such as tax loopholes; whether the initiative process is a viable alternative for advancing our members’ interests; and other tools and options available to strengthen our voice. The council will reimburse travel costs for one representative from each local, as well as for executive board members, who attend the workshops.


(1)Note: There were no savings achieved when the Governor refused to forward our contracts to the Legislature. We all knew our contracts would never be funded in the face of an economic crisis, but the Governor chose a course of action that permanently damages the integrity of the entire collective bargaining law.

Any alleged “savings” from the massive closures in DDD and JRA that the Governor and the Legislature have set in motion are miniscule at best. We believe the mandate in the budget to close institutions is motivated far more by ideology than by cost.

The Governor and the Legislature agreed to privatize 30% of Child Welfare Services even though it adds millions of dollars in unfunded mandates to an already overburdened Children’s Administration.

"Government Reform" On the Table

Adam Wilson of the Olympian has the story:

"In a meeting with The Olympian's editorial board Wednesday afternoon, Gov. Chris Gregoire outlined some rather ambitious plans for future changes in state government.

Ambitious, that is, considering the Legislature started by eliminating a 18 boards and commissions out of hundreds and renamed CTED the Department of Commerce. Most of the savings in the new budget come from reductions in staff and service.

Gregoire defended the action as an important start, and said lawmakers now want to establish a process to determine which residential treatment centers could be shut down, similar to one used by the military to pick bases for closure.

'We're looking at consolidating all the natural resource agencies; asking, can it, should it be done,' she added.

She also outlined an attorney-general style information technology service, in which a state chief information officer would assign staff to assist agencies, replacing the in-house functions now used.

Functions like motor pool, personnel support and real estate services could follow a similar model, Gregoire said. She’s counting on a review of state government by State Auditor Brian Sonntag to guide some of those decisions.

'That's in part why I did not take all of the cuts from the auditor’s office,' she said."

It's going to be critical for our members to be engaged in these discussions over the summer and fall. It looks like we have our work cut out for us. -- Dennis

HB 2049, a small victory in a session of losses

Well Reader (optimistically, in the singular;-), we're back! After a long hiatus and a longer legislative session, I find a minute to jot a line or two.

I have gotten several phone calls and questions regarding what we have affectionately named the WMS bill. Rumors are floating around about what the bill is, or is not, so I thought I would talk about that so that you, our reader, can spread the word to the other 40 thousand members who might be interested.

Engrossed house bill 2049 regarding exempt employment practices was prime sponsored by Representative Larry Seaquist from the 26th legislative district. Larry was an absolutely great champion for our cause. Folks from the Gig Harbor area are lucky to have this kind of competent representation in the House of Representatives.

The bill has three basic components. The first provides transparency to the growth and compensation of WMS and Exempt Management Services. This has been a very important goal for the union over the last several years. We have seen and suspected that upper management has grown and are compensated disproportionately to line staff. Proving it has always been difficult because each agency is allowed by RCW to develop their WMS/EMS systems independently. Public disclosure requests to each agency would be necessary to get the full picture.

This bill requires the Director of the Department of Personnel to report to the Governor and Legislature annually on the number of classified, Washington Management Service, and exempt employees; the number of bonuses and performance-based incentives awarded to agency staff; and the cost of each bonus or incentive awarded. The pay off here will be huge at the bargaining table.

The second component of the bill blocks management’s ability to turn vacant classified positions into exempt positions at will. The union will now be able to act in lieu of an incumbent employee to file objections when vacant positions are exempted. This should help us keep account of how many positions management takes away from classified service and makes into exempt ones and protect the number of classified spots available to perform the frontline services of the agency.

Lastly, 2049 declares that the legislature intends to review the state's senior management and exempt services and understands that possible refinements in the service are needed. A review, in consultation with the various stakeholders and in light of current best practices, is warranted. The bills sponsor, Rep. Seaquist and the chair of the State Government and Tribal Affairs committee, Rep. Sam Hunt, have asked the State Auditors office to conduct a statewide performance audit of WMS/EMS. We are hopeful that Auditor Sonntag will agree to perform this review. His office is just the kind of independent reviewer this project needs to produce fair and thoughtful reform to a broken and out of control system.

