II 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 513 

To provide collective bargaining rights for public safety officers employed 

by States or their political subdivisions. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 3, 2005 

Mr. GREGG (for himself, Mr. KENNEDY, Ms. MIKULSKI, Mr. HARKIN, Mr. 

BINGAMAN, Mr. REED, Mrs. MURRAY, Mrs. LINCOLN, Mr. KERRY, and 

Mr. DURBIN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To provide collective bargaining rights for public safety 

officers employed by States or their political subdivisions. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Public Safety Em5 ployer-Employee Cooperation Act of 2005’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DECLARATION OF PURPOSE AND POLICY. 

7 The Congress declares that the following is the policy 

8 of the United States: 
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1 (1) Labor-management relationships and part2 nerships are based on trust, mutual respect, open 

3 communication, bilateral consensual problem solving, 

4 and shared accountability. Labor-management co5 operation fully utilizes the strengths of both parties 

6 to best serve the interests of the public, operating as 

7 a team, to carry out the public safety mission in a 

8 quality work environment. In many public safety 

9 agencies it is the union that provides the institu10 tional stability as elected leaders and appointees 

11 come and go. 

12 (2) The Federal Government needs to encour13 age conciliation, mediation, and voluntary arbitra14 tion to aid and encourage employers and their em15 ployees to reach and maintain agreements con16 cerning rates of pay, hours, and working conditions, 

17 and to make all reasonable efforts through negotia18 tions to settle their differences by mutual agreement 

19 reached through collective bargaining or by such 

20 methods as may be provided for in any applicable 

21 agreement for the settlement of disputes. 

22 (3) The absence of adequate cooperation be23 tween public safety employers and employees has im24 plications for the security of employees and can af25 fect interstate and intrastate commerce. The lack of 
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1 such labor-management cooperation can detrimen2 tally impact the upgrading of police and fire services 

3 of local communities, the health and well-being of 

4 public safety officers, and the morale of the fire and 

5 police departments. Additionally, these factors could 

6 have significant commercial repercussions. Moreover, 

7 providing minimal standards for collective bar8 gaining negotiations in the public safety sector can 

9 prevent industrial strife between labor and manage10 ment that interferes with the normal flow of com11 merce. 

12 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

13 In this Act: 

14 (1) AUTHORITY.—The term ‘‘Authority’’ means 

15 the Federal Labor Relations Authority. 

16 (2) EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES PER17 SONNEL.—The term ‘‘emergency medical services 

18 personnel’’ means an individual who provides out-of19 hospital emergency medical care, including an emer20 gency medical technician, paramedic, or first re21 sponder. 

22 (3) EMPLOYER; PUBLIC SAFETY AGENCY.—The 

23 terms ‘‘employer’’ and ‘‘public safety agency’’ mean 

24 any State, political subdivision of a State, the Dis25 trict of Columbia, or any territory or possession of 
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1 the United States that employs public safety offi2 cers. 

3 (4) FIREFIGHTER.—The term ‘‘firefighter’’ has 

4 the meaning given the term ‘‘employee engaged in 

5 fire protection activities’’ in section 3(y) of the Fair 

6 Labor Standards Act (29 U.S.C. 203(y)). 

7 (5) LABOR ORGANIZATION.—The term ‘‘labor 

8 organization’’ means an organization composed in 

9 whole or in part of employees, in which employees 

10 participate, and which represents such employees be11 fore public safety agencies concerning grievances, 

12 conditions of employment and related matters. 

13 (6) LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER.—The term 

14 ‘‘law enforcement officer’’ has the meaning given 

15 such term in section 1204(5) of the Omnibus Crime 

16 Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 

17 3796b(5)). 

18 (7) MANAGEMENT EMPLOYEE.—The term 

19 ‘‘management employee’’ has the meaning given 

20 such term under applicable State law in effect on 

21 the date of enactment of this Act. If no such State 

22 law is in effect, the term means an individual em23 ployed by a public safety employer in a position that 

24 requires or authorizes the individual to formulate, 

25 determine, or influence the policies of the employer. 
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1 (8) PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICER.—The term ‘‘pub2 lic safety officer’’— 

3 (A) means an employee of a public safety 

4 agency who is a law enforcement officer, a fire5 fighter, or an emergency medical services per6 sonnel; 

7 (B) includes an individual who is tempo8 rarily transferred to a supervisory or manage9 ment position; and 

10 (C) does not include a permanent super11 visory or management employee. 

12 (9) SUBSTANTIALLY PROVIDES.—The term 

13 ‘‘substantially provides’’ means compliance with the 

14 essential requirements of this Act, specifically, the 

15 right to form and join a labor organization, the right 

16 to bargain over wages, hours, and conditions of em17 ployment, the right to sign an enforceable contract, 

18 and availability of some form of mechanism to break 

19 an impasse, such as arbitration, mediation, or fact 

20 finding. 

