NEWS

In Case You Missed It - ACSS Q3 Quarterly Newsletter

The ACSS Q3 Quarterly Newsletter focused on the 12th Delegate Assembly in July of 2018. Get the inside scoop on the meetings, resolutions, elections and celebrations during the triennial event. In addition, read the special content on why Gavin Newsom is ACSS' choice for Governor in the upcoming Gubernatorial election. Download your copy of the Q3 Quarterly Newsletter today!  Or, click here to read past issues of the ACSS Quarterly publication. 

ACSS Board Meeting Coming Up on September 21st & 22nd

Next weekend, ACSS will be holding a Board Meeting at the DoubleTree Hilton Anaheim in Orange, CA. On Friday afternoon September 21st, the Fiscal Committee, PAC & Legislative Committee, and the President's Forum will meet. On Saturday September 22nd, the Board Meeting will be held from 10am - 5pm.  ACSS members are welcome to attend and observe the Board Meeting. For more details about this event, visit the ACSS Events Calendar. Or, click here to view photos of previous ACSS Board Meetings.  

New Acting Director Appointed at CalHR

Jerry Brown has appointed Adria Jenkins-Jones as the new Chief Deputy Director of the California Department of Human Resources (CalHR). On August 31, 2018, Jenkins-Jones began her new position at CalHR, filling the vacancy as Acting Director, left by the previous Director Richard Gillihan. ACSS has a long history of working closely with CalHR on ensuring that the rights and pay of all excluded employees are fair and protected. We are eager to build a strong relationship with Jenkins-Jones in ongoing meetings to discuss matters that affect ACSS Members. Click here to read more about Jenkins-Jones biography and qualifications.

Open Enrollment for Health, Dental and Vision Begins September 10, 2018

Open Enrollment for health, dental and vision coverage starts September 10 and ends October 5. This is your opportunity to evaluate your health care selections and make any changes to your health or dental plans and add or drop dependents effective January 1, 2019.

CalHR just announced the amount of the 2019 Consolidated Benefits (CoBen) allowance to be used for health and dental benefits effective January 1, 2019. The CoBen Employer contribution for excluded employees has increased to $668 (Single)/$1293 (2-Party)/$1673 (Family). This new CoBen amount for supervisors, managers, and confidential employees is up to $50 higher per month than the state employer contribution for rank-and-file employees.

If you have received notification of a change in health plan availability, or if you would like to explore different health plan options, CalPERS has a tool that allows you to search plan availability and premium rates based on your zip code. Visit the CalPERS website here.

Some premiums are going up, while others are decreasing. To compare plan costs and calculate your exact out of pocket costs, or your CoBen cash back if your selections are lower than the CoBen Allowance, visit the CalHR Benefits Calculator and select “2019” and “Excluded Employee” before entering your options.

Be on the lookout for Open Enrollment forms from your department. If you are not making changes, no action is needed.

All State Employees Begin Prefunding Retiree Health Care

Your August paystub will likely reflect a deduction for something called CERBT. That stands for the California Employers’ Retiree Benefit Trust. Along with the General Salary Increases received by supervisors, managers and confidential employees on July 1, the budget includes provisions to begin prefunding retiree health care. While some excluded employees have already seen this contribution take effect, all state employees are now prefunding retiree healthcare.

Your contribution as a percentage of salary is matched with a state employer contribution. The purpose is to reduce the “unfunded liability” for retiree health care which has received substantial negative public and media attention and to ensure that your valuable earned health benefits will be available when you retire.

In July, CalHR announced that excluded and exempt employees not directly associated with a bargaining unit, e.g., E48, E97, E98, and E99, will begin prefunding 0.8% of their pensionable compensation to Other Post-Employment Benefits (OPEB) effective with the August 2018 pay period.

ACSS compiled the following chart showing the legislatively approved contribution rates for OPEB and information provided by CalHR for exempt and excluded employees not related to a specific bargaining unit. OPEB Contribution rates:

Details of the OPEB provisions are available here: http://hrmanual.calhr.ca.gov/Home/ManualItem/1/1422

Click here to read OBEB FAQ's from CalHR.

Meet and Confer Leads to Changes for CDTFA Anti-Nepotism Corrective Action Plan Implementation

When departments propose changes to policies impacting supervisors and managers, ACSS has the right under the law to Meet and Confer with the state over the new or revised policies and their impact on members. ACSS just concluded the Meet and Confer process with the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA) over a revised Anti-Nepotism Policy and the implementation of “Corrective Action Plans” to remediate identified personal or family relationships.

As a result of the meetings and ACSS’ requests, CDTFA has agreed to remove all Corrective Action Plans from supervisors and managers’ Official Personnel Files. CDTFA will also seek input from affected employees prior to taking a final action on a corrective plan, including a change in reporting structure or a geographic relocation. Supervisors or managers who currently have a corrective action plan may submit additional information for possible reconsideration of their corrective plan and will have the plan removed from their OPF.

