House Bill 0083

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2000                  HB 83

        By Representative Harrington






  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to education; amending s.

  3         231.40, F.S.; providing for payment into pretax

  4         annuities for accumulated sick leave to certain

  5         employees of district school systems; limiting

  6         the amount of pay certain employees of district

  7         school systems may receive for unused sick

  8         leave upon termination of employment; amending

  9         s. 231.481, F.S.; limiting the amount of pay

10         certain employees of district school systems

11         may earn for unused vacation leave upon

12         termination of employment; amending s. 240.343,

13         F.S.; providing for community college district

14         boards of trustees to adopt rules allowing

15         payment for unused sick leave into pretax

16         retirement accounts; limiting the amount of pay

17         certain employees of community college

18         districts may receive for unused sick leave

19         upon termination of employment; providing an

20         effective date.

21

22         WHEREAS, the taxpayers of Florida are faced with a $2

23  billion unfunded liability for the payment of accrued leave in

24  the public education sector, and

25         WHEREAS, this financial burden is shared among all the

26  taxpayers in the state, and

27         WHEREAS, a redirection of our state education focus

28  must include a discussion of the appropriation combination of

29  salary and benefits, and

30         WHEREAS, an investment in the classroom for future

31  generations of citizens must balance the interest and needs of

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2000                  HB 83

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  1  children with the interest and needs of educators and

  2  taxpayers, and

  3         WHEREAS, the Legislature finds that in 1992-1993, the

  4  total amount of terminal pay provided to administrative

  5  employees was approximately $8.4 million (29.3 percent of all

  6  terminal pay), and, on average, administrative employees

  7  received terminal pay in amounts equal to 67 percent of their

  8  annual salary, and

  9         WHEREAS, the Legislature finds that in 1992-1993, the

10  total amount of terminal pay provided to support staff was

11  approximately $13 million (20.7 percent of all terminal pay),

12  and on average, support staff received terminal pay in amounts

13  equal to 24 percent of their annual salary, and

14         WHEREAS, the Legislature finds that the total terminal

15  pay for sick leave for school board employees in 1995-1996 was

16  $23,979,970.45; in 1996-1997 the cost was $33,082,494.47; in

17  1997-1998 the cost was $27,364,388.59, and

18         WHEREAS, the Legislature finds that a 1993 report by

19  three Senate committees noted that the school district and

20  community college terminal sick leave payment schedules were

21  more generous than the terminal leave payment schedule for

22  state employees, and the report recommended that the terminal

23  sick leave payments remain more generous for instructional

24  staff than for administrative and other noninstructional

25  employees, and

26         WHEREAS, the Legislature concludes that in order to

27  better serve the funding needs for educating the children of

28  Florida, terminal pay for sick leave must be addressed in an

29  expeditious manner, NOW, THEREFORE,

30

31  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2000                  HB 83

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  1         Section 1.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of section

  2  231.40, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

  3         231.40  Sick leave.--

  4         (3)  PROVISIONS GOVERNING SICK LEAVE.--The following

  5  provisions shall govern sick leave:

  6         (a)  Extent of leave.--

  7         1.  Each member of the instructional staff employed on

  8  a full-time basis shall be entitled to 4 days of sick leave as

  9  of the first day of employment of each contract year and shall

10  thereafter earn 1 day of sick leave for each month of

11  employment, which shall be credited to the member at the end

12  of that month and which shall not be used prior to the time it

13  is earned and credited to the member.  Each other employee

14  shall be credited with 4 days of sick leave at the end of the

15  first month of employment of each contract year and shall

16  thereafter be credited for 1 day of sick leave for each month

17  of employment, which shall be credited to the employee at the

18  end of the month and which shall not be used prior to the time

19  it is earned and credited to the employee.  However, each

20  member of the instructional staff and each other employee

21  shall be entitled to earn no more than 1 day of sick leave

22  times the number of months of employment during the year of

23  employment.  If the employee terminates his or her employment

24  and has not accrued the 4 sick days available to him or her,

25  the school board may withhold the average daily amount for the

26  sick days used utilized but unearned by the employee. Such

27  leave shall be taken only when necessary because of sickness

28  as herein prescribed.  Such sick leave shall be cumulative

29  from year to year.  There shall be no limit on the number of

30  days of sick leave which a member of the instructional staff

31  or an educational support employee may accrue, except that at

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  1  least one-half of this cumulative leave must be established

  2  within the district granting such leave.

