Rhode Island 2025 Regular Session

Rhode Island House Bill H5530 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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5	5	2025 -- H 5530
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7	7	LC001595
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9	9	S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D
10	10	IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
11	11	JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2025
12	12	____________
13	13
14	14	A N A C T
15	15	RELATING TO EDUCATION -- COUNCIL ON POSTSECONDARY EDUCAT ION
16	16	Introduced By: Representatives Corvese, Solomon, Azzinaro, Serpa, DeSimone, and
17	17	Alzate
18	18	Date Introduced: February 13, 2025
19	19	Referred To: House Finance
20	20
21	21
22	22	It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
23	23	SECTION 1. Section 16-59-7.2 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-59 entitled "Council on 1
24	24	Postsecondary Education [See Title 16 Chapter 97 — The Rhode Island Board of Education Act]" 2
25	25	is hereby amended to read as follows: 3
26	26	16-59-7.2. Longevity payments — Nonclassified employees. 4
27	27	(a) The non-classified employees of the board of governors for higher education, except 5
28	28	for faculty employees and except for non-classified employees already receiving longevity 6
29	29	increases, shall be entitled to a longevity payment in the amount of five percent (5%) of base salary 7
30	30	after ten (10) years of service and increasing to a total of ten percent (10%) of base salary after 8
31	31	twenty (20) years of service. The provisions of this section will apply only to employees under the 9
32	32	grade of nineteen (19). The longevity payments shall not be included in base salary. 10
33	33	(b) The board of governors is authorized to promulgate regulations implementing the 11
34	34	provisions of this section. 12
35	35	(c) Beginning on July 1, 2011, notwithstanding any rule, regulation, or provision of the 13
36	36	public laws or general laws to the contrary, there shall be no further longevity increases for 14
37	37	employees of the board of governors; provided, however, for employees with longevity provisions 15
38	38	pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement in effect on June 1, 2011, longevity increases shall 16
39	39	cease beginning on July 1, 2011 or beginning upon the expiration of the applicable collective 17
40	40	bargaining agreement, whichever occurs later. To the extent an employee has previously accrued 18
41	41	longevity payments, the amount of the longevity payment earned by the employee for the last pay 19
42	42
43	43
44	44	LC001595 - Page 2 of 6
45	45	period in June, 2011 shall be added to the employee’s base salary as of June 30, 2011, or in the 1
46	46	case of an employee with longevity provisions pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement in 2
47	47	effect on June 1, 2011, the amount of the longevity payment earned by the employee for the latter 3
48	48	of the last pay period in June or the last pay period prior to the expiration of the applicable collective 4
49	49	bargaining agreement shall be added to the employee’s base salary as of June 30, 2011 or upon the 5
50	50	expiration of the applicable collective bargaining agreement, whichever occurs later. 6
51	51	(d) Beginning on July 1, 2025, notwithstanding any rule, regulation, or provision of the 7
52	52	public laws or general laws to the contrary, state employees may negotiate longevity payments in 8
53	53	their subsequent collective bargaining agreements. 9
54	54	SECTION 2. Section 16-60-7.2 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-60 entitled "Council on 10
55	55	Elementary and Secondary Education [See Title 16 Chapter 97 — The Rhode Island Board of 11
56	56	Education Act]" is hereby amended to read as follows: 12
57	57	16-60-7.2. Longevity payments — Nonclassified employees. 13
58	58	(a) The non-classified employees of the board of regents for elementary and secondary 14
59	59	education, except for non-classified employees already receiving longevity increases, shall be 15
60	60	entitled to a longevity payment in the amount of five percent (5%) of base salary after ten (10) 16
61	61	years of service and increasing to a total of ten percent (10%) of base salary after twenty (20) years 17
62	62	of service. The provisions of this section shall apply only to employees under the grade of nineteen 18
63	63	(19). The longevity payments shall not be included in base salary. 19
64	64	(b) The board of regents is authorized to promulgate regulations implementing the 20
65	65	provisions of this section. 21
66	66	(c) Beginning on July 1, 2011, notwithstanding any rule, regulation, or provision of the 22
67	67	public laws or general laws to the contrary, there shall be no further longevity increases for 23
68	68	employees of the board of regents for elementary and secondary education; provided, however, for 24
69	69	employees with longevity provisions pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement in effect on 25
70	70	June 1, 2011, longevity increases shall cease beginning on July 1, 2011 or beginning upon the 26
71	71	expiration of the applicable collective bargaining agreement, whichever occurs later. To the extent 27
72	72	an employee has previously accrued longevity payments, the amount of the longevity payment 28
73	73	earned by the employee for the last pay period in June, 2011 shall be added to the employee’s base 29
74	74	salary as of June 30, 2011, or in the case of an employee with longevity provisions pursuant to a 30
75	75	collective bargaining agreement in effect on June 1, 2011, the amount of the longevity payment 31
76	76	earned by the employee for the latter of the last pay period in June or the last pay period prior to 32
77	77	the expiration of the applicable collective bargaining agreement shall be added to the employee’s 33
78	78	base salary as of June 30, 2011 or upon the expiration of the applicable collective bargaining 34
79	79
80	80
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82	82	agreement, whichever occurs later. 1
83	83	(d) Beginning on July 1, 2025, notwithstanding any rule, regulation, or provision of the 2
84	84	public laws or general laws to the contrary, state employees may negotiate longevity payments in 3
85	85	their subsequent collective bargaining agreements. 4
86	86	SECTION 3. Sections 36-4-17.1 and 36-4-17.2 of the General Laws in Chapter 36-4 5
87	87	entitled "Merit System" are hereby amended to read as follows: 6
88	88	36-4-17.1. Longevity payments. 7
89	89	A state employee in the classified or unclassified service who terminates employment and 8
