ENROLLED
       2023 Legislature             CS for CS for SB 256, 2nd Engrossed
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                                              2023256er
    1  
    2         An act relating to employee organizations representing
    3         public employees; amending s. 447.301, F.S.; requiring
    4         a public employee who desires to be a member of an
    5         employee organization to sign a membership
    6         authorization form beginning on a specified date;
    7         requiring that such form include a specified
    8         statement; authorizing a public employee to revoke
    9         membership in an employee organization at any time of
   10         the year; requiring an employee organization to revoke
   11         a public employee’s membership upon receipt of his or
   12         her written request for revocation; prohibiting an
   13         employee organization from limiting an employee’s
   14         right to revoke membership to certain dates;
   15         prohibiting a revocation form from requiring a reason
   16         for the public employee’s decision to revoke his or
   17         her membership; requiring employee organizations to
   18         retain such authorization forms and requests for
   19         revocation for inspection by the Public Employees
   20         Relations Commission; providing applicability with
   21         respect to certain employee organizations; authorizing
   22         the commission to adopt rules; amending s. 447.207,
   23         F.S.; authorizing the commission to waive certain
   24         provisions for specified employee organizations under
   25         certain circumstances; amending s. 447.303, F.S.;
   26         prohibiting certain employee organizations from having
   27         dues and uniform assessments deducted and collected by
   28         the employer from certain salaries; authorizing public
   29         employees to pay dues and uniform assessments directly
   30         to the employee organization; authorizing certain
   31         employee organizations to have dues and uniform
   32         assessments deducted and collected by the employer
   33         from certain salaries; amending s. 447.305, F.S.;
   34         revising requirements for applications for initial
   35         registrations and renewals of registration of employee
   36         organizations; providing procedures for incomplete
   37         applications; requiring certain employee organizations
   38         to petition the commission for recertification as
   39         bargaining agents; authorizing a public employer or
   40         bargaining unit employee to challenge an employee
   41         organization’s application for renewal of
   42         registration; requiring the commission or one of its
   43         designated agents to review the application; requiring
   44         the commission to revoke the registration and
   45         certification of the employee organization in certain
   46         circumstances; authorizing the commission to conduct
   47         investigations for specified purposes; authorizing the
   48         commission to revoke or deny an employee
   49         organization’s registration or certification under
   50         certain circumstances; specifying that certain
   51         decisions issued by the commission are reviewable
   52         final agency actions; providing applicability with
   53         respect to certain employee organizations; requiring
   54         certain employee organizations to provide their
   55         members with an annual audited financial report;
   56         requiring employee organizations to notify their
   57         members annually of all costs of membership; amending
   58         s. 447.509, F.S.; revising prohibitions for employee
   59         organizations and certain persons and entities
   60         relating to employee organizations; amending s.
   61         1012.2315, F.S.; removing duplicative provisions;
   62         reenacting ss. 110.114(3) and 447.507(6)(a), F.S.,
   63         relating to employee wage deductions and violation of
   64         strike prohibition and penalties, respectively, to
   65         incorporate the amendment made to s. 447.303, F.S., in
   66         references thereto; providing effective dates.
   67          
   68  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   69  
   70         Section 1. Subsection (1) of section 447.301, Florida
   71  Statutes, is amended to read:
   72         447.301 Public employees’ rights; organization and
   73  representation.—
   74         (1)(a) Public employees shall have the right to form, join,
   75  and participate in, or to refrain from forming, joining, or
   76  participating in, any employee organization of their own
   77  choosing.
   78         (b)1.Beginning July 1, 2023, a public employee who desires
   79  to be a member of an employee organization must sign and date a
   80  membership authorization form, as prescribed by the commission,
   81  with the bargaining agent.
   82         2. The membership authorization form must identify the name
   83  of the bargaining agent, the name of the employee, the class
   84  code and class title of the employee, the name of the public
   85  employer and employing agency, if applicable, the amount of the
   86  initiation fee and of the monthly dues which the member must
   87  pay, and the name and total amount of salary, allowances, and
   88  other direct or indirect disbursements, including
   89  reimbursements, paid to each of the five highest compensated
   90  officers and employees of the employee organization disclosed
   91  under s. 447.305(2)(c).
