NAPO files amicus brief in‘ Janus v. AFSCME’
With the U. S. Supreme Court scheduled to hear oral arguments for the Janus v. AFSCME case on Feb. 26, NAPO joined with several of our member organizations in filing an amicus curiae brief supporting the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees( AFSCME) and the right of public sector unions to collect“ fair share” fees.
Janus v. AFSCME could have a big impact on public sector unions and employee associations( including NAPO members) in those states that currently allow a“ closed shop” collective bargaining unit. In Janus, an employee in Illinois, who works in a position covered by a collective bargaining agreement recognizing AFSCME as the proper representative of all employees in that unit, has challenged the right of the AFSC- ME to collect“ fair share” payments from non-union members who still work within the bargaining unit. Such fees are common across the United States and serve to help defray the costs that the union incurs in negotiating and administering a contract that covers all unit workers. This practice has long been upheld by the courts, including the U. S. Supreme Court in a 1977 case known as Abood v. Detroit Board of Education.
In the current case, Janus is asking the Supreme Court to overturn its previous opinion in Abood and declare all“ fair share” fee arrangements unconstitutional under the First Amendment. If the Court agrees, and most observers think it will,“ fair share” policies will be struck down all across the nation, granting a huge victory for right-to-work proponents. While NAPO has several member organizations in right-towork states such as Florida, Texas and Arizona that have been successful in maintaining and growing membership in such environments, NAPO has long fought to give all law enforcement officers the basic right to bargain collectively.
NAPO stands ready to help our member organizations as they prepare for the possibility of the right to collect fair share fees being overturned and will be a clearinghouse for lessons learned and best practices for navigating a right-to-work environment. If you have any questions about the amicus brief that NAPO filed or about the case itself, please contact Bill Johnson at bjohnson @ napo. org.
NAPO on the Hill— House Judiciary Committee
NAPO met with staff of Representatives Karen Handel( R- GA), Brad Schneider( D-IL) and Val Demings( D-FL), three new members of the House Judiciary Committee, as well as new Judiciary staff for Representative John Ratcliffe( R-TX) to introduce the staff to NAPO and our priorities for the remainder of the 115th Congress. PSOB improvements
NAPO is collaborating with Congressman Raul Ruiz( D-CA) on legislation to increase the PSOB death, disability and education benefits. Congressman Ruiz represents the families of Palm Springs Officers Lesley Zerebny and Jose Gilbert Vega, who were gunned down in an ambush while responding to a domestic disturbance call on Oct. 8, 2016. The families of the officers reached out to the Congressman on the need to increase the PSOB benefits so that the families left behind would
not be left struggling with mortgages, debts and the costs of raising children.
NAPO has long fought to increase PSOB benefits, from the first benefit increase in 1988 from $ 50,000 to $ 100,000 plus annual cost of living indexing, to the next significant raise in 2002 following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, when the benefit was raised to $ 250,000. Additionally, we worked to ensure that these death and disability benefits are federal and state income tax-free. The PSOB onetime death and disability benefit is currently $ 350,079.
Additionally, healthcare coverage as an included benefit is now becoming increasingly necessary, given the continuously escalating costs of healthcare. This benefit would remove a great financial burden from the loved ones of those who so selflessly gave their lives for the safety of our communities. COPS Program
The Judiciary Committee is responsible for authorizing the COPS Program, which NAPO has supported since its inception in 1994. We continue to remind members of importance of funding this program as we fight attempts to gut it almost yearly. It is vital that the COPS Hiring Program, the National Blue Alert System, and the new peer mentoring pilot program( which we passed as part of the Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act) are supported and funded in Fiscal 2019. Increased penalties
NAPO supports legislation to enhance officer safety by increasing penalties for the murder, attempted murder, or assault of federal, state and local law enforcement officers. The committee, and then the House, passed the NAPO-supported Thin Blue Line Act last year, but that bill only provides increased protections for officers if there is a federal nexus to their case. We continue to push the Back the Blue Act and other legislation that would provide increased penalties for violence against federally funded police officers, which would protect a significantly larger number of state and local officers whose agencies receive federal grant funding. PLUS Equipment Act
On Aug. 28, 2017, President Trump issued an executive order called“ Restoring State, Tribal, and Local Law Enforcement’ s Access to Life-Saving Equipment and Resources,” which fully repeals President Obama’ s executive order 13688 and any pursuant policies and recommendations. This was a huge victory for NAPO, as we fought to reinstate state and local law enforcement’ s unfettered access to this vital equipment since President Obama restricted it in May 2015.
We also need to amend the PLUS Equipment Act to ensure that law enforcement access to this equipment does not become a political football, determined by whichever political party is in the White House. By amending the bill, the focus will no longer be on repealing President Obama’ s executive order but on ensuring that future administrations are not able to restrict law enforcement’ s access to surplus military equipment unless approved by Congress. d
www. njcopsmagazine. com ■ FEBRUARY 2018 23