90	90	is subsequently reemployed by the state, notwithstanding any rule, regulation, or provision of the 9
91	91	general laws to the contrary, shall be eligible to receive an aggregate longevity increase for the 10
92	92	period of initial employment. The provisions of this section shall be applied retroactively to those 11
93	93	persons reemployed prior to June 1, 1980, and thereafter. 12
94	94	36-4-17.2. Future longevity payments. 13
95	95	(a) Beginning on July 1, 2011, notwithstanding any rule, regulation, or provision of the 14
96	96	public laws or general laws to the contrary, there shall be no further longevity increases for state 15
97	97	employees; provided, however, for employees with longevity provisions pursuant to a collective 16
98	98	bargaining agreement in effect on June 1, 2011, longevity increases shall cease beginning on July 17
99	99	1, 2011 or beginning upon the expiration of the applicable collective bargaining agreement, 18
100	100	whichever occurs later. To the extent an employee has previously accrued longevity payments, the 19
101	101	employee shall continue to receive the same longevity percentage in effect on June 30, 2011, or in 20
102	102	the case of an employee with longevity provisions pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement in 21
103	103	effect on June 1, 2011, the same longevity percentage in effect on June 30, 2011 or upon the 22
104	104	expiration of the applicable collective bargaining agreement, whichever occurs later. 23
105	105	(b) Beginning on July 1, 2025, notwithstanding any rule, regulation, or provision of the 24
106	106	public laws or general laws to the contrary, state employees may negotiate longevity payments in 25
107	107	their subsequent collective bargaining agreements. 26
108	108	SECTION 4. Section 36-6-22 of the General Laws in Chapter 36-6 entitled "Salaries and 27
109	109	Traveling Expenses" is hereby amended to read as follows: 28
110	110	36-6-22. Longevity payments. 29
111	111	(a) Beginning on July 1, 2011, notwithstanding any rule, regulation, or provision of the 30
112	112	public laws or general laws to the contrary, there shall be no further longevity increases for officers, 31
113	113	secretaries, and employees of the legislative branch, the judicial branch, the office of the governor, 32
114	114	the office of the lieutenant governor, the department of state, the department of the attorney general, 33
115	115	and the treasury department; provided, however, for employees with longevity provisions pursuant 34
116	116
117	117
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119	119	to a collective bargaining agreement in effect on June 1, 2011, longevity increases shall cease 1
120	120	beginning on July 1, 2011 or beginning upon the expiration of the applicable collective bargaining 2
121	121	agreement, whichever occurs later. To the extent an employee has previously accrued longevity 3
122	122	payments, the employee shall continue to receive the same longevity percentage in effect on June 4
123	123	30, 2011, or in the case of an employee with longevity provisions pursuant to a collective bargaining 5
124	124	agreement in effect on June 1, 2011, the same longevity percentage in effect on June 30, 2011 or 6
125	125	upon the expiration of the applicable collective bargaining agreement, whichever occurs later. 7
126	126	(b) Beginning on July 1, 2025, notwithstanding any rule, regulation, or provision of the 8
127	127	public laws or general laws to the contrary, state employees may negotiate longevity payments in 9
128	128	their subsequent collective bargaining agreements. 10
129	129	SECTION 5. Section 36-16.2-1 of the General Laws in Chapter 36-16.2 entitled "Quasi 11
130	130	Public Corporations — Longevity" is hereby amended to read as follows: 12
131	131	36-16.2-1. Longevity payments — Quasi public employees. 13
132	132	(a) Beginning on July 1, 2011, notwithstanding any rule, regulation, or provision of the 14
133	133	public laws or general laws to the contrary, there shall be no further longevity increases for 15
134	134	employees of the quasi-public corporations; provided, however, for employees with longevity 16
135	135	provisions pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement in effect on June 1, 2011, longevity 17
136	136	increases shall cease beginning on July 1, 2011, or beginning upon the expiration of the applicable 18
137	137	collective bargaining agreement, whichever occurs later. To the extent an employee has previously 19
138	138	accrued longevity payments, the amount of the longevity payment earned by the employee for the 20
139	139	last pay period in June, 2011 shall be added to the employee’s base salary as of June 30, 2011, or 21
140	140	in the case of an employee with longevity provisions pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement 22
141	141	in effect on June 1, 2011, the amount of the longevity payment earned by the employee for the 23
142	142	latter of the last pay period in June or the last pay period prior to the expiration of the applicable 24
143	143	collective bargaining agreement shall be added to the employee’s base salary as of June 30, 2011 25
144	144	or upon the expiration of the applicable collective bargaining agreement, whichever occurs later. 26
145	145	(b) For purposes of this section “quasi-public corporation” means a body corporate and 27
146	146	politic acting as a public corporation, which has been organized pursuant to law and granted certain 28
147	147	powers, rights and privileges by the general laws, while exhibiting a distinct legal existence from 29
148	148	the state, and not constituting a department of the state government, in order to perform a 30
149	149	governmental function. 31
150	150	(c) Beginning on July 1, 2025, notwithstanding any rule, regulation, or provision of the 32
151	151	public laws or general laws to the contrary, state employees may negotiate longevity payments in 33
152	152	their subsequent collective bargaining agreements. 34
153	153
154	154
155	155	LC001595 - Page 5 of 6
156	156	SECTION 6. This act shall take effect upon passage. 1
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158	158	LC001595
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163	163	EXPLANATION
164	164	BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
165	165	OF
166	166	A N A C T
167	167	RELATING TO EDUCATION -- COUNCIL ON POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION
168	168	***
169	169	This act, beginning on July 1, 2025, would allow state union employees to negotiate 1
170	170	longevity payments in their collective bargaining agreements. 2
171	171	This act would take effect upon passage. 3
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173	173	LC001595
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