Are you ready to step up and help lead the state’s largest and most effective organization dedicated to protecting the careers of state supervisors, managers, and confidential employees?

Check our calendar for your ACSS chapter’s upcoming open nominations meeting and get involved today!

NBC Bay Area recently ran an editorial supporting “bold changes” to the California state pension system, “Pensions Need Pruning!” (Nov. 11).

The editorial fails to address some key facts regarding the reality of average state worker pensions, and how Governor Brown’s proposal could severely impact public employees’ modest plans for retirement.

Thanks to your ACSS, state excluded employees can breathe a little easier in the face of the massive realignment of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) in response to the passing of Assembly Bill 109.

DPA Director Ron Yank distributed an official memo today inviting other supervisory organizations to join the California Supervisors & Managers Advisory Council, a “new organization being formed to advocate for the interests of our State’s excluded employees.”

Your ACSS is pleased to announce that DPA has officially confirmed that in accordance with Executive Order S-15-10, the Personal Leave Program (PLP) has expired as of today, November 1st, 2011. The end of the PLP means that for the first time since February 2009 state supervisors, managers, and confidential employees are not saddled with drastic pay cuts.

Governor Brown released his 12-point pension plan on Thursday, in what California Republican Party Chairman Tom Del Beccaro called a “step in the right direction”.
 
Gov. Brown’s plan—one he intends to place before voters in November—includes some apparent nods to conservative groups that have sponsored radical initiatives that seek to raise California state workers’ retirement age and reduce benefits.

Governor Jerry Brown will unveil his pension plan—held under tight wraps by his office—on Thursday, October 27th. According to The State Worker, labor organizations have committed to working with Brown on anti-spiking measures.

Your ACSS will not support the end of defined-benefit pensions.

It sounds like a recurring nightmare: anti-state worker groups want to increase your retirement eligibility age, slash your pension, force you to pay 15-25% more in income tax, and prevent your ACSS from standing up for your rights.
 
But this latest nightmare could become reality sooner than you think.

Governor Jerry Brown’s “Reorganization Plan Number 1”, originally presented in June 2011, has an official start date.

As a result of the Legislature’s favorable consideration, the new California Human Resources Department (CalHR)—a result of  the merger of the Department of Personnel Administration (DPA) and the State Personnel Board (SPB)—has an official launch date: July 1, 2012.

As reported at your ACSS third quarter board meeting, the merger of the Department of Personnel Administration (DPA) and the State Personnel Board (SPB) is moving ahead as anticipated.

The Sacramento Bee has posted this interactive tool to see how California's citizen-led redistricting effort affects you.

Find out more about the California Citizens Redistricting Commission: wedrawthelines.ca.gov/faq.html

Are you sick and tired of hearing lawmakers and the public blast state employee pensions, often with inaccurate or exaggerated data?

Your ACSS has drafted a series of talking points you can use to engage friends, family, and legislators, ensuring that they get the real facts behind public employee pensions.

Click here to review the talking points.

Last week four Republican legislators—Senators Tom Berryhill, Anthony Cannella, Bill Emmerson, and Tom Harman—introduced a resolution that would drastically alter pensions for California’s public employees.

The resolution contains many of the proposals included in the “list of demands” released by the senators in mid-June, including a 50/50 employer-employee contribution split to a hybrid pension plan.

Last week, Governor Jerry Brown signed off on an $85.9 billion budget that dropped ACSS-supported revenue extensions in favor of extensive cuts to state services, particularly to higher education.

The budget—the earliest adopted in five years—includes a number of additional cuts that may be “triggered” by unfavorable revenue conditions.

For more information:
Brown signs budget after tumultuous month
Jerry Brown releases list of line-item vetoes

It’s no secret that due to budget constraints and misinformation public employees are under fire in California and throughout the nation.

It’s also no secret that your ACSS is dedicated to fighting those attacks and ensuring that California state supervisors, managers, and confidential employees have productive and protected careers.