  3         2.  A school board may establish policies and prescribe

  4  standards to permit an employee to be absent 6 days each

  5  school year for personal reasons. However, such absences for

  6  personal reasons shall be charged only to accrued sick leave,

  7  and leave for personal reasons shall be noncumulative.

  8         3.  District school boards are authorized to adopt

  9  rules permitting the annual payment for accumulated sick leave

10  that is earned for that year and that is unused at the end of

11  the school year, based on the daily rate of pay of the

12  employee multiplied by up to 80 percent.  Days for which such

13  payment is received shall be deducted from the accumulated

14  leave balance. However, for any full-time employee of the

15  district school board other than instructional staff or an

16  educational support employee as defined in this section, in

17  lieu of such authorized cash payment, that same amount may be

18  contributed annually by the employer, upon request by the

19  employee, to an approved pretax retirement account in the name

20  of the employee, pursuant to rules of the school board and in

21  compliance with federal tax laws and regulations Such annual

22  payment may apply only to instructional staff and educational

23  support employees.

24         4.  A school board may establish policies to provide

25  terminal pay for accumulated sick leave to instructional staff

26  and educational support employees of the district school

27  board.  If termination of employment is by death of the

28  employee, any terminal pay to which the employee may have been

29  entitled may be made to his or her beneficiary. However, such

30  terminal pay shall not exceed an amount determined as follows:

31

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  1         a.  During the first 3 years of service, the daily rate

  2  of pay multiplied by 35 percent times the number of days of

  3  accumulated sick leave.

  4         b.  During the next 3 years of service, the daily rate

  5  of pay multiplied by 40 percent times the number of days of

  6  accumulated sick leave.

  7         c.  During the next 3 years of service, the daily rate

  8  of pay multiplied by 45 percent times the number of days of

  9  accumulated sick leave.

10         d.  During the next 3 years of service, the daily rate

11  of pay multiplied by 50 percent times the number of days of

12  accumulated sick leave.

13         e.  During and after the 13th year of service, the

14  daily rate of pay multiplied by 100 percent times the number

15  of days of accumulated sick leave.

16         5.  A school board may establish policies to provide

17  terminal pay for accumulated sick leave to any full-time

18  employee of the district school board other than instructional

19  staff or educational support employees as defined in this

20  section.  If termination of the employee is by death of the

21  employee, any terminal pay to which the employee may have been

22  entitled may be made to the employee's beneficiary.

23         a.  However, for such employees hired on or after July

24  1, 1995, Terminal pay shall not exceed an amount determined as

25  follows:

26         a.  one-fourth of all unused sick leave accumulated on

27  or after July 1, 2000, and may 1995; however, terminal pay

28  allowable for such accumulated sick leave shall not exceed a

29  maximum of 60 days of actual payment, in addition to the total

30  amount of any disbursements that have been made at the end of

31  each year pursuant to subparagraph 3.  This limit does not

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  1  impair any contractual agreement established before July 1,

  2  2000; however, a previously established contract renewed on or

  3  after July 1, 2000, shall be considered a new contract.

  4         b.  For unused sick leave accumulated before prior to

  5  July 1, 2000 1995, terminal payment shall be made pursuant to

  6  a district school board's policies, contracts, or rules that

  7  which are in effect on June 30, 2000 July 1, 1995.

  8         Section 2.  Section 231.481, Florida Statutes, is

  9  amended to read:

10         231.481  Terminal pay for accrued vacation leave.--A

11  district school board may establish policies to provide for a

12  lump-sum payment for accrued vacation leave to an employee of

13  the school board upon termination of employment or upon

14  retirement, or to the employee's beneficiary if service is

15  terminated by death. Effective July 1, 2000 1995, terminal pay

16  for accrued vacation leave may not exceed a maximum of 60 days

17  of actual payment for employees hired on or after that date.