   92         3. The membership authorization form must contain the
   93  following statement in 14-point type:
   94  
   95         The State of Florida is a right-to-work state.
   96         Membership or non-membership in a labor union is not
   97         required as a condition of employment, and union
   98         membership and payment of union dues and assessments
   99         are voluntary. Each person has the right to join and
  100         pay dues to a labor union or to refrain from joining
  101         and paying dues to a labor union. No employee may be
  102         discriminated against in any manner for joining and
  103         financially supporting a labor union or for refusing
  104         to join or financially support a labor union.
  105  
  106         4.A public employee may revoke membership in the employee
  107  organization at any time of the year. Upon receipt of the
  108  employee’s written revocation of membership, the employee
  109  organization must revoke a public employee’s membership. The
  110  employee organization may not limit an employee’s right to
  111  revoke membership to certain dates. If a public employee must
  112  complete a form to revoke membership in the employee
  113  organization, the form may not require a reason for the public
  114  employee’s decision to revoke his or her membership.
  115         5.An employee organization must retain for inspection by
  116  the commission such membership authorization forms and any
  117  revocations.
  118         6.This paragraph does not apply to members of an employee
  119  organization that has been certified as a bargaining agent to
  120  represent law enforcement officers, correctional officers, or
  121  correctional probation officers as those terms are defined in s.
  122  943.10(1), (2), or (3), respectively, or firefighters as defined
  123  in s. 633.102.
  124         7.The commission may adopt rules to implement this
  125  paragraph.
  126         Section 2. Subsection (12) is added to section 447.207,
  127  Florida Statutes, to read:
  128         447.207 Commission; powers and duties.—
  129         (12) Upon a petition by a public employer after it has been
  130  notified by the Department of Labor that the public employer’s
  131  protective arrangement covering mass transit employees does not
  132  meet the requirements of 49 U.S.C. s. 5333(b) and would
  133  jeopardize the employer’s continued eligibility to receive
  134  Federal Transit Administration funding, the commission may
  135  waive, to the extent necessary for the public employer to comply
  136  with the requirements of 49 U.S.C. s. 5333(b), any of the
  137  following for an employee organization that has been certified
  138  as a bargaining agent to represent mass transit employees:
  139         (a) The prohibition on dues and assessment deductions
  140  provided in s. 447.303(1).
  141         (b) The requirement to petition the commission for
  142  recertification.
  143         (c) The revocation of certification provided in s.
  144  447.305(6) and (7).
  145         Section 3. Effective July 1, 2023, section 447.303, Florida
  146  Statutes, is amended to read:
  147         447.303 Dues; deduction and collection.—
  148         (1) Except as authorized in subsection (2) or subject to a
  149  waiver granted pursuant to s. 447.207(12)(a), an employee
  150  organization that has been certified as a bargaining agent may
  151  not have its dues and uniform assessments deducted and collected
  152  by the employer from the salaries of those employees in the
  153  unit. A public employee may pay dues and uniform assessments
  154  directly to the employee organization that has been certified as
  155  the bargaining agent.
  156         (2)(a) An Any employee organization that which has been
  157  certified as a bargaining agent to represent law enforcement
  158  officers, correctional officers, or correctional probation
  159  officers as those terms are defined in s. 943.10(1), (2), or
  160  (3), respectively, or firefighters as defined in s. 633.102 has
  161  shall have the right to have its dues and uniform assessments
  162  deducted and collected by the employer from the salaries of
  163  those employees who authorize the deduction and collection of
  164  said dues and uniform assessments. However, such authorization
  165  is revocable at the employee’s request upon 30 days’ written
  166  notice to the employer and employee organization. Said
  167  deductions shall commence upon the bargaining agent’s written
  168  request to the employer.
  169         (b) Reasonable costs to the employer of said deductions is
  170  shall be a proper subject of collective bargaining.
