On March 3, Associate Policy Director Karrington Anderson testified before the Government, Labor, and Elections Committee in opposition to HB 831 – Collective Bargaining – Local Government Employees and Public Employee Relations Act.
This bill mandates collective bargaining rights for local government employees statewide and significantly alters local government labor relations.
HB 831 raises concerns about a sweeping, state-mandated collective bargaining framework that would apply uniformly to every county, regardless of size, structure, or existing labor agreements. While counties support fair employment practices and many already maintain long-standing bargaining systems, the bill would significantly curtail local discretion, impose substantial new costs without dedicated state funding, and force jurisdictions into a difficult choice between authorizing public employee strikes or relinquishing final fiscal authority to binding arbitration.
HB 831 permits local governments to petition to become “exempt local
governments,” allowing them to adopt local laws governing bargaining unit composition, negotiation timelines, and impasse procedures. On its face, this appears to preserve local autonomy. However, the bill requires that any exempt jurisdiction must adopt impasse procedures that either authorize public employee strikes upon declaration of impasse or impose binding arbitration.
HB 831’s cross-file, SB 922, was heard on March 12 in the Finance Committee. Karrington Anderson testified in opposition to this bill.
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