Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1463867
I N F E B R U A R Y, CTA members and labor allies celebrated the enactment of SB 114, which provides COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave to workers (see details, next page). "Paid sick leave is critical for keeping our school communities healthy and thriving during this pandemic," said CTA President E. Toby Boyd in a statement. "is law is the culmination of months of hard work and advocacy by thousands of educators, our broader labor community, and others." Several bills sponsored or co-sponsored by CTA are now making their way through the legislative process. Legislative Update COVID paid sick leave and other legislation of interest By Julian Peeples Co-sponsored Legislation Sponsored Legislation AB 1667 (Cooper) — This bill would exempt retirees from any finan- cial liability resulting from overpayment of benefits due to erroneous information provided to the State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS) by the school district or reporting agency; provide ade- quate notice and due process to all CalSTRS members impacted by CalSTRS audits; and clarify that any changes to CalSTRS' interpretation of creditable compensation laws must be preceded by prior notice. AB 1667 would also create a more transparent and accountable system to ensure school districts and reporting agen- cies receive timely and accurate information from CalSTRS and make other changes to minimize CalSTRS reporting errors and to prevent harm to retirees. The bill would ensure CalSTRS retirees will be justly compensated for benefit reductions that stem from employer and CalSTRS reporting errors, create a more transparent and accountable system to ensure school and community college districts receive timely and accurate information from CalSTRS, and reduce the likelihood of reporting mistakes in the future. Status: Awaiting hearing by the Assembly Committee on Public Employment and Retirement. SB 868 (Cortese) — This bill would use excess funds within CalSTRS' purchasing power account to provide an equitable distribution of these funds by addressing systemic tiers among retirees, and cre- ate a one-time permanent adjustment applied to the total current benefit that is being paid to CalSTRS retirees and beneficiaries of retirees who retired prior to 1999, helping CalSTRS retired members most in need of assistance while not compromising the financial integrity of the purchasing power account and its ability to provide inflation protection long term. SB 868 will protect the purchasing power of California's oldest retired teachers while maintaining the fiscal integrity of CalSTRS. Status: Awaiting hearing by the Senate Committee on Labor, Pub- lic Employment and Retirement. AB 1752 (Santiago) — Establishes parity for part- time community college faculty. This bill would require community colleges to pay workers who are employed to teach adult or community college classes part time an amount that bears the same ratio to the amount provided to full-time employees as the time actually served by those part-time employees bears to the time actually served by full-time employ- ees with comparable duties. AB 1752 imposes this pay requirement upon the expiration or renewal of exist- ing collective bargaining agreements. Status: Awaiting hearing by the Assembly Higher Education Committee. Chris Holland, part-time professor at Bakersfield College, works for Instacart to pay the bills. 28 cta.org Advocacy