  171         (c) Such right to deduction, unless revoked under pursuant
  172  to s. 447.507, is shall be in force for so long as the employee
  173  organization remains the certified bargaining agent for the
  174  employees in the unit.
  175         (3) The public employer is expressly prohibited from any
  176  involvement in the collection of fines, penalties, or special
  177  assessments.
  178         Section 4. Effective October 1, 2023, section 447.305,
  179  Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  180         447.305 Registration of employee organization.—
  181         (1) Every employee organization seeking to become a
  182  certified bargaining agent for public employees shall register
  183  with the commission pursuant to the procedures set forth in s.
  184  120.60 prior to requesting recognition by a public employer for
  185  purposes of collective bargaining and prior to submitting a
  186  petition to the commission requesting certification as an
  187  exclusive bargaining agent. Further, if such employee
  188  organization is not registered, it may not participate in a
  189  representation hearing, participate in a representation
  190  election, or be certified as an exclusive bargaining agent. The
  191  application for registration required by this section shall be
  192  under oath and in such form as the commission may prescribe and
  193  shall include:
  194         (a) The name and address of the organization and of any
  195  parent organization or organization with which it is affiliated.
  196         (b) The names and addresses of the principal officers and
  197  all representatives of the organization.
  198         (c) The amount of the initiation fee and of the monthly
  199  dues which members must pay.
  200         (d) The current annual audited financial statement of the
  201  organization.
  202         (e) The name of its business agent, if any; if different
  203  from the business agent, the name of its local agent for service
  204  of process; and the addresses where such person or persons can
  205  be reached.
  206         (f) A pledge, in a form prescribed by the commission, that
  207  the employee organization will conform to the laws of the state
  208  and that it will accept members without regard to age, race,
  209  sex, religion, or national origin.
  210         (g) A copy of the current constitution and bylaws of the
  211  employee organization.
  212         (h) A copy of the current constitution and bylaws of the
  213  state and national groups with which the employee organization
  214  is affiliated or associated. In lieu of this provision, and upon
  215  adoption of a rule by the commission, a state or national
  216  affiliate or parent organization of any registering labor
  217  organization may annually submit a copy of its current
  218  constitution and bylaws.
  219         (2) A registration granted to an employee organization
  220  pursuant to the provisions of this section shall run for 1 year
  221  from the date of issuance. A registration shall be renewed
  222  annually by filing application for renewal under oath with the
  223  commission, which application shall reflect any changes in the
  224  information provided to the commission in conjunction with the
  225  employee organization’s preceding application for registration
  226  or previous renewal, whichever is applicable. Each application
  227  for renewal of registration shall include a current annual
  228  audited financial statement, certified by an independent
  229  certified public accountant licensed under chapter 473 and
  230  report, signed by the employee organization’s its president and
  231  treasurer or corresponding principal officers, containing the
  232  following information in such detail as may be necessary
  233  accurately to disclose its financial condition and operations
  234  for its preceding fiscal year and in such categories as the
  235  commission may prescribe:
  236         (a) Assets and liabilities at the beginning and end of the
  237  fiscal year;
  238         (b) Receipts of any kind and the sources thereof;
  239         (c) Salary, allowances, and other direct or indirect
  240  disbursements, including reimbursed expenses, to each officer
  241  and also to each employee who, during such fiscal year, received
  242  more than $10,000 in the aggregate from such employee
  243  organization and any other employee organization affiliated with
  244  it or with which it is affiliated or which is affiliated with
  245  the same national or international employee organization;
  246         (d) Direct and indirect loans made to any officer,
  247  employee, or member which aggregated more than $250 during the
  248  fiscal year, together with a statement of the purpose, security,
  249  if any, and arrangements for repayment; and
  250         (e) Direct and indirect loans to any business enterprise,
  251  together with a statement of the purpose, security, if any, and
  252  arrangements for repayment.
