In enacting [the statute in question], the Legislature did not purport to interpret the Constitution, but only to amend the statutory provisions enacted by Proposition 103. 14. PECG is a big supporter of STEM/STEAM programs, including science and engineering fairs, all over the state. This includes administering teacher training workshops, providing educational curriculum to schools and conducting engineering competitions. omitted.) On its face, however, Chapter 433-when properly read and viewed under settled legal principles-does not run afoul of the civil service mandate. ), In Riley, we considered and rejected this precise argument, concluding that the civil service mandate does not distinguish between "employees" and "independent contractors," but is more concerned with whether the civil service staff could perform the services involved. 433 (Reg. Rptr. 568.) Although the legislation at issue in Professional Engineers differs from Chapter 433 insofar as it involved no expenditure of state funds, the majority recognize that article VII would permit experimentation "despite the use of state funding." as amended June 24, 1993), such estimates were open to question (Legis. 4th 585 [16 Cal. 7 (Ch. ", The dissent reviewed the history of the proceedings in this case and observed that, "[u]nable to make headway with the judicial branch's tiresome requirement that Caltrans produce evidence that contracting out was warranted as cheaper or more efficient, Caltrans sought a sanction from the Legislature for its practice of contracting out. (Amwest, supra, 11 Cal.4th at pp. This court is without power to create additional exceptions by implication." And the Legislature may not undertake to readjudicate controversies that have been litigated in the courts and resolved by final judicial judgment. App. fn. App. The trial court stated: "The Court concludes that Chapter 433 of the Statutes of 1993 is unconstitutional in that it authorizes defendants to contract with private consultants for the performance of project development services without a factual showing that the contracts are permissible under article VII. Rptr. 4 [15 Cal. Although the ultimate constitutional interpretation must rest, of course, with the judiciary [citation], a focused legislative judgment on the question enjoys significant weight and deference by the courts." (Professional Engineers v. Department of Transportation (1993) 13 Cal. Rptr. Section 14101 permits Caltrans to contract with qualified private architects and engineers if "the obtainable staff is unable to perform the particular work within the time the public interest requires such work to be done. Before today the rules mandating judicial deference to legislative enactments were firmly established. The ramifications of such an expansive view of the court's role vis- -vis that of a coequal branch of government, are far-reaching and pernicious. App. In my view, the majority err by presuming not that the Legislature intended its enactment to be consistent with the purposes of article VII, but that it intended its enactment as a way to circumvent the limitations which have been judicially imposed to implement that constitutional mandate. of Ardaiz, J., post, at pp. Revision Com., Proposed Revision (1966) p. I respectfully dissent. 3d 805, 814-815 [258 Cal. 3. 116, 758 P.2d 58].) Even were we to conclude, for purposes of argument, that Chapter 433 contains express or implied findings to the effect that Caltrans is unable to perform the services in question "adequately and competently" through civil service, or that private contracting has resulted and will result in substantial cost savings or other significant advantages to the state, these findings, standing alone and without any apparent evidentiary or empirical support, would be insufficient to supplant the trial court's express findings to the contrary. Plaintiffs observe, however, that the trial court found Caltrans created an artificial "need" for private contracting that resulted from its practice of [15 Cal. PECG also sponsors and distributes educational documentaries that explore innovative solutions to the most serious problems facing our environment, economy, and livability. 4th 588] statute invalid, when it appears to them in the course of judicial action to be in conflict with the constitution, yet they can only do so when the question arises as a pure question of law, unmixed with matters of fact the existence of which must be determined upon a trial, and as the result of it, it may be, conflicting evidence. " fn. Jason Falbo, P.Eng., M.B.A, Ph.D Candidate Jason is the chief technology officer at Mircom. 1991) 947 F.2d 787, 789 [federal procurement rules require agencies to acquire goods and services at lowest possible cost to taxpayer]. (a); see Cal. Supporters of Chapter 433 included various local transportation agencies, the California Transportation Commission, and private engineering firms. [15 Cal. In fact, I conclude that a contrary interpretation is difficult to reconcile with the ballot argument originally expressed in the predecessor to article VII, "to promote efficiency and economy in state government." 