| (3) Prohibition against solicitation. A statewide federation
or fund may not solicit a deduction from a state employee at the employee's
worksite unless the solicitation is pursuant to the state employee
charitable campaign.
(t) Prohibition against certain solicitation by eligible
local charitable organizations. An eligible local charitable organization
may not solicit a deduction from a state employee at the employee's
worksite unless the solicitation is pursuant to the state employee
charitable campaign.
(u) Acceptance of authorization forms and electronic
deduction authorizations by state agencies.
(1) Prohibition against accepting certain authorization
forms and electronic deduction authorizations. A state agency may
accept an authorization form or electronic deduction authorization
only if it complies with the comptroller's requirements.
(2) Reviewing authorization forms and electronic deduction
authorizations. An authorization form or electronic deduction authorization
submitted by a state employee to a state agency must be reviewed by
the agency's campaign coordinator to ensure that the form or electronic
deduction authorization has been completed properly.
(3) Acceptance of altered authorization forms and electronic
deduction authorizations. A state agency is not required to accept
an authorization form or electronic deduction authorization that contains
an obvious alteration without the appropriate state employee's written
consent to the alteration.
(4) Review of online giving tool website and application
data by agency campaign coordinator. A state agency's campaign coordinator
may view the data from the online giving tool website and application
to ensure that the information has been completed properly and to
validate the accuracy of the information.
(v) Payment reports.
(1) Monthly submission of payment reports.
(A) An institution of higher education shall submit
a payment report each month to each local campaign manager or statewide
federation or fund that has received during the month deducted amounts
from the institution's state employees.
(B) The comptroller shall submit a payment report each
month to each local campaign manager or statewide federation or fund
that has received during the month deducted amounts through the comptroller's
electronic funds transfer system.
(2) Information included in payment reports.
(A) An institution of higher education's payment report
must include the amount and date of each check written to or electronic
funds transfer made to a local campaign manager or a statewide federation
or fund by the institution.
(B) The comptroller's payment report must include the
amount and date of each electronic funds transfer made to a local
campaign manager or statewide federation or fund by the comptroller.
(3) Format of payment reports. An institution of higher
education's payment report must be in the format prescribed by the
comptroller.
(4) Deadline for submission of payment reports.
(A) Except as otherwise provided in this subparagraph,
an institution of higher education shall mail or deliver a payment
report not later than the tenth workday of the month in which the
institution paid the deducted amounts covered by the report. For deductions
from salary or wages paid by an institution of higher education after
the tenth workday of a month, the institution may include the deductions
in the institution's payment report for the following month.
(B) Except as otherwise provided in this subparagraph,
the comptroller shall mail or deliver a payment report not later than
the fifth workday of the month in which the comptroller paid the deducted
amounts covered by the report. For deductions from salary or wages
paid by the comptroller after the first workday of a month, the comptroller
may include the deductions in the comptroller's payment report for
the following month.
(w) Complaints by state employees about coercive activity.
(1) Definition.
(A) In this section, "coercive activity" includes:
(i) a state agency or its representative pressuring
a state employee to participate in a state employee charitable campaign;
(ii) a state agency or its representative inquiring
about:
(I) whether a state employee has chosen to participate
in a state employee charitable campaign; or
(II) the amount of a state employee's deduction except
as necessary to administer the deduction;
(iii) a state agency or its representative establishing
a goal for 100% of the agency's state employees to authorize a deduction;
(iv) a state agency or its representative establishing
a dollar contribution goal or quota for a state employee;
(v) a state agency, a statewide federation or fund,
a local campaign manager, or a representative of the preceding developing
or using a list of state employees who did not complete an authorization
form or electronic deduction authorization during a state employee
charitable campaign;
(vi) a state agency, a statewide federation or fund,
a local campaign manager, or a representative of the preceding using
or providing to others a list of state employees who completed an
authorization form or electronic deduction authorization during a
state employee charitable campaign, unless the purpose of the list
is to make a deduction or transmit deducted amounts to a local campaign
manager or a statewide federation or fund; and
(vii) a state agency or its representative using as
a factor in a performance appraisal the results of a state employee
charitable campaign in a particular section, division, or other level
of the agency.
(B) Notwithstanding subparagraph (A) of this paragraph,
"coercive activity" does not include:
(i) the head of a state agency's participation in the
customary activities associated with a state employee charitable campaign;
or
(ii) the head of a state agency's demonstration of
support for the campaign in newsletters or other routine communications
with state employees.
(2) Submission of complaints to the comptroller. A
state employee may submit a written complaint to the comptroller when
the employee believes that coercive activity has occurred in a state
employee charitable campaign.
(3) Investigation by the comptroller of complaints.
(A) The comptroller shall investigate a state employee's
written complaint about coercive activity. The comptroller shall mail
or deliver a description of the comptroller's findings about the complaint
to the employee not later than the 30th day after the comptroller
receives the complaint.
(B) If the comptroller finds that coercive activity
has occurred, then the comptroller shall mail or deliver notice of
the finding to the state policy committee not later than the 30th
day after the comptroller makes the finding.
(4) Action by the state policy committee.
(A) If the state policy committee receives written
notification that the comptroller has found that coercive activity
has occurred, then the committee shall take appropriate action. Actions
that the state policy committee may take include suspension of the
person or entity that engaged in the coercive activity from participation
in the state employee charitable campaign for one campaign year.
(B) A person or entity that has been suspended from
the state employee charitable campaign for a campaign year may apply
to the state policy committee for participation in the campaign for
the next campaign year.
(x) Public junior colleges and their employees.
(1) Classification as institutions of higher education
and state employees. For the purposes of this section, a public junior
college is considered to be an institution of higher education and
the college's employees are considered to be state employees unless
the college's governing board affirmatively decides for the college
not to participate in the state employee charitable contribution program.
(2) Decisions not to participate in the state employee
charitable contribution program.
(A) The decision of a public junior college's governing
board for the college not to participate in the state employee charitable
contribution program is effective for only one fiscal year.
(B) To be valid, the decision of a public junior college's
governing board for the college not to participate in the state employee
charitable contribution program for a fiscal year must be made not
earlier than September 1 and not later than April 1 of the preceding
fiscal year.
Cont'd... |
