NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A5847
SPONSOR: Pheffer Amato TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the civil service law, in relation to including persons
holding positions by appointment or employment in the organized militia
of the state as public employees
PURPOSE:
Includes persons holding positions by appointment or employment in the
organized militia of the state as public employees
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends paragraph (a) of subdivision 7 of section 201 of the
civil service law to eliminate organized militia of the state as exempt
from, the definition of public employee, allowing them to organize and
join current organized labor organizations.
Section 2 is the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
The New York State government, like all governments, has an inherent
duty to protect the safety and well-being of its citizens from all
threats, foreign and domestic. This moral and civic obligation, owed by
elected leaders to their constituents, is fulfilled with the help of the
NYS Organized Militia, consisting of the NYS Army National Guard, the
NYS Air National Guard, the New York Naval Militia, and the New York
Guard. Besides their military duties, these men and women also serve our
state in natural disaster responses and other emergencies, standing
shoulder to shoulder with first responders and law enforcement in every
major crisis New York has faced.
The complicated balance between state and federal authority over New
York's Organized Militia, though necessary, at times leads to duplicated
bureaucracy, mismatch between state and federal priorities, and
confusion about benefits for service members. Despite their important
role in the state's emergency responses, including years-long deploy-
ments following the September 11th Terrorist Attacks and throughout the
COVID Pandemic, they are ineligible for many federal benefits, hampering
enlistment at a time when our forces are already critically undermanned.
One proposed solution is to designate these service members as state
employees during their time on active duty, which would grant them
access to the same health and pension benefits that other state employ-
ees are eligible for. In addition to adding healthy, working-age employ-
ees into the health insurance pool, this change could bolster the state
pension system due to the influx of new contributions.
In recent years, members of the Texas and Connecticut National Guards
have pursued unionization efforts, although the legal and regulatory
frameworks governing military personnel significantly limit their abili-
ty to do so compared to civilian workers. Yet because of the current
state law members of New York State guard units and Naval Militia are
not even able to start negotiations for forming a union. The New York
State Division of Military and Naval Affairs ("the DMNA") is a public
employer according to the Taylor Law, and its' employees are not
excepted from Taylor Law protection simply as a result of their status
as employees of the DMNA. Lebrun v. McGuire, 196 Misc.2d 874, 875-876
(Sup. Ct., Albany County, 2003). Instead, as stated above, an employee
does not qualify as a "public employee" if he or she is employed "in the
organized militia of the state." Civil Service Law § 201 (7). The
"organized militia" has been defined to include "the New York army
national guard; the New York air national guard; the inactive national
guard; the New York naval militia; the New York guard ... and such addi-
tional forces as may be created by the governor." Military Law § 2(1)..
If this change is passed.CSEA could start representing the employees who
are also members of either Army National Guard or Air National Guard.
They currently represent others on bases who do exact same roles - Secu-
rity Forces and Firemen.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New Legislation
STATE AND LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
N/A
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5847
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 24, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. PHEFFER AMATO -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Governmental Employees
AN ACT to amend the civil service law, in relation to including persons
holding positions by appointment or employment in the organized mili-
tia of the state as public employees
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 7 of section 201 of the civil
2 service law, as amended by chapter 817 of the laws of 1977, is amended
3 to read as follows:
4 (a) The term "public employee" means any person holding a position by
5 appointment or employment in the service of a public employer, except
6 that such term shall not include for the purposes of any provision of
7 this article other than sections two hundred ten and two hundred eleven
8 of this article, judges and justices of the unified court system,
9 [persons holding positions by appointment or employment in the organized
10 militia of the state] and persons who may reasonably be designated from
11 time to time as managerial or confidential upon application of the
12 public employer to the appropriate board in accordance with procedures
13 established pursuant to section two hundred five or two hundred twelve
14 of this article, which procedures shall provide that any such desig-
15 nations made during a period of unchallenged representation pursuant to
16 subdivision two of section two hundred eight of this chapter shall only
17 become effective upon the termination of such period of unchallenged
18 representation. Employees may be designated as managerial only if they
19 are persons (i) who formulate policy or (ii) who may reasonably be
20 required on behalf of the public employer to assist directly in the
21 preparation for and conduct of collective negotiations or to have a
22 major role in the administration of agreements or in personnel adminis-
23 tration provided that such role is not of a routine or clerical nature
24 and requires the exercise of independent judgment. Employees may be
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09530-01-5
A. 5847 2
1 designated as confidential only if they are persons who assist and act
2 in a confidential capacity to managerial employees described in [clause]
3 subparagraph (ii) of this paragraph.
4 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