18  This limit does not impair any contractual agreement

19  established before July 1, 2000.  For unused vacation leave

20  accumulated before July 1, 2000, terminal payment shall be

21  made pursuant to the district school board's policies,

22  contracts, or rules that are in effect on June 30, 2000.

23         Section 3.  Paragraph (e) of subsection (2) of section

24  240.343, Florida Statutes, is amended, and paragraph (f) is

25  added to that subsection, to read:

26         240.343  Sick leave.--Each community college district

27  board of trustees shall adopt rules whereby any full-time

28  employee who is unable to perform his or her duties at the

29  college on account of personal sickness, accident disability,

30  or extended personal illness, or because of illness or death

31  of the employee's father, mother, brother, sister, husband,

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2000                  HB 83

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  1  wife, child, or other close relative or member of the

  2  employee's own household, and who consequently has to be

  3  absent from work shall be granted leave of absence for

  4  sickness by the president or by the president's designated

  5  representative.  The following provisions shall govern sick

  6  leave:

  7         (2)  EXTENT OF LEAVE WITH COMPENSATION.--

  8         (e)  For full-time employees other than instructional

  9  staff or educational support employees, the board of trustees

10  may, by rule, authorize accumulated sick leave that is earned

11  during the year and is unused at the end of that year to be

12  paid into an approved pretax retirement account. The amount

13  paid annually into a pretax retirement account may not exceed

14  an amount equal to 80 percent of the accumulated sick leave

15  multiplied by the employee's daily rate of pay for the time

16  the sick leave was accumulated. Such payments must be made

17  pursuant to the rules of the board of trustees and must comply

18  with federal tax law. An employee eligible under such rules

19  has the option to participate provided the amount of sick

20  leave for which payment is made into a pretax retirement

21  account shall be deducted from the employee's accumulated

22  unused sick leave balance. A board of trustees may establish

23  rules or policies to provide terminal pay for accumulated sick

24  leave to any full-time employee of a community college other

25  than instructional staff or educational support employees as

26  defined in this section. If termination of employment is by

27  death of the employee, any terminal pay to which the employee

28  may have been entitled may be made to the employee's

29  beneficiary.  However, for such employees hired on or after

30  July 1, 1995, terminal pay shall not exceed an amount

31  determined as follows:

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2000                  HB 83

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  1         1.  One-fourth of all unused sick leave accumulated on

  2  or after July 1, 1995; however, terminal pay allowable for

  3  such accumulated sick leave shall not exceed a maximum of 60

  4  days of actual payment.

  5         2.  For unused sick leave accumulated prior to July 1,

  6  1995, terminal payment shall be made pursuant to a board of

  7  trustees' policies which are in effect on July 1, 1995.

  8         (f)  The board of trustees may, by rule, provide for

  9  terminal pay for accumulated unused sick leave to be paid to

10  any full-time employee of a community college, other than

11  instructional staff or educational support employees. If

12  termination of employment is by death of the employee, any

13  terminal pay to which the employee may have been entitled

14  shall be made to the employee's beneficiary.

15         1.  For unused sick leave accumulated before July 1,

16  2000, terminal payment shall be made pursuant to rules or

17  policies of the board of trustees which are in effect on June

18  30, 2000.

19         2.  For unused sick leave accumulated on or after July

20  1, 2000, terminal payment may not exceed an amount equal to

21  one-fourth of the employee's unused sick leave or 60 days of

22  the employee's pay, whichever amount is less.

23         Section 4.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2000.

24

25            *****************************************

26                          HOUSE SUMMARY

27    Provides that, for district school board employees
      classified as administrators, payment for unused sick
28    leave may be paid into an approved pretax annuity;
      authorizes community college boards to provide by rule
29    for similar payments for their employees other than
      instructional or educational support employees.  Imposes
30    limits on terminal pay for unused sick or vacation leave
      for specified employees of school districts and for
31    unused sick leave for specified employees of community
      college districts.
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