CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
MEETING DATE: 6/18/2024
DEPARTMENT: City Manager
SUBJECT:
AMENDMENT OF THE PERSONNEL RULES AND REGULATIONS
RECOMMENDED ACTION(S):
Adopt a Resolution entitled: RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF LAKE FOREST, CALIFORNIA ADOPTING AN AMENDMENT OF THE
PERSONNEL RULES AND REGULATIONS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
The Personnel Rules and Regulations (“Personnel Rules”) serve as a guiding policy for the administration of staff and govern employee conduct in performing the City’s business. The Personnel Rules were last updated and approved by the City Council on September 19, 2023.
As with other policies, the Personnel Rules need to be updated periodically to address changes in the law, best practices, and the City’s operations. Following a thorough review, staff have proposed amendments to six (6) of the chapters and Exhibit A (Benefits Matrix). Most of the changes in the chapters reflect changes to state law, updated practices, employee benefits and recommendations from the City Attorney’s Office. Exhibit A updates the health insurance premiums provided to full-time employees for 2025 calendar year.
The exact fiscal impact will vary based on the benefit elections employees make during the 2025 Open Enrollment period. However, the 2023-2025 Operating Budget has allocated sufficient funds to accommodate this expense.
If approved, the updated Personnel Rules and Regulations will become effective on June 18, 2024, and the changes to Exhibit A will be effective January 1, 2025.
Staff will continue monitoring legal developments in this area of public employee personnel management and present future amendments to the Personnel Rules as needed.
BACKGROUND:
The City of Lake Forest Municipal Code (“Municipal Code”) Sections 2.60.030
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and 2.60.050 grant authority to the City Manager to adopt personnel policies and procedures, subject to the City Council's review (Attachment 1). The Municipal Code stipulates that the City Manager, or the City Manager’s designee, is responsible for administering the City’s personnel system. The City’s Personnel Rules, initially established at the City's incorporation and last updated in 2023, have been amended over the years to reflect changes in law, benefit provisions, and the need to modernize policies and procedures. The Personnel Rules consist of the following nine (9) chapters and one (1) exhibit:
Chapter 1 Introduction
Chapter 2 Recruitment, Selection, Appointment, and Probation Chapter 3 Discipline
Chapter 4 Complaint and Grievance Procedure
Chapter 5 Separation from Service
Chapter 6 Compensation and Hours
Chapter 7 Employee Benefits
Chapter 8 Leave
Chapter 9 Miscellaneous (includes policies such as Non-Discrimination, Family and Medical Leave, etc.)
Exhibit A Benefits Matrix
DISCUSSION:
Staff are proposing a series of revisions to the Personnel Rules to reflect changes in state law, updated practices, employee benefits and recommendations from the City Attorney’s Office. The proposed revisions would clarify and streamline language within the Personnel Rules. All proposed changes are summarized in Table 1 below. Staff has also attached an underline/strike-out version of the Personnel Rules highlighting these changes (Attachment 2).
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Table 1: Summary of Proposed Changes to Rules and Regulations and Exhibit A
Chapter 1 – Introduction
(Attachment 2, Pages 1,3)
Section Change
1.2 General Provisions
Paragraph 2
1.4 Applicability of Rules to Certain Positions
Excluded From Competitive Service
Add language to update protected classes
due to federal, state, and local laws.
Add language to clarify that Chapter 7,
Section 7.7 Paragraph 2 does not apply
to part-time, seasonal, provisional, and
temporary employees.
Add language to clarify that Chapter 8,
Section 8.6 and 8.8 does not apply to
part-time, seasonal, provisional, and
temporary employees.
Add language to clarify that Chapter 8,
Section 8.9 and 8.11 applies to part-time,
seasonal, provisional, and temporary
employees.
Chapter 2 - Recruitment, Selection,
Appointment and Probation
(Attachment 2, Page 6)
Section Change
2.3 Pre - Employment Physical Examinations
Paragraph 2
Add language to update title of City
Drug Testing Policy
Chapter 6 – Compensation and Hours
(Attachment 2, Page 31)
Section Change
6.5 Working Hours Add language to clarify working hours. 3 1
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Chapter 7 - Employee Benefits
(Attachment 2, Pages 35, 39)
Section Change
7.1 Health Insurance/Cash In Lieu and
Life Insurance
Paragraph 2
7.1 Health Insurance/Cash In Lieu and
Life Insurance
Paragraph 3
7.8 Expenses Allowances
Paragraph 3
Add language to define Healthcare
Insurance Benefits Contribution.
