Governor Gavin Newsom issued Executive Order N-81-20 on September 25, 2020. He ordered suspension of the retired annuitant work hour limitation of 960 hours per fiscal year in those counties in which he had declared a state of emergency due to the impact of wildfires. The counties affected are as follows: Butte, Del Norte, Fresno, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Los...
On September 18, 2020, Governor Newson signed Assembly Bill (AB) 992 into law. AB 992 amends the Brown Act's provisions concerning serial meetings by addressing, for the first time, the use of social media by members of a legislative body. AB 992, which amends Government Code section 54952.2, clarifies what kind of communications a public official may have on social media and what...
In this election cycle, California voters are faced with several decisions to make following their fellow citizen’s use of the initiative power and placement of propositions on the ballot. Like most elections, many of those initiatives are related to taxation. A recent California appellate decision clarified an important issue about the required number of votes necessary for a proposition to pass...
In the world of public employment and the labor negotiations, the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the employer and bargaining unit is a valued and protected document. Indeed, many MOUs contain a “zipper” clause. This prevents either the employer or employee group from attempts to reopen the agreement during its term. The point, is that both sides want finality and...
Every now and then, a public agency will make a mistake in the handling of a personnel matter. The following is a cautionary tale with a twist.The City/County of San Francisco terminated a police officer. The California Court of Appeal subsequently concluded that the officer’s discharge was wrongful. As a result of the holding, the Court ordered that the discharge...
In a case from just last month, the Second District Court of Appeal upheld the discharge of a deputy sheriff for “embarrassing” her department.A Sheriff’s Deputy (deputy one) was assigned to work in the county jail as a correctional officer after just four (4) months on the job. She continued to work as a correctional officer, and in 2010 she...
Governor Gavin Newsom issued Executive Order N-81-20 on September 25, 2020. He ordered suspension of the retired annuitant work hour limitation of 960 hours per fiscal year in those counties in which he had declared a state of emergency due to the impact of wildfires. The counties affected are as follows: Butte, Del Norte, Fresno, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Los...
On September 18, 2020, Governor Newson signed Assembly Bill (AB) 992 into law. AB 992 amends the Brown Act's provisions concerning serial meetings by addressing, for the first time, the use of social media by members of a legislative body. AB 992, which amends Government Code section 54952.2, clarifies what kind of communications a public official may have on social media and what...
In this election cycle, California voters are faced with several decisions to make following their fellow citizen’s use of the initiative power and placement of propositions on the ballot. Like most elections, many of those initiatives are related to taxation. A recent California appellate decision clarified an important issue about the required number of votes necessary for a proposition to pass...
In the world of public employment and the labor negotiations, the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the employer and bargaining unit is a valued and protected document. Indeed, many MOUs contain a “zipper” clause. This prevents either the employer or employee group from attempts to reopen the agreement during its term. The point, is that both sides want finality and...
Every now and then, a public agency will make a mistake in the handling of a personnel matter. The following is a cautionary tale with a twist.The City/County of San Francisco terminated a police officer. The California Court of Appeal subsequently concluded that the officer’s discharge was wrongful. As a result of the holding, the Court ordered that the discharge...
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In a case from just last month, the Second District Court of Appeal upheld the discharge of a deputy sheriff for “embarrassing” her department.A Sheriff’s Deputy (deputy one) was assigned to work in the county jail as a correctional officer after just four (4) months on the job. She continued to work as a correctional officer, and in 2010 she...