2d 126 [69 P.2d 985, 111 A.L.R. LAO Other Government Areas - California ), Second, contrary to the majority's suggestion, the experimentation at issue in Professional Engineers did not require the "total" withdrawal of a state function. ), That the Legislature intends to encourage contracting out indicates a finding by that body that contracting out is frequently less expensive than hiring new employees, especially when the costs of short-term hiring and layoffs are taken into account. (a)(4)), and defendants use private consultants interchangeably with civil service staff to provide project design and development, construction inspection, locally funded, seismic retrofitting, and other project delivery services. [N]o new methods of managing, financing, or otherwise performing project delivery work distinguish the work performed by private consultants from that historically and presently performed by civil service staff. 2d 817, 820 [161 P.2d 456, 171 A.L.R. Section President 2nd Term at PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERS IN CALIFORNIA GOVERNMENT David Tanouye, P.G. (Gov. 4th 566] privatization. (Professional Engineers, supra, 13 Cal.App.4th at p. All applicants are required to supply the Board with a full set of fingerprints upon submittal of an application for licensure/certification. v. State of California (1988) 199 Cal. (41 U.S.C. Code, 14130.1, subd. The majority in effect apply a species of "independent review" to the Legislature's factual findings, which would allow courts to decide for themselves whether the evidence supported the Legislature's determinations and conclusions or to make sure the Legislature-in the reviewing court's view-had before it "sufficient" evidence to warrant its enactment of the particular legislation at issue. You can explore additional available newsletters here. ), "[N]either a finding of fact made after a contested adversary hearing nor a finding of fact made after any other type of hearing can be indisputably deemed to have been a correct finding [;] '[u]nder the doctrine of judicial notice, certain matters are assumed to be indisputably true, and the introduction of evidence to prove them will not be required.' Daniel E. Lungren, Attorney General, Floyd D. Shimomura, Assistant Attorney General, Linda A. Cabatic and Daniel G. Stone, Deputy Attorneys General, William M. McMillan, Richard W. Bower, O. J. Solander, Stephanie G. Sakai, Irell & Manella, Gregory R. Smith, Joanna Moore and David Z. Moss for Defendants and Appellants. They also presume that the legislature acted with integrity, and with an honest [15 Cal. 2d 165, 170 [68 P.2d 741] (Stockburger) [enjoining state from hiring private independent contractors to clean state building].) The Curious Case of QBS in California | California Construction Law [Citations.] The Registered Agent on file for this company is Ted E Toppin and is located at 455 Capitol Mall Suite 501, Sacramento, CA 95814. fn. Craft and Maintenance. 4th 1746, 1749 [50 Cal. As we subsequently explain, that holding seems clearly correct in light of the uncontradicted evidence of Caltrans's historical responsibility for project development of the state highway system. There, the initiative measure known as Proposition 103 provided that it could not be amended by the Legislature except to further the purposes of that act. Co. v. Deukmejian, supra, 48 Cal.3d at p. 814), the judiciary should not interfere. (Gov. " (Amwest, supra, at p. 1252, quoting Elliott, supra, at p. The majority's reliance on Turner is misplaced. 4th 574] presented to the trial court or the Legislature. 1209 (1993-1994 Reg. FN 5. ( 14130.2, subd. Rptr. But Caltrans fails to offer any alternatives short of simply abrogating the private contracting restriction in its entirety. While acknowledging that "courts must give legislative findings great weight and should uphold them unless unreasonable or arbitrary" (maj. of Sacramento v. Saylor (1971) 5 Cal. Caltrans cites various sources in support of its position that the constitutional civil service mandate was not intended to restrict private contracting. 3d 208, 245 [149 Cal. Jason's responsibilities include new product development, regulatory approval & Product Management. You already receive all suggested Justia Opinion Summary Newsletters. Sess.) As this court stated 60 years ago, "judicial decisions abound with declarations to the effect that all presumptions and intendments favor the validity of statutes; that mere doubt by the judicial branch of the government as to the validity of a statute will not afford a sufficient reason for a judicial declaration of its invalidity, but that statutes must be upheld as constitutional unless their invalidity clearly, positively, and unmistakably appears." 