As a related aside, we did manage to get budget provisos in both the house and senate budget that would have mandated specific percentage cuts to WMS/EMS. Senate and house leadership opted not to be that prescriptive, but did put more general language, which called for personnel reductions which have the least possible impact on employees responsible for direct service delivery. Our gentle reader should make sure he/she reminds his/her labor management representatives to remember this when layoffs are negotiated for each agency and bargaining unit.

ESHB 2049 is not all we hoped it would be, but, after it is all said and done, is a small victory for labor in the world of state employees. Proper acknowledgment must be given to our members in ecology, who got this ball rolling with their WMS study presented to the executive board last winter.

TTFN,
z

More Fun Budget Provisos: Consolidating Natural Resource Agencies

Another proviso in the budget bill that will be of interest to our members is Section 907, which reads as follows:

"The governor shall convene a work group consisting of representatives from the natural resource agencies. The work group shall consider the experience of other states and their organizational structures to identify consolidation opportunities to improve service delivery and reduce costs. The work group shall submit a comprehensive written recommendation to the governor and the office of financial management by September 1, 2009."

It's looking like we're going to have a pretty rough summer and fall, and like next year's legislative session could be every bit as bad as this year. -- Dennis

Final Budget Mandates Study Of All Institutions

Whenever a budget comes out, I always make it a point to skim through the text of the actual budget bill. The Legislature is adept a slipping provisos -- instructions to agencies -- in the budget that can have a profound affect on WFSE members, and this year is no exception.

The final budget compromise this year doesn't close any institutions immediately, but a proviso has been included that appears intended to have that same effect. In the section making appropriations to the Office of Financial Management [Sec. 130] the following subsection appears:

"(4) $500,000 of the general fund--state appropriation for fiscal year 2010 is provided solely for a study of the feasibility of closing state institutional facilities and a plan on eliminating beds in the state institutional facility inventory. The office of financial management shall contract with consultants with expertise related to the subject matters included in this study. The office of financial management and the consultants shall consult with the department of social and health services, the department of corrections, stakeholder groups that represent the people served in these institutions, labor organizations that represent employees who work in these institutions and other persons or entities with expertise in the areas being studied.
(a) For the purposes of this study, "state institutional facilities" means facilities operated by the department of corrections to house persons convicted of a criminal offense, Green Hill school and Maple Lane school operated by the department of social and health services juvenile rehabilitation administration, and residential habilitation centers operated by the department of social and health services.
(b) In conducting this study, the consultants shall consider the following factors as appropriate:
(i) The availability of alternate facilities including alternatives and opportunities for consolidation with other facilities, impacts on those alternate facilities, and any related capital costs;
(ii) The cost of operating the facility, including the cost of providing services and the cost of maintaining or improving the physical plant of the facility;
(iii) The geographic factors associated with the facility, including the impact of the facility on the local economy and the economic impact of its closure, and alternative uses for a facility recommended for closure;
(iv) The costs associated with closing the facility, including the continuing costs following the closure of the facility;
(v) Number and type of staff and the impact on the facility staff including other employment opportunities if the facility is closed;
(vi) The savings that will accrue to the state from closure or consolidation of a facility and the impact any closure would have on funding the associated services; and
(vii) For the residential habilitation centers, the impact on clients in the facility being recommended for closure and their families, including ability to get alternate services and impact on being moved to another facility.
(c) The office of financial management shall submit a final report to the governor and the ways and means committees of the house of representatives and senate by November 1, 2009. The report shall provide a recommendation and a plan to eliminate 1,580 beds in the department of corrections facilities, 235 beds from juvenile rehabilitation facilities, and 250 funded beds in the residential habilitation centers through closure or consolidation of facilities. The report shall include an assessment of each facility studied, where and how the services should be provided, and any costs or savings associated with each recommendation. In considering the recommendations of the report, the governor and the legislature shall not consider closure of any state institutional facility unless the report recommended the facility for closure."

