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<ns0:ActionText>INTRODUCED</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2026-02-18</ns0:ActionDate>
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<ns0:AuthorText authorType="LEAD_AUTHOR">Introduced by Assembly Member Flora</ns0:AuthorText>
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<ns0:Name>Flora</ns0:Name>
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<ns0:Title> An act to add Section 19827.4 to the Government Code, relating to state employees. </ns0:Title>
<ns0:RelatingClause>state employees</ns0:RelatingClause>
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<ns0:Subject>State employees: compensation: firefighters.</ns0:Subject>
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<html:p>Existing law provides that in order for the state to recruit skilled firefighters for the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, it is the policy of the state to consider prevailing salaries and benefits prior to making salary recommendations. Existing law requires the Department of Human Resources, in order to provide comparability in pay, to take into consideration the salary and benefits of other jurisdictions employing 75 or more full-time firefighters who work in California. </html:p>
<html:p>This bill would require the state to bargain in good faith with firefighters who are rank-and-file members of State Bargaining Unit 8, employed by the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, to reach a competitive range within 15% of the average salary for corresponding ranks in 20 listed California fire departments. The bill would require
the state and the exclusive representative for State Bargaining Unit 8 to jointly survey annually and calculate the estimated average salaries for those fire departments. The bill would also require the Department of Human Resources, on or before March 31, 2027, for purposes of the bargaining unit contract renewal to be conducted on July 1, 2027, to conduct and report to the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection a cursory survey on the salaries and benefits for the prior year of, among other positions, each of the fire chiefs for 5 listed California fire departments.</html:p>
<html:p>The bill would provide that when determining compensation for uniformed classifications of the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, it is the policy of the state to consider the salary of corresponding ranks within the comparable jurisdictions listed, as well as other factors, including internal comparisons. The bill would require any salary increase for firefighters under these provisions
to be implemented through a memorandum of understanding, in accordance with specified procedures governing collective bargaining agreements. The bill would include legislative findings and declarations related to its provisions.</html:p>
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<ns0:Preamble>The people of the State of California do enact as follows:</ns0:Preamble>
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<ns0:Num>SECTION 1.</ns0:Num>
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<html:p>The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:</html:p>
<html:p>
(a)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Historic fires of the past decade have resulted in well over 100 deaths, caused billions of dollars in damage, destroyed entire communities, and placed overworked firefighters at risk.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(b)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Firefighters with the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL-FIRE) have the most diverse work responsibilities of any firefighters, which includes fire of all types, floods, earthquakes, and all natural disasters.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(c)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
CAL-FIRE must compete with higher paying local departments to retain their firefighters.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(d)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Climate change is creating an environment where wildfires burn with greater ferocity and that trend is systemic.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(e)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The mental health of CAL-FIRE firefighters is placed at risk by the extremely long hours working under extreme duress, sometimes for a month on duty without a day off.
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<html:p>
(f)
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The physical risk of working long hours at point zero at these fires that burn for weeks and send dangerous particulates into the air causes immediate and long-term physical and mental health risks.
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<ns0:Num>SEC. 2.</ns0:Num>
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Section 19827.4 is added to the
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, to read:
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<ns0:Num>19827.4.</ns0:Num>
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(a)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Notwithstanding any other law, in order to recruit and retain the highest qualified and skilled firefighters for the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the state shall bargain in good faith with firefighters who are rank-and-file members of State Bargaining Unit 8 to reach a competitive range within 15 percent of the average of the salary for corresponding ranks in the 20 California fire departments, agreed to by the exclusive bargaining representative for Bargaining Unit 8 and the Department of Human Resources in 2024 as follows:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(1)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The City of Bakersfield.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The City of Chula Vista.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(3)
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The City of
Corona.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(4)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The City of Escondido.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(5)
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The City of Fullerton.
</html:p>
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(6)
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The City of Hayward.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(7)
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Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(8)
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The County of Los Angeles.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(9)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The City of Milpitas.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(10)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Novato Fire District.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(11)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The City of Ontario.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(12)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The City of Oxnard.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(13)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The City of Rialto.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(14)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The City of
Roseville.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(15)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The County of San Bernardino.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(16)
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The City of San Mateo.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(17)
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The City of Santa Monica.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(18)
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The City of Stockton.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(19)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The City of Torrance.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(20)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The County of Ventura.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(b)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
(1)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The state and the exclusive representative for State Bargaining Unit 8 shall jointly survey annually and calculate the estimated average salaries of the departments listed in paragraphs (1) to (20), inclusive, of subdivision (a), based on the projected average total salary for those departments as of July 1 of the year in which the survey is
conducted.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
In addition to paragraph (1), the department shall, on or before March 31, 2027, for purposes of the bargaining unit contract renewal to be conducted on July 1, 2027, conduct and report to the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection a cursory survey on all of the following:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(A)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The salaries and benefits for the prior year of each of the fire chiefs for the following five California fire departments in all of the following:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(i)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The City of Fresno.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(ii)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The County of Los Angeles.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(iii)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The County of San Bernardino.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(iv)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The City of San Diego.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(v)
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The City and County of San Francisco.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(B)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The salaries and benefits for the prior year of other city and county fire departments similar to those described in subparagraph (A).
</html:p>
<html:p>
(C)
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The salaries and benefits for the prior year of other heads of state departments.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(c)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
When determining compensation for uniformed classifications of the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, it is the policy of the state to consider the salary of corresponding ranks within the comparable jurisdictions listed in paragraphs (1) to (20) of subdivision (a), inclusive, as well as other factors, including internal comparisons.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(d)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Any increase in salary for firefighters who are members of State Bargaining Unit 8 resulting from this section shall be
implemented through a memorandum of understanding negotiated pursuant to the Ralph C. Dills Act (Chapter 10.3 (commencing with Section 3512) of Division 4 of Title 1).
</html:p>
<html:p>
(e)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
If the provisions of this section are in conflict with the provisions of a memorandum of understanding reached pursuant to Section 3517.5, the memorandum of understanding shall be controlling without further legislative action, except that if the provisions of a memorandum of understanding require the expenditure of funds, the provision shall not become effective unless approved by the Legislature and the annual Budget Act.
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