364-365; Note, State Civil Service Law-Civil Service Restrictions on Contracting Out by State Agencies (1980) 55 Wash. L.Rev. Professional Engineers in California Government (PECG) is a union representing engineers and related professionals employed by the state of California. (See County of Los Angeles v. Legg (1936) 5 Cal. I do not find such a conclusion inconsistent with a reasonable application of Riley and its progeny. Therefore, I attached my resume by way of application. The court found insufficient evidence to support Caltrans's contentions that (1) its increased project workload involved short-term or temporary work that private contractors could perform most economically and efficiently, or (2) private contracting would allow Caltrans to perform its work in a more timely and effective manner than hiring new civil service staff. . The court next considered whether anything in Chapter 433 justified Caltrans's breach of the 1990 injunction. (Italics added.). Bruce Railey - Construction Project Manager - US Army Corps of Click here for more information about this new requirement and how to notify the Board of your email address. h240R0Pw/+Q0L)640)IcRYZlg` ~:f ), The Court of Appeal relied on case law presuming the validity of legislation and according "great weight" to legislative findings unless "unreasonable and arbitrary" or "clearly and palpably wrong." 4th 547]. 4th 585. The record indicated, however, that Caltrans had assumed responsibility for this work since 1963, so no "new state functions" were involved that might have justified an exception to the implied civil service mandate. (Riley, supra, 9 Cal.2d at p. List of professional designations in the United States 4th 596] system over considerations of economic responsibility and economic sensibility. VII, 1, subd. v. Spokane Community Coll. As a member of the executive management team, Jason collaborates on business strategy, marketing, & operations mgmt for the company. The practice acts are Civil, Electrical, and Mechanical Engineering. (See Cal. The Court of Appeal majority reversed the judgment and remanded the matter to the trial court with directions to dissolve its 1990 injunction. omitted. 397-399) and the "cost savings" rule (see CSEA, supra, 199 Cal.App.3d at pp. endstream endobj 376 0 obj <>stream 180-181; see also California State Employees' Assn. fn. Rptr. Rptr. & Hy. 3d 840, recognized that allowing the state to consider cost savings in determining the propriety of private contracting serves the dual purposes of article VII " 'to promote efficiency and economy' " in state government and "to eliminate the 'spoils system' of political patronage." 3d 531, 547-549 [174 Cal. 875, 583 P.2d 729]; Los Angeles Met. 593-594, italics added. I find particularly disturbing the majority's conclusion that the constitutional validity of legislative enactments and amendments depends upon whether the Legislature is able to empirically disprove contrary trial court findings of fact. Neither U.S. (FCC v. Beach Communications, Inc. (1993) 508 U.S. 307, 315 [113 S. Ct. 2096, 2102, 124 L. Ed. 593-594, and fn. ), Caltrans asserts supposed policy reasons why we should overrule or disapprove 60 years of settled case law: "As a result [of the existing case law], Californians have had to forego promising new techniques for providing services, ranging from contracting with private contractors to outright [15 Cal. v. D.O.H. FN 14. To accomplish this, PECG supports and sponsors programs that promote Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). (Ch. Co. v. Wilson (1995) 11 Cal. Practice act means that only a person appropriately licensed with the Board may practice or offer to practice these branches of engineering. [establishing criteria for selection of contractors, selection process, and rules against conflicts of interest and unlawful activity].) FN 11. One of these orders recited that because Caltrans was underestimating its actual workload and was maintaining an insufficient level of civil service staff, it needed to use private consultants to perform scheduled and unscheduled work beyond the capacity of civil service staff. VII, 1, subd. Article III, section 3 of the California Constitution states: "The powers of state government are legislative, executive, and judicial. 1989, ch. Environmental Manager, Environmental Science. The Personal Leave Program (PLP) was established July 1, 1992 to achieve savings in employee salary costs during a fiscal crisis. (1985) 40 Cal. 3d 840, 844 [245 Cal. (c), operative until Jan. 1, 1998, 14130.1, 14130.2. 1 In other words, the Legislature concluded it is more efficient and less expensive not to expand state government when certain types of road and bridge engineering services can be performed by private consultants. On November 21, 2000, Professional Engineers in California Government, which identified itself as "the duly certified collective bargaining representative for members of state employee Bargaining Unit No. For information regarding the qualification requirements, reviewBusiness and Professionals Code section 6755andTitle 16, California Code of Regulations section 438(a). 