We appreciate CDTFA’s willingness to implement these changes. Note that ACSS’ requests for changes were made after obtaining input from affected ACSS members. If you see an email from ACSS requesting input in connection with an upcoming Meet and Confer affecting you, please give us your thoughts. Your input can help shape ACSS’ position and protect your employment interests.

CalPERS Benefits Education Event in Garden Grove

The California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) is hosting a two-day CalPERS Benefits Education Event (CBEE) in Garden Grove to inform members about programs and benefits available to them. This event will take place at the Hyatt Regency Orange County on Friday, August 24, and Saturday, August 25, 2018 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m..

Whether new to CalPERS, in mid-career, or close to retirement, CBEEs offer all CalPERS members a wealth of information about their retirement and health benefits, supplemental savings plans, long-term care coverage, and more. Representatives from CalPERS Regional Offices will be on hand to answer questions. The event features breakout sessions specific to both early through mid-career members, and those nearing retirement. Topics to be covered include CalPERS retirement benefits, CalPERS health benefits, and deferred compensation.

For more information and to register, visit CalPERS Benefits Education Events.

Another Successful Delegate Assembly for ACSS

On July 13-15th, 2018, ACSS held its 12th triennial Delegate Assembly to review bylaws and policies, elect the Board of Directors, and elect Statewide Executive Officers. On Friday July 13th, the ACSS Executive Officers held an orientation and two committee meetings to review and discuss the Bylaws, Policy, and Fiscal resolutions that would be voted on at Saturday’s Delegate Assembly.

Saturday's Delegate Assembly held an election for the Board of Directors to serve the next three-year term. The Delegate Assembly also voted to pass all ten resolutions. Newly elected Chapter Presidents and Chapter Officers were sworn-in and took the oath of office to serve for the three year term. Saturday evening featured a dinner celebration that was enjoyed by all. Four past ACSS presidents attended the weekend’s events – Ron Franklin, Tim Behrens, Olin King and Arlene Espinoza.

On Sunday, ACSS held a brief Board Meeting and re-elected members to serve on the Statewide Executive Committee. They were sworn into office by ACSS Past President Ron Franklin.

Congratulations to all the newly elected Chapter Officers, Delegates, Board of Directors and Executive Committee! ACSS Delegate Assembly 2018 was a huge success. View the revised Bylaws and Policy file.

Click here to read the President’s Report.

ACSS Chapter Officers

ACSS Delegates

ACSS Executive Officers swearing in

Click here to view more photos from Delegate Assembly 2018.

New Overtime Compensation Policy in the CalHR Human Resources Manual

Some excluded state employees who are eligible for overtime may see an increase in their overtime compensation rate effective July 1, 2018. Federal law requires that employees receiving cash related to health benefits have that amount included in their overtime pay rate. This means that employees receiving the FlexElect Cash Option or receiving excess cash under the Consolidate Benefit Allowance Program (CoBen) will have these amounts included in their overtime rate of pay – slightly bumping up their overtime pay rates. This policy only applies to Work Week Group 2 employees. Click here to view the policy (Section 1713) in the online CalHR Human Resources Manual, updated on July 23, 2018.

CalPERS Update: Earnings and Health Benefit Plans

CalPERS has reported a preliminary 8.6 percent net investment return for the 12-month period that ended June 30, 2018. This is the second year in a row that earnings have exceeded the long-term assumed rate of return, which is 7.25% for the current fiscal year. With assets of more than $351 billion, CalPERS overall funded status rose three percentage points to an estimated 71 percent.

CalPERS has also concluded negotiations with health plan providers for 2019. Overall rates will increase 1.16 percent with members in Basic Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) plans seeing an average increase of 0.37 percent and members in Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) plans will see an overall average increase of 2.83 percent. While these are averages, some plans have significant increases (22.96% for Anthem HMO Traditional and 19.80% for PERSCare PPO) and some plans have significant decreases (-25.56% for PERSSelect PPO). Over the objections of ACSS and other state employee advocates, HealthNet will be leaving the Sacramento market in 2019 and Blue Shield Access+ will exit from eight Bay Area counties in 2019.

Because of the wide variances in rates and changes in plan availability, it will be particularly important to evaluate your options during this year's Open Enrollment period from September 10 to October 5.  CalHR will soon release the "CoBen Allowance" for 2019 which is the state employer contribution for health, dental and vision for the 2019 calendar year. Prior to Open Enrollment, CalHR will update the "Benefits Calculator" on the CalHR webpage which allows comparisons of out-of-pocket costs depending on health benefit selections. ACSS will provide the CoBen Allowance amount for 2019 and a link to the Benefits Calculator when it is available.