SSB 3158

This bill relates to retention and recertification elections for public employee collective bargaining units conducted by the public employment relations board (PERB). The bill requires the PERB to issue a written notice of intent to conduct such an election to the public employer and the bargaining representative prior to conducting the election. The bill requires a public employer, after receiving such notice, to submit to the PERB a list of employees in the bargaining unit within days. The PERB shall utilize the submitted list to determine the employees eligible to vote in the election and the outcome of the election. If the public employer fails to submit a list of employees to the PERB, the bill requires the PERB to issue written notice of the failure to the public employer and the bargaining representative. Five days after issuance of such notice, the PERB shall immediately decertify the representative and the public employees shall not be represented by an employee organization except pursuant to the filing of a subsequent petition for certification of an employee organization and an election conducted pursuant to the petition. The bill provides that the PERB shall not decertify the bargaining representative if within the five-day period, either of two specified actions occurs. The first is the public employer submitting to the PERB a list of employees in the bargaining unit. The second is the bargaining unit or the bargaining representative petitioning the district court to require the public employer to submit to the PERB a list of employees in the bargaining unit. The district court shall expedite resolution of the petition, and the PERB may extend the timelines for carrying out an election as needed to allow for resolution of the petition and any resulting appeals. _____ the bargaining unit or the bargaining representative prevails, the court shall award court costs and reasonable attorney fees to the bargaining unit or the bargaining representative. The bill requires the PERB to adopt rules establishing applicable procedures and timelines, including but not limited to procedures for extending the timelines in which the election must be held. The bill applies to a retention and recertification election for which the date of issuance of a notice of intent to conduct an election by the PERB occurs on or after the effective date of the bill.