21 (10) SUPERVISORY EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘su22 pervisory employee’’ has the meaning given such 

23 term under applicable State law in effect on the date 

24 of enactment of this Act. If no such State law is in 
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1 effect, the term means an individual, employed by a 

2 public safety employer, who— 

3 (A) has the authority in the interest of the 

4 employer to hire, direct, assign, promote, re5 ward, transfer, furlough, lay off, recall, sus6 pend, discipline, or remove public safety offi7 cers, to adjust their grievances, or to effectively 

8 recommend such action, if the exercise of the 

9 authority is not merely routine or clerical in na10 ture but requires the consistent exercise of 

11 independent judgment; and 

12 (B) devotes a majority of time at work ex13 ercising such authority. 

14 SEC. 4. DETERMINATION OF RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBIL15 ITIES. 

16 (a) DETERMINATION.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

18 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Author19 ity shall make a determination as to whether a State 

20 substantially provides for the rights and responsibil21 ities described in subsection (b). In making such de22 terminations, the Authority shall consider and give 

23 weight, to the maximum extent practicable, to the 

24 opinion of affected parties. 

25 (2) SUBSEQUENT DETERMINATIONS.— 
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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—A determination made 

2 pursuant to paragraph (1) shall remain in ef3 fect unless and until the Authority issues a sub4 sequent determination, in accordance with the 

5 procedures set forth in subparagraph (B). 

6 (B) PROCEDURES FOR SUBSEQUENT DE7 TERMINATIONS.—Upon establishing that a ma8 terial change in State law or its interpretation 

9 has occurred, an employer or a labor organiza10 tion may submit a written request for a subse11 quent determination. If satisfied that a material 

12 change in State law or its interpretation has oc13 curred, the Director shall issue a subsequent 

14 determination not later than 30 days after re15 ceipt of such request. 

16 (3) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—Any State, political 

17 subdivision of a State, or person aggrieved by a de18 termination of the Authority under this section may, 

19 during the 60 day period beginning on the date on 

20 which the determination was made, petition any 

21 United States Court of Appeals in the circuit in 

22 which the person resides or transacts business or in 

23 the District of Columbia circuit, for judicial review. 

24 In any judicial review of a determination by the Au25 thority, the procedures contained in subsections (c) 
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1 and (d) of section 7123 of title 5, United States 

2 Code, shall be followed, except that any final deter3 mination of the Authority with respect to questions 

4 of fact or law shall be found to be conclusive unless 

5 the court determines that the Authority’s decision 

6 was arbitrary and capricious. 

7 (b) RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES.—In making a 

8 determination described in subsection (a), the Authority 

9 shall consider whether State law provides rights and re10 sponsibilities comparable to or greater than the following: 

11 (1) Granting public safety officers the right to 

12 form and join a labor organization, which may ex13 clude management and supervisory employees, that 

14 is, or seeks to be, recognized as the exclusive bar15 gaining representative of such employees. 

16 (2) Requiring public safety employers to recog17 nize the employees’ labor organization (freely chosen 

18 by a majority of the employees), to agree to bargain 

19 with the labor organization, and to commit any 

20 agreements to writing in a contract or memorandum 

21 of understanding. 

22 (3) Permitting bargaining over hours, wages, 

23 and terms and conditions of employment. 
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1 (4) Requiring an interest impasse resolution 

2 mechanism, such as fact-finding, mediation, arbitra3 tion or comparable procedures. 

4 (5) Requiring enforcement through State courts 

5 of— 

6 (A) all rights, responsibilities, and protec7 tions provided by State law and enumerated in 

8 this section; and 

9 (B) any written contract or memorandum 

10 of understanding. 

11 (c) FAILURE TO MEET REQUIREMENTS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the Authority determines, 

13 acting pursuant to its authority under subsection 

14 (a), that a State does not substantially provide for 

15 the rights and responsibilities described in sub16 section (b), such State shall be subject to the regula17 tions and procedures described in section 5. 

18 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Paragraph (1) shall 

19 take effect on the date that is 2 years after the date 

20 of enactment of this Act. 

21 SEC. 5. ROLE OF FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

23 date of enactment of this Act, the Authority shall issue 

24 regulations in accordance with the rights and responsibil25 ities described in section 4(b) establishing collective bar-
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1 gaining procedures for public safety employers and officers 

2 in States which the Authority has determined, acting pur3 suant to its authority under section 4(a), do not substan4 tially provide for such rights and responsibilities. 

