Senate Bill sb0416c1

    Florida Senate - 2002                            CS for SB 416

    By the Committee on Governmental Oversight and Productivity;
    and Senator Saunders




    302-2024-02

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to public employment; amending

  3         s. 295.07, F.S.; providing requirements for

  4         advertising select exempt positions;

  5         eliminating certain positions from exemption

  6         from preferential appointment and retention

  7         requirements; requiring vacant select exempt

  8         positions in the Department of Veterans'

  9         Affairs to be filled with qualified veterans;

10         providing an exception; providing an effective

11         date.

12

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

14

15         Section 1.  Section 295.07, Florida Statutes, is

16  amended to read:

17         295.07  Preference in appointment and retention.--

18         (1)  The state and political subdivisions in the state

19  shall give preference in appointment and retention in

20  positions of employment to:

21         (a)  Those disabled veterans:

22         1.  Who have served on active duty in any branch of the

23  Armed Forces of the United States, have been separated

24  therefrom under honorable conditions, and have established the

25  present existence of a service-connected disability which is

26  compensable under public laws administered by the U.S.

27  Department of Veterans' Affairs, or

28         2.  Who are receiving compensation, disability

29  retirement benefits, or pension by reason of public laws

30  administered by the U.S. Department of Veterans' Affairs and

31  the Department of Defense.

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2002                            CS for SB 416
    302-2024-02




  1         (b)  The spouse of any person who has a total

  2  disability, permanent in nature, resulting from a

  3  service-connected disability and who, because of this

  4  disability, cannot qualify for employment, and the spouse of

  5  any person missing in action, captured in line of duty by a

  6  hostile force, or forcibly detained or interned in line of

  7  duty by a foreign government or power.

  8         (c)  A veteran of any war as defined in s. 1.01(14).

  9         (d)  The unremarried widow or widower of a veteran who

10  died of a service-connected disability.

11         (2)  The Department of Veterans' Affairs shall adopt

12  rules to ensure that veterans are given special consideration

13  in the employing agency's selection and retention processes.

14  The rules must include the award of point values as

15  articulated in s. 295.08, if applicable, or, where point

16  values are not relevant, must include procedures to ensure

17  that veterans are given special consideration at each step of

18  the employment selection process, unless the sponsoring

19  governmental entity is a party to a collective bargaining

20  agreement, in which case the collective bargaining agreement

21  must comply within 90 days following ratification of a

22  successor collective bargaining agreement or extension of any

23  existing collective bargaining agreement.

24         (3)  Preference in employment and retention may be

25  given only to eligible persons who are described in subsection

26  (1) and who are residents of this state.

27         (4)  All select exempt positions shall be advertised in

28  the Florida Administrative Weekly and through the State of

29  Florida Internet-based job advertisement site. The following

30  positions are exempt from this section:

31

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    Florida Senate - 2002                            CS for SB 416
    302-2024-02




  1         (a)  Those positions that are exempt from the state

  2  Career Service System under s. 110.205(2); however, all

  3  positions under the University Support Personnel System of the

  4  State University System as well as all Career Service System

  5  positions under the Florida Community College System and the

  6  School for the Deaf and the Blind are included.

  7         (b)  Positions in political subdivisions of the state

  8  which are filled by officers elected by popular vote or

  9  persons appointed to fill vacancies in such offices and the

10  personal secretary of each such officer, members of boards and

11  commissions, persons employed on a temporary basis without

12  benefits, heads of departments, positions that require

13  licensure as a physician, licensure as an osteopathic

14  physician, licensure as a chiropractic physician, and

15  positions that require that the employee be a member of The

16  Florida Bar are exempt from this section.

17         (5)  The executive director of the Department of

18  Veterans' Affairs shall fill any vacant select exempt position

19  in the department with a qualified veteran as defined in

20  subsection (1). However, if a qualified veteran does not apply

21  for the position by the closing date, the executive director

22  may offer the position to a nonveteran applicant.

23         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2002.

24

25          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
26                         Senate Bill 416

27

28  The Committee Substitute directs advertising of vacant
    selected exempt positions electronically and through the
29  Florida Administrative Weekly. It also permits hiring of a
    nonveteran when there are no qualified veteran applicants.
30

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.