The hits just keep on coming! -- Dennis

Major Battles: Child Welfare Services

The Senate continues to push hard for the privatization of child welfare services on a massive scale. ESSB 5943 as passed by the Senate (and 2SHB 2106 as amended by the Senate Human Services & Corrections Committee), represents the broadest contracting out proposal to receive serious consideration by the Legislature in more than a decade. Adding insult to injury, the Senate continues to wage a direct attack on state employee collective bargaining rights in the language of the bill. We agree change is needed at CWS, but the Senate proposal is risky, expensive, and continues to demonstrate contempt for the state employees who work so hard to protect our children.

On the other hand, the House is on a far more responsible path for reforming CWS. As adopted by the House, 2SHB 2106 would create a pilot program to find out if an evidence-based contracting scheme would even work.

ESSB 5943 passed the Senate, but the House Early Learning & Children's Services Committee stripped the Senate language from the bill and replaced it with a modified version of their pilot program proposal. At roughly the same time, the Senate Human Services & Corrections Committee replaced the contents of 2SHB 2106 with a modified version of their privatization proposal. So, for those keeping score at home, now 2106 is the awful bill, and 5943 isn't so bad. -- Dennis

Major Battles: Community Corrections

Both budgets make significant cuts to community supervision, but the House budget cuts are much deeper and will result in a decimation of our entire transitional system. Not only is community supervision more cost-effective than incarceration, it provides offenders with the support structure necessary to change their behavior once they are released from prison. These cuts will result in higher crime rates and the House budget in particular represents a tremendous risk to public safety. -- Dennis

Major Battles: Institutions

The Senate proposal to close Yakima Valley School would result in traumatic disruption to 90 of the most vulnerable people in our society, eliminate respite services for over 100 families a year, eliminate hundreds of jobs and millions of dollars in economic activity – all to save (optimistically) $2.5 million over the biennium. The proposed closure of YVS doesn’t appear to be motivated by cost savings. The Senate budget makes a bad situation worse with the inclusion of a proviso requiring DSHS to immediately prepare a plan to close the Francis Haddon Morgan Center [PSSB 5600 Sec. 205(2)(f)].

Both budgets would close a JRA institution even though studies have shown the evidence-based continuum of services provided by JRA to be very effective. The Senate proposes closing Green Hill School, which would completely dismantle the JRA institutional system -- and is unjustifiable on a cost-benefit basis. The House proposes combining the closure of Naselle Youth Camp with dramatic cuts in JRA’s enhanced parole services, which would cause permanent harm to our state’s transitional services for juvenile offenders. -- Dennis

Major Battles: State Employee Health Care Benefits

There are 17 days left in the Legislative session and the pressure is building daily. The House and Senate are both expected to be on the floor, in either session or caucus, all day every day (and often into the night) until they adjourn (or not) on April 26th. Legislators will take two days off for Easter weekend and then work straight through to the end.

A lot of issues are resolved, for better or worse, and now we're down to focusing all of our lobbying efforts on a handful of issues that are still up in the air. For state employees, the single biggest issue is health care.

State employees have already sacrificed our COLA, we’re losing thousands of jobs, and our pension funds are being raided. Health care is the only meaningful benefit remaining for state workers. Neither budget fully funds employee health care, but the Senate budget cuts much deeper and will result in significant erosion in benefits.

What's happening is that other interests are arguing that health care dollars should be taken away from state employees and be used to fund their favorite program instead. Many Legislators forget that you can't have programs without people, and so a battle ensues. Protecting health care benefits is our highest priority right now, and we need all the support we can get.

The Senate continues its assault on state employee benefits in the surprising striking amendment to SB 5869 adopted in the Ways & Means Committee eliminating the “substantially equivalent” language pertaining to state employee benefits in current law. The underlying bill was carefully negotiated between WFSE and the Administration, and we testified in support in committee. However, with the Senate amendment we are now opposed. -- Dennis

Schoolhouse Rock: How a Bill Becomes a Law

This posting is for my boss who never thought I’d read our blog, let alone post to it.

DW