5 (b) ROLE OF THE FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AU6 THORITY.—The Authority, to the extent provided in this 

7 Act and in accordance with regulations prescribed by the 

8 Authority, shall— 

9 (1) determine the appropriateness of units for 

10 labor organization representation; 

11 (2) supervise or conduct elections to determine 

12 whether a labor organization has been selected as an 

13 exclusive representative by a majority of the employ14 ees in an appropriate unit; 

15 (3) resolve issues relating to the duty to bar16 gain in good faith; 

17 (4) conduct hearings and resolve complaints of 

18 unfair labor practices; 

19 (5) resolve exceptions to the awards of arbitra20 tors; 

21 (6) protect the right of each employee to form, 

22 join, or assist any labor organization, or to refrain 

23 from any such activity, freely and without fear of 

24 penalty or reprisal, and protect each employee in the 

25 exercise of such right; and 
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1 (7) take such other actions as are necessary 

2 and appropriate to effectively administer this Act, 

3 including issuing subpoenas requiring the attendance 

4 and testimony of witnesses and the production of 

5 documentary or other evidence from any place in the 

6 United States, and administering oaths, taking or 

7 ordering the taking of depositions, ordering re8 sponses to written interrogatories, and receiving and 

9 examining witnesses. 

10 (c) ENFORCEMENT.— 

11 (1) AUTHORITY TO PETITION COURT.—The Au12 thority may petition any United States Court of Ap13 peals with jurisdiction over the parties, or the 

14 United States Court of Appeals for the District of 

15 Columbia Circuit, to enforce any final orders under 

16 this section, and for appropriate temporary relief or 

17 a restraining order. Any petition under this section 

18 shall be conducted in accordance with subsections 

19 (c) and (d) of section 7123 of title 5, United States 

20 Code, except that any final order of the Authority 

21 with respect to questions of fact or law shall be 

22 found to be conclusive unless the court determines 

23 that the Authority’s decision was arbitrary and ca24 pricious. 
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1 (2) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.—Unless the 

2 Authority has filed a petition for enforcement as 

3 provided in paragraph (1), any party has the right 

4 to file suit in a State court of competent jurisdiction 

5 to enforce compliance with the regulations issued by 

6 the Authority pursuant to subsection (b), and to en7 force compliance with any order issued by the Au8 thority pursuant to this section. The right provided 

9 by this subsection to bring a suit to enforce compli10 ance with any order issued by the Authority pursu11 ant to this section shall terminate upon the filing of 

12 a petition seeking the same relief by the Authority. 

13 SEC. 6. STRIKES AND LOCKOUTS PROHIBITED. 

14 A public safety employer, officer, or labor organiza15 tion may not engage in a lockout, sickout, work slowdown, 

16 or strike or engage in any other action that is designed 

17 to compel an employer, officer, or labor organization to 

18 agree to the terms of a proposed contract and that will 

19 measurably disrupt the delivery of emergency services, ex20 cept that it shall not be a violation of this section for an 

21 employer, officer, or labor organization to refuse to pro22 vide services not required by the terms and conditions of 

23 an existing contract. 
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1 SEC. 7. EXISTING COLLECTIVE BARGAINING UNITS AND 

2 AGREEMENTS. 

3 A certification, recognition, election-held, collective 

4 bargaining agreement or memorandum of understanding 

5 which has been issued, approved, or ratified by any public 

6 employee relations board or commission or by any State 

7 or political subdivision or its agents (management offi8 cials) in effect on the day before the date of enactment 

9 of this Act shall not be invalidated by the enactment of 

10 this Act. 

11 SEC. 8. CONSTRUCTION AND COMPLIANCE. 

12 (a) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act shall be 

13 construed— 

14 (1) to invalidate or limit the remedies, rights, 

15 and procedures of any law of any State or political 

16 subdivision of any State or jurisdiction that provides 

17 collective bargaining rights for public safety officers 

18 that are equal to or greater than the rights provided 

19 under this Act; 

20 (2) to prevent a State from enforcing a right21 to-work law that prohibits employers and labor orga22 nizations from negotiating provisions in a labor 

23 agreement that require union membership or pay24 ment of union fees as a condition of employment; 

25 (3) to invalidate any State law in effect on the 

26 date of enactment of this Act that substantially pro-
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1 vides for the rights and responsibilities described in 

2 section 4(b) solely because such State law permits 

3 an employee to appear on his or her own behalf with 

4 respect to his or her employment relations with the 

5 public safety agency involved; 

6 (4) to permit parties subject to the National 

7 Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) and the 

8 regulations under such Act to negotiate provisions 

9 that would prohibit an employee from engaging in 

10 part-time employment or volunteer activities during 

11 off-duty hours; or 

12 (5) to prohibit a State from exempting from 

13 coverage under this Act a political subdivision of the 

14 State that has a population of less than 5,000 or 

15 that employs less than 25 full time employees. 

16 For purposes of paragraph (5), the term ‘‘employee’’ in17 cludes each and every individual employed by the political 

18 subdivision except any individual elected by popular vote 

19 or appointed to serve on a board or commission. 

20 (b) COMPLIANCE.—No State shall preempt laws or 

21 ordinances of any of its political subdivisions if such laws 

22 provide collective bargaining rights for public safety offi23 cers that are equal to or greater than the rights provided 

24 under this Act. 
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1 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

2 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums 

3 as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this 

4 Act. 

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