  253         (3)In addition to subsection (2), an employee organization
  254  that has been certified as the bargaining agent for public
  255  employees must include for each such certified bargaining unit
  256  the following information and documentation as of the 30th day
  257  immediately preceding the date of renewal in its application for
  258  any renewal of registration on or after October 1, 2023:
  259         (a)The number of employees in the bargaining unit who are
  260  eligible for representation by the employee organization.
  261         (b)The number of employees in the bargaining unit who have
  262  submitted signed membership authorization forms without a
  263  subsequent revocation of such membership.
  264         (c) The number of employees in the bargaining unit who paid
  265  dues to the employee organization.
  266         (d) The number of employees in the bargaining unit who did
  267  not pay dues to the employee organization.
  268         (e)Documentation provided by an independent certified
  269  public accountant retained by the employee organization which
  270  verifies the information provided in paragraphs (a)-(d).
  271         (4) The employee organization must provide a copy of its
  272  application for renewal of registration relating to a public
  273  employer’s employees to the public employer on the same day the
  274  application is submitted to the commission.
  275         (5)An application for renewal of registration is
  276  incomplete and is not eligible for consideration by the
  277  commission if it does not include all of the information and
  278  documentation required in subsection (3). The commission shall
  279  notify the employee organization if the application is
  280  incomplete. An incomplete application must be dismissed if the
  281  required information and documentation are not provided within
  282  10 days after the employee organization receives such notice.
  283         (6)Notwithstanding the provisions of this chapter relating
  284  to collective bargaining, an employee organization that had less
  285  than 60 percent of the employees eligible for representation in
  286  the bargaining unit pay dues during its last registration period
  287  must petition the commission pursuant to s. 447.307(2) and (3)
  288  for recertification as the exclusive representative of all
  289  employees in the bargaining unit within 1 month after the date
  290  on which the employee organization applies for renewal of
  291  registration pursuant to subsection (2). The certification of an
  292  employee organization that does not comply with this section is
  293  revoked.
  294         (7)The public employer or a bargaining unit employee may
  295  challenge an employee organization’s application for renewal of
  296  registration if the public employer or bargaining unit employee
  297  believes that the application is inaccurate. The commission or
  298  one of its designated agents shall review the application to
  299  determine its accuracy and compliance with this section. If the
  300  commission finds that the application is inaccurate or does not
  301  comply with this section, the commission shall revoke the
  302  registration and certification of the employee organization.
  303         (8) The commission may conduct an investigation to confirm
  304  the validity of any information submitted pursuant to this
  305  section. The commission may revoke or deny an employee
  306  organization’s registration or certification if it finds that
  307  the employee organization:
  308         (a)Failed to cooperate with the investigation conducted
  309  pursuant to this subsection; or
  310         (b)Intentionally misrepresented the information it
  311  submitted pursuant to subsection (3).
  312  
  313  A decision issued by the commission pursuant to this subsection
  314  is a final agency action that is reviewable pursuant to s.
  315  447.504.
  316         (9)Subsections (3)-(8) do not apply to an employee
  317  organization that has been certified as the bargaining agent to
  318  represent law enforcement officers, correctional officers, or
  319  correctional probation officers as those terms are defined in s.
  320  943.10(1), (2), or (3), respectively, or firefighters as defined
  321  in s. 633.102.
  322         (10)(3) A registration fee shall accompany each application
  323  filed with the commission. The amount charged for an application
  324  for registration or renewal of registration shall not exceed
  325  $15. All such money collected by the commission shall be
  326  deposited in the General Revenue Fund.
  327         (11)(4) Every employee organization shall keep accurate
  328  accounts of its income and expenses, which accounts shall be
  329  open for inspection at all reasonable times by any member of the
  330  organization or by the commission. In addition, each employee
  331  organization that has been certified as a bargaining agent must
  332  provide to its members an annual audited financial report that
  333  includes a detailed breakdown of revenues and expenditures, and
  334  an accounting of membership dues and assessments. The employee
  335  organization must notify its members annually of all costs of
  336  membership.