135.) The Court of Appeal majority, after reviewing the relevant constitutional and statutory principles, initially rejected Caltrans's contention that new section 14130, subdivision (a)(5), makes Caltrans's use of private consultants to assist in project delivery a "new state function" exempt from the civil service mandate. App. FN . 4th 592] findings of fact cannot be used to controvert the Legislature's later findings. As we have seen, the California courts already permit private contracting if cost savings justify it and other applicable civil service standards are met. 477, 490; Matter of Application of Miller, supra, 162 Cal. Jason Falbo - Chief Technology Officer - Mircom Group of Companies 2d 816, 821 [51 Cal. Those provisions, respectively, permit judicial notice to be taken of "[f]acts and propositions that are of such common knowledge within the territorial jurisdiction of the court that they cannot reasonably be the subject of dispute" and "[f]acts and propositions that are not reasonably subject to dispute and are capable of immediate and accurate determination by resort to sources of reasonably indisputable accuracy." ', "In Pacific Indemnity Co. v. Indus. 579-580.) of Health (1986) 28 Ohio St.3d 463 [504 N.E.2d 1108, 1109-1110]; Local 4501, Comm. Strong business development professional with a Bachelor of Technology (BTech) focused in . par. It is the applicant's responsibility to submit a complete application. 397-400 [permitting state to hire private insurance carriers to administer state Medi-Cal program].) This obligation to exercise independent judgment when First Amendment rights are implicated is not a license to reweigh the evidence de novo, or to replace Congress' factual predictions with our own. Casey is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers and the Professional Engineers in California Government. Professional Engineers in California Government - YouTube 433, 13, subd. 361, 551 P.2d 1193]; see also Spiritual Psychic Science Church v. City of Azusa (1985) 39 Cal. 8].) Please view theFingerprinting FAQsfor detailed information. 2d 818, 828 [142 P.2d 297]), a reasonable construction is that Caltrans is not required to hire all the new staff it can use, but can contract out if economically advantageous. ), Responding to the trial court's doubts regarding the supposed "short-term" nature of the seismic safety retrofit program, the Court of Appeal majority reasoned that, although this program may be comparable to any typical Caltrans project, it "has a finite life. (Professional Engineers, supra, 13 Cal.App.4th at pp. Workers v. Ohio State Univ. 1209 (1993-1994 Reg. v. Spokane Community Coll., supra, 585 P.2d 474, enforcing Washington's civil service "merit system" legislation to invalidate a private contract despite a substantial cost savings to the state. [15 Cal. " 'In considering the constitutionality of a legislative act we presume its validity, resolving all doubts in favor of the Act. v. State Bd. Greg Underhayes, MAIPM, MAIQS, CQS - Government Projects - Various In any event, Caltrans fails to indicate whether these studies were [15 Cal. App. 11 It simply allows the Director the discretion to contract out where such a move makes economic sense. 4th 577] challenge to constitutionality of legislation authorizing state to contract with private sector for personal services]. Rptr. Although not explicitly stated in the act, it is apparent that implicit in Chapter 433 is a provision that contracting out must make economic sense-it must be cheaper than using civil service-and that the discretion of the Director of Transportation (Director) to contract out must be exercised toward that end. We therefore limit our present discussion to the effect of Chapter 433 on the trial court's injunction and subsequent enforcement orders. "Under the doctrine of judicial notice, certain matters are assumed to be indisputably true, and the introduction of evidence to prove them will not be required." 2d 176].) Mr. Nyein Chan Thu - Civil Site Engineer - Aung Kyaw Myint Construction I agree with Justice Ardaiz's analysis that, for purposes of evaluating a constitutional challenge to legislation, a court may not take judicial notice of the truth of its earlier findings of fact. Following trial, on March 26, 1990, the court (Sacramento Superior Court, Eugene T. Gualco, Judge), issued an extensive statement of decision in plaintiffs' favor. The agreements for California Association of Psychiatric Technicians, or CAPT, and the Professional Engineers in California Government, PECG, call for 5.58% raises for their employees that will go . Clickhereto learn more. XXIV, 1. Professional Engineer applicants who are applying for a waiver of the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam [also known as an Engineering-in-Training (EIT) waiver] need to submit acomplete application. 