HB 1708-FN – AS INTRODUCED
2012 SESSION
05/10
HOUSE BILL 1708-FN
AN ACT relative to salaries of state employees.
SPONSORS: Rep. Tamburello, Rock 3; Rep. Manuse, Rock 5; Rep. Warden, Hills 7
COMMITTEE: Executive Departments and Administration
This bill requires the fiscal committee to approve any state employee salary that exceeds that of the governor.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
12-2735
05/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twelve
AN ACT relative to salaries of state employees.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Compensation of State Officers; Salaries. Amend RSA 94:1-a by replacing all after Grade LL with the following:
MM Department of health and human services commissioner
MM Department of justice deputy chief medical examiner
MM Department of health and human services senior physician/psychiatrist I
MM Department of health and human services state senior physician
MM Department of health and human services chief pharmacist
MM Department of health and human services senior physician/psychiatrist II
MM Department of health and human services unit director, medical
MM Department of health and human services state epidemiologist, administrator
health data unit
MM Department of health and human services physician in charge
MM Department of justice chief medical examiner
MM Governor governor
2 Compensation of State Officers; Salary Adjustment for Recruitment or Retention. Amend RSA 94:3-b to read as follows:
94:3-b Salary Adjustment for Recruitment or Retention. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law to the contrary, upon the request of an appointing authority submitted to the commissioner of administrative services for review and evaluation and upon approval by the joint committee on employee classification, the governor and council is hereby authorized and empowered upon a finding by them that it is in the best interests of the state and is necessary in order to recruit and retain or recruit or retain qualified personnel to increase the salary ranges of unclassified positions; provided that any request to increase the salary and benefits of an unclassified position beyond that of the governor shall require the prior approval of the fiscal committee of the general court.
3 Salaries of Classified State Employees; New Hampshire State Troopers. Amend RSA 99:1-b by replacing labor grade 35 with the following:
35 $90,109.76 $94,361.28 $98,750.08 $103,413.44 $108,072.64 $112,731.84 $117,420.16 $[122,081.44] 120,095
4 Salaries of Classified State Employees; Increases for Recruitment. Amend RSA 99:8 to read as follows:
99:8 Increases for Recruitment Purposes. Upon request of the appointing authority, the governor and council are hereby authorized and empowered, notwithstanding any other provisions of the law to the contrary, upon a finding by them and a recommendation from the director of personnel that a substantial number of vacancies exist in any class of authorized positions which vacancies require an increase in salaries for recruitment of qualified personnel therefor, to increase salaries of such classified positions, any such increases to be a charge against the salary adjustment fund; provided that any request to increase the salary and benefits of a classified position beyond that of the governor shall require the prior approval of the fiscal committee of the general court.
5 New Section; College and University System; Compensation of Employees of the University System. Amend RSA 187-A by inserting after section 16 the following new section:
187-A:16-a Compensation of Employees of the University System. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the compensation and benefits for any employee of the university system of New Hampshire shall not exceed that of the governor of the state. The limitation established by this section shall not apply if, upon the request of the trustees of the university system, the governor and council and fiscal committee of the general court find that establishing a higher salary for a particular position within the university system is in the best interest of the state and is necessary in order to recruit and retain qualified personnel to the position.
6 New Paragraph; Community College System; Limitation on Compensation. Amend RSA 188-F:7 by inserting after paragraph IV the following new paragraph:
V. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the compensation and benefits for any employee of the community college system shall not exceed that of the governor of the state. The limitation established by this section shall not apply if, upon the request of the trustees of the community college system, the governor and council and fiscal committee of the general court find that establishing a higher salary for a particular position within the community college system is in the best interest of the state and is necessary in order to recruit and retain qualified personnel to the position.
7 Effective Date. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.
LBAO
12-2735
01/03/12
HB 1708-FN - FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT relative to salaries of state employees.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Department of Justice, Department of Health and Human Services, University System of New Hampshire and Community College System of New Hampshire state this bill will reduce state expenditures by an indeterminable amount in FY 2013 and each year thereafter. There will be no impact on state revenues, or county and local revenues or expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
The Department of Justice states this bill would amend the salary ranges for unclassified state employees listed in RSA 94:1-a by reducing all positions that are currently at a higher pay grade than the Governor, to that of the Governor. The Department states it has two positions, the Chief Medical Examiner and the Deputy Chief Medical Examiner, which would be affected by this bill. The Department states those two employees current annual pay is $144,289 and $124,705, respectively, and under this bill both would be reduced to $120,095 for a total potential reduction of $28,804 ($144,289 + $124,705 - $120,095 - $120,095) in salaries per year. The Department states this bill would significantly affect its ability to hire and retain Chief and Deputy Chief Medical Examiners.
The Department of Health and Human Services states it employs a total of 14 full time equivalents (FTEs) that would be affected under this bill. The Department states it has 11 FTEs that each currently makes $16,441 more and three that each currently makes $4,610 more than the Governor. The Department states this would result in a total of $194,681 ((14 FTEs X $16,441) + (3 FTEs X $4,610)) in salary reductions, of which are funded by approximately 50% general funds and 50% federal funds. The Department also assumes some indeterminable administrative costs associated with processing requests for salary increases requiring fiscal committee approval under this bill. The Department states this bill is likely to result in staff turnover and ongoing vacancies of positions affected and vacancies of medical professional positions may jeopardize hospital accreditation and loss of federal funds.
The University System of New Hampshire states it is unable to reasonably estimate a fiscal impact as a result of this bill. The System states it contracts with five collective bargaining units and in some cases those contracts cover faculty employees with salaries in excess of the Governor’s salary. The System also states it would need to perform an analysis of the benefits offered to its employees compared to the benefits offered to the Governor to further determine how many if its employees may be affected under this bill. The System states virtually all of its personnel positions earning more than the Governor are faculty, technical, and administrative positions that the System competes for nationally and the System is concerned with retention and recruiting of qualified personnel under this bill.
The Community College System of New Hampshire states it currently has nine employees with salaries greater than the Governor. The System states the total of those nine salaries, in excess of the Governor, is $106,000 and this bill would result in a decrease to its expenditures of $106,000 in FY 2013 and each year thereafter.
The Department of Administrative Services states it will not incur a fiscal impact as a result of this bill.