  337         Section 5. Paragraphs (d) and (e) are added to subsection
  338  (1) of section 447.509, Florida Statutes, to read:
  339         447.509 Other unlawful acts.—
  340         (1) Employee organizations, their members, agents, or
  341  representatives, or any persons acting on their behalf are
  342  hereby prohibited from:
  343         (d) Offering anything of value to a public officer as
  344  defined in s. 112.313(1) which the public officer is prohibited
  345  from accepting under s. 112.313(2).
  346         (e) Offering any compensation, payment, or thing of value
  347  to a public officer as defined in s. 112.313(1) which the public
  348  officer is prohibited from accepting under s. 112.313(4).
  349         Section 6. Effective October 1, 2023, paragraph (c) of
  350  subsection (4) of section 1012.2315, Florida Statutes, is
  351  amended to read:
  352         1012.2315 Assignment of teachers.—
  353         (4) COLLECTIVE BARGAINING.—
  354         (c)1. In addition to the provisions under s. 447.305(2), an
  355  employee organization that has been certified as the bargaining
  356  agent for a unit of instructional personnel as defined in s.
  357  1012.01(2) must include for each such certified bargaining unit
  358  the following information in its application for renewal of
  359  registration:
  360         a. The number of employees in the bargaining unit who are
  361  eligible for representation by the employee organization.
  362         b. The number of employees who are represented by the
  363  employee organization, specifying the number of members who pay
  364  dues and the number of members who do not pay dues.
  365         2. Notwithstanding the provisions of chapter 447 relating
  366  to collective bargaining, an employee organization whose dues
  367  paying membership is less than 50 percent of the employees
  368  eligible for representation in the unit, as identified in
  369  subparagraph 1., must petition the Public Employees Relations
  370  Commission pursuant to s. 447.307(2) and (3) for recertification
  371  as the exclusive representative of all employees in the unit
  372  within 1 month after the date on which the organization applies
  373  for renewal of registration pursuant to s. 447.305(2). The
  374  certification of an employee organization that does not comply
  375  with this paragraph is revoked.
  376         Section 7. Effective July 1, 2023, for the purpose of
  377  incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 447.303,
  378  Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, subsection (3) of
  379  section 110.114, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read:
  380         110.114 Employee wage deductions.—
  381         (3) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (1) and
  382  (2), the deduction of an employee’s membership dues deductions
  383  as defined in s. 447.203(15) for an employee organization as
  384  defined in s. 447.203(11) shall be authorized or permitted only
  385  for an organization that has been certified as the exclusive
  386  bargaining agent pursuant to chapter 447 for a unit of state
  387  employees in which the employee is included. Such deductions
  388  shall be subject to the provisions of s. 447.303.
  389         Section 8. Effective July 1, 2023, for the purpose of
  390  incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 447.303,
  391  Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, paragraph (a) of
  392  subsection (6) of section 447.507, Florida Statutes, is
  393  reenacted to read:
  394         447.507 Violation of strike prohibition; penalties.—
  395         (6)(a) If the commission determines that an employee
  396  organization has violated s. 447.505, it may:
  397         1. Issue cease and desist orders as necessary to ensure
  398  compliance with its order.
  399         2. Suspend or revoke the certification of the employee
  400  organization as the bargaining agent of such employee unit.
  401         3. Revoke the right of dues deduction and collection
  402  previously granted to said employee organization pursuant to s.
  403  447.303.
  404         4. Fine the organization up to $20,000 for each calendar
  405  day of such violation or determine the approximate cost to the
  406  public due to each calendar day of the strike and fine the
  407  organization an amount equal to such cost, notwithstanding the
  408  fact that the fine may exceed $20,000 for each such calendar
  409  day. The fines so collected shall immediately accrue to the
  410  public employer and shall be used by him or her to replace those
  411  services denied the public as a result of the strike. In
  412  determining the amount of damages, if any, to be awarded to the
  413  public employer, the commission shall take into consideration
  414  any action or inaction by the public employer or its agents that
  415  provoked, or tended to provoke, the strike by the public
  416  employees.
  417         Section 9. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this
  418  act, this act shall take effect upon becoming a law.