3d 1, 14 [112 Cal. (See Burum v. State Compensation Ins. California Legislative Council of Professional Engineers Rptr. (Stats. View James Bourbos' profile on LinkedIn, the world's largest professional community. How then could we plausibly imply that the Legislature in enacting Chapter 433 made an implied finding that contracting out is cost-effective? Fed., etc. Los Angeles Section of Professional Engineers in California Government of Equalization, supra, 22 Cal.3d at p. 244 [construing Cal. 1253-1255. Caring for the world, one person at a time has inspired and united the people . Dist. You are now leaving this website and being directed to the specific California government resource or website that you have requested. California PE Laws and Board Rules Examination (Take Home Examination), application filing process for requesting a waiver of the FE exam, Business and Professionals Code section 6755, Title 16, California Code of Regulations section 438(a), Business and Professions Code section 6759, Title 16, California Code of Regulations section 428, Examination Special/Religious Accommodations, Information for Military Personnel and Their Spouses/Domestic Partners. Unit 9 (Professional Engineers) MOU Analysis Format: HTML; August 25, 2022 - We reviewed the proposed memorandum of understanding for Bargaining Unit 9 (Professional Engineers). The Legislature envisioned that privately financed projects could '[t]ake advantage of private sector efficiencies' and '[m]ore quickly bring reductions in congestion in existing transportation corridors.' ), There is a "strong presumption of the constitutionality of an act of the Legislature." (a)(3), 14130.1, subd. (Fns. 568-569; Collins v. Riley (1944) 24 Cal. Both the Court of Appeal majority and dissent agree that, despite the Legislature's characterization (see 14130, subd. Professional Engineer Licensure Available in California: Professional Engineers in California Government, The Next Frontier: Engineering the Golden Age of Green, Amazing: The Rebuilding of the MacArthur Maze, "California state engineers say yes to 8.5 percent raise, other perks", Bargaining Unit Contracts - Bargaining Unit 9, (PECG) - Professional Engineers, Engineers' Union Takes Labor Savings Ideas to Legislature, California Supreme Court Upholds Furlough Order for State Workers, Professional Engineers in California Government (PECG), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Professional_Engineers_in_California_Government&oldid=1012499074, 455 Capitol Mall, Suite 501, Sacramento, CA 95814, This page was last edited on 16 March 2021, at 18:13. Professional Engineers in California Government (PECG) is a union representing engineers and related professionals employed by the state of California. 841, 629 P.2d 935]; Serrano v. Priest (1982) 131 Cal. 2d 12, 906 P.2d 1112]; Lockard v. City of Los Angeles (1949) 33 Cal. (See, e.g., Rockwell v. Superior Court (1976) 18 Cal. Additional Information for Comity Applicants: [Citations.] On this point, the Legislature obviously had in mind the fact that the retrofitting, which had been mandated by statute following the Loma Prieta Earthquake in 1989, required completion by December 31, 1994, at the latest. Where more than one reasonable meaning exists, it is our duty to accept that chosen by the legislature.' [Citation.] (Amwest Surety Ins. Board staff is diligently working to process all applications as expeditiously as possible. Rptr. Presuming the Legislature acted with integrity and with the desire that Chapter 433 be valid and fall within constitutional bounds (Beach v. Von Detten, supra, 139 Cal. 1569.). Control v. Superior Court (1968) 268 Cal. at p. 696; Miller v. Board of Public Works, supra, 195 Cal. The trial court found Caltrans failed to show that these contracts were more cost-effective or that state workers could not adequately perform the work. In Methodist Hosp. [15 Cal. (Fn. (Lockard v. City of Los Angeles, supra, 33 Cal.2d at p. (Accord, Lundberg v. County of Alameda (1956) 46 Cal. He preceded his analysis with this succinct, and we believe accurate, description of the private contracting restriction in article VII: "History has shown that patronage hiring of public employees corrupts the political process, leads to waste, and depletes the quality of the public workforce. 615. In any event, there is an additional reason why the contracting authorized by Chapter 433 is constitutionally permissible despite the perceived absence of concrete data proving the cost-effectiveness of contracting or the inadequacy of civil service staff. They explore the challenges and successes in building and rebuilding major infrastructure projects. According to the court, Caltrans was displacing civil service staff from project development work that staff had historically performed and was maintaining staff at an inadequate level to create an artificial need for private contracting.