NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A7783
SPONSOR: Abbate
 
TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the civil service law, in relation to
geographic pay differentials for state employees
 
PURPOSE:
To mandate geographic pay differentials which match the federal locality
pay adjustments on an annual basis.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1. Adds a new subdivision 7 to section 130 of the civil service
law. This subdivision requires the Director of the Civil Service Commis-
sion to match the federal locality pay adjustment by April 1 of each
year.
Section 2. Effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
New York is a very diverse state and regions across the state have vari-
ous cost of living differences. Housing, food, or fuel costs can vary
greatly from Long Island to Buffalo or Binghamton to Plattsburgh. In
recognition of the foregoing, the federal government has established set
pay differentials for the varied regions of the state. This bill would
simply require the state to follow the federal standard and make equita-
ble geographic pay differentials. Using an existing federal standard for
federal employees is a sound policy for New York to follow for its
employees as well.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill for 2017 session.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
On the sixtieth day after it shall have become a law.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7783
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
May 15, 2017
___________
Introduced by M. of A. ABBATE -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Governmental Employees
AN ACT to amend the civil service law, in relation to geographic pay
differentials for state employees
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 7 of section 130 of the civil service law, as
2 amended by chapter 74 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as
3 follows:
4 7. Geographic pay differentials. [Whenever the director finds that
5 under community wage practices in private or other public employment in
6 one or more areas or locations, wage rates of employees in a given occu-
7 pation are substantially higher than the wage rates paid by the state,
8 he may, subject to the approval of the director of the budget, authorize
9 a pay differential to be added as an adjustment to the hiring rate, the
10 job rate and the longevity steps of the salary grade or grades for the
11 same or related occupations in the state service in such areas or
12 locations. A pay differential under this subdivision shall be a
13 percentage or a fixed dollar amount as prescribed in each case by the
14 director of the classification and compensation division subject to
15 approval of the director of the budget. Such differentials shall be paid
16 to employees whose basic annual salary is at or below the unadjusted job
17 rate of the salary grade or at or below the unadjusted longevity step of
18 the salary grade to which the employees are entitled based on the crite-
19 ria specified in subdivision three of this section. Those employees
20 whose basic annual salary is above the unadjusted job rate for the sala-
21 ry grade and who are not entitled to be paid at a longevity step shall
22 receive a portion of the differential sufficient to increase their sala-
23 ry to the adjusted job rate. Those employees whose basic annual salary
24 is above the unadjusted longevity step to which they are entitled shall
25 receive a portion of the differential sufficient to increase their sala-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11549-02-7
A. 7783 2
1 ry to such longevity step as adjusted by the differential. Such differ-
2 entials shall be in addition to and shall not be part of an employee's
3 basic annual salary, and shall not affect or impair any performance
4 advancement payments, performance awards, longevity payments or other
5 rights or benefits to which an employee may be entitled under the
6 provisions of this chapter, provided, however, that any differential
7 payable pursuant to this subdivision shall be included as compensation
8 for retirement purposes. A pay differential shall be terminated for any
9 employee when he ceases to be employed in the position, or area or
10 location for which such pay differential was authorized. A pay differen-
11 tial shall remain in effect until terminated by the director of the
12 classification and compensation division, with the consent of the direc-
13 tor of the budget or until a new pay differential is authorized pursuant
14 to this subdivision. The director of the budget may adopt such regu-
15 lations as he may deem necessary to carry out the provisions of this
16 subdivision. Employees who on April first, nineteen hundred seventy-nine
17 are receiving additional compensation as a result of a previous determi-
18 nation to authorize a geographic area pay differential shall continue to
19 receive such additional compensation while employed in the position for
20 which such differential was authorized.] By April first of each year,
21 the director shall implement geographic pay differentials identical to
22 the locality pay adjustments of the federal government which take effect
23 on or about January first of that year.
24 § 2. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall
25 have become a law.