Add language to update Cash In Lieu
for full-time employees only.
Remove TRICARE coverage from list
of coverage not eligible to receive
Cash In Lieu.
Add language to include rideshare.
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Chapter 8 – Leave
(Attachment 2, Page 43, 44, 50, 51)
Section Change
8.4 Sick Leave
Paragraph 1, Section A, Accrual of Sick
Leave, Paragraph (2)
8.4 Sick Leave
Paragraph 1, Section B, Permitted Uses
of Sick Leave
Add language to update the Healthy
Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of
2014 . Updates the minimum amount of
paid sick leave part-time, temporary, and
seasonal employees receive per
calendar year.
Update language for part-time
employees will be compensated for one-
half accumulated sick leave.
Add language to update uses of sick
leave for existing health condition or
preventative care per State law.
Add language to expand the use of
sick leave for the purposes of
Bereavement and Reproductive
Loss Leave per State law.
8.6 Bereavement Leave Add language to clarify the bereavement leave for full time employees is based on
calendar year.
Add language to clarify part time,
temporary and seasonal employees may
take unpaid bereavement leave per State
Law.
8.7 Reproductive Loss Leave Add language to address Reproductive Loss Leave law granting unpaid leave to
employees who meet certain eligibility
requirements per State Law
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Chapter 9 – Miscellaneous
(Attachment 2, Page 54, 55, 56)
Section Change
9.1 Non-Discrimination Policy
9.7 Additional Policies
Add language to update the protected
reasons to the Non-Discrimination policy.
Add language to update title of Drug
Testing Policy and Workplace Violence
Prevention Plan Policy
Exhibit A
Section Change
N/A
Update benefits matrix to incorporate
monthly allotment offered to full-time
employees for 2025 medical insurance.
Section 7.1 of the Personnel Rules states, “the City shall pay for medical, dental, and vision according to the benefits matrix contained in Exhibit A of these Personnel Rules.” The City contracts with the California Public Employees Retirement System (“CalPERS”) for twelve health insurance plans offered to employees, two of which are Preferred Provider Organization (“PPO”) plan types and ten of which are Health Maintenance Organizations (“HMO”) plan types. As such, eligible employees may enroll in any of the twelve plans offered by CalPERS, and the City covers the cost of the plan up to a fixed dollar amount (i.e., “health contribution”) or 95% of the plan cost, whichever is less.
The proposed changes in employee benefits are due to the competitive job market conditions and health plan price volatility, causing employees to change health plans each year. To remain competitive with the City’s comparable agencies, staff recommend changing the contribution to employee premiums to 90% of the highest HMO plan offered, effective January 1, 2025. If an employee selects a plan other than the highest priced HMO Plan, the employee pays the difference between the total cost of the selected plan and the City’s contribution, which would be equivalent to 90% of the highest priced HMO Plan.
The total FY 2024-25 budget for full time employee benefits is $1,635,200, this includes Health, Dental, Vision, Life, Long Term Disability, and Short-Term Disability. The exact fiscal impact will vary based on the benefit elections employees make during the 2025 Open Enrollment period.
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Given the dynamic nature of public employee laws and regulations, staff will continue to monitor those subject areas and others that may affect the City’s Personnel Rules and return to the City Council on an as-needed basis.
Changes to Exhibit A will return to the City Council independent from the Personnel Rules for any updates to the benefits matrix. Staff recommends that the City Council adopt the attached Resolution (Attachment 3), which revises the Personnel Rules.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Fiscal impact will be determined by the benefit elections made by employees during the 2025 Open Enrollment period. However, the Fiscal Year 2024-25 of the 2023-2025 Operating Budget includes sufficient funds to accommodate the recommended action.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Lake Forest Municipal Code Excerpts
2. Proposed Changes to the Personnel Rules and Regulations– Redline Version
3. Resolution Amending Personnel Rules and Regulations
Initiated By: Shelly Cisneros, Human Resources Manager
Submitted By: Keith Neves, Assistant City Manager
Approved By: Debra Rose, City Manager