HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES STAFF ANALYSIS
BILL #: CS/HB 1471 Public Employees
SPONSOR(S): State Affairs Committee, Black and others
TIED BILLS: IDEN./SIM. BILLS: CS/SB 1746
REFERENCE ACTION ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR or
BUDGET/POLICY CHIEF
1) Constitutional Rights, Rule of Law & 8 Y, 4 N Villa Miller
Government Operations Subcommittee
2) State Affairs Committee 15 Y, 6 N, As CS Villa Williamson
SUMMARY ANALYSIS
Collective bargaining is a constitutional right of public employees in Florida. A public employee desiring to join
an employee organization must sign and date a membership authorization form with the bargaining agent and
may revoke membership upon written request.
An employee organization authorized to represent public employees in collective bargaining is known as a
certified bargaining agent. To become a certified bargaining agent, the employee organization must register
with and be certified by the Public Employees Relations Commission (PERC). The initial and renewal
applications must include an audited financial statement certified by an independent certified public accountant
(CPA) and other specified information. Employee organizations are prohibited from having membership dues
and assessments deducted and collected by public employers, with certain exceptions, and if the dues paying
membership of a bargaining agent drops below 60 percent of the employees eligible for representation during
a specified period, the employee organization must petition PERC for recertification.
The bill removes the requirement that an employee organization submit an audited financial statement and
instead requires financial statements be prepared by an independent CPA. The financial statement submitted
with a registration renewal application must include the employee organization’s disbursements reported by
category for the preceding fiscal year. For a registration renewal application submitted between July 1, 2023,
and the effective date of this act, the bill prohibits PERC from denying the registration renewal or revoking the
registration of an employee organization based solely upon the employee organization’s failure to submit an
audited financial statement and, instead, provides that an employee organization may submit a current annual
financial statement.
The bill requires a bargaining agent certified to represent a bargaining unit for which less than 60 percent of the
employees in the unit both submitted membership authorization forms, without a subsequent revocation, and
paid dues to the employee organization during its last registration period to petition PERC for recertification.
The bill specifies that an employee organization intentionally misrepresenting registration information or
refusing to permit PERC to inspect membership authorization forms or revocation requests constitutes a failure
to cooperate with a PERC investigation that may result in the revocation of a registration or certification.
The bill specifies that the exemptions from certain requirements apply to a bargaining unit with a majority of
employees eligible for representation employed as law enforcement officers, correctional officers, correctional
probation officers, firefighters, 911 public safety telecommunicators, emergency medical technicians , or
paramedics. For mass transit employees the dues deduction exemption may only be applied to those
employees who submit a membership authorization form to their employer as part of the authorization for dues
deduction.
The bill does not appear to have a fiscal impact on local governments, but may have an indeterminate, but
likely insignificant, negative fiscal impact on the state.
This docum ent does not reflect the intent or official position of the bill sponsor or House of Representatives .
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 FULL ANALYSIS
I. SUBSTANTIVE ANALYSIS
A. EFFECT OF PROPOSED CHANGES:
Present Situation
Right-to-Work
The State Constitution provides that the “right of persons to work shall not be denied or abridged on
account of membership or non-membership in any labor union or labor organization.” 1 Accordingly,
Florida is regarded as a “right-to-work” state.
Collective Bargaining
The State Constitution also guarantees that “the right of employees, by and through a labor
organization, to bargain collectively shall not be denied or abridged.” 2 To implement this constitutional
provision, the Legislature enacted ch. 447, F.S., which provides that public employees have the right to
form, join, participate in, and be represented by an employee organization3 of their own choosing, or to
refrain from forming, joining, participating in, or being represented by an employee organization. 4
The purpose of collective bargaining is to promote cooperative relationships between the government
and its employees and to protect the public by assuring the orderly and uninterrupted operations and
functions of government.5 Through collective bargaining, public employees 6 negotiate with their public
employer7 to determine the terms and conditions of their employment.8 Each employee is subject to the
negotiated collective bargaining agreement regardless of union membership.9
The Public Employees Relations Commission (PERC) is responsible for assisting in resolving disputes
between public employees and public employers.10
1 Art. I, s. 6, FLA. CONST.
2 Id.
3 “Employee organization” means any labor organization, union, association, fraternal order, occupational or professional socie ty, or
group, however organized or constituted, which represents, or seeks to represent, any public employee or group of public em ployees
concerning any matters relating to their employment relationship with a public employer. S. 447.203(11), F.S.
4 S. 447.301(1) and (2), F.S.
5 S. 447.201, F.S.
6 S. 447.203(3), F.S., defines the term “public employee” to mean any person employed by a public employer except:
(a) Persons appointed by the Governor or elected by the people, agency heads, and members of boards and commissions.
(b) Persons holding positions by appointment or employment in the organized militia.
(c) Individuals acting as negotiating representatives for employer authorities.
(d) Persons who are designated by the commission as managerial or confidential employees pursuant to criteria contained herein.
(e) Persons holding positions of employment with the Florida Legislature.
(f) Persons who have been convicted of a crime and are inmates confined to institutions within the state.
(g) Persons appointed to inspection positions in federal/state fruit and vegetable inspection service whose conditions of
appointment are affected by the following:
1. Federal license requirement.
2. Federal autonomy regarding investigation and disciplining of appointees.
3. Frequent transfers due to harvesting conditions.
(h) Persons employed by the Public Employees Relations Commission.
(i) Persons enrolled as undergraduate students in a state university who perform part-time work for the state university.
7 The term “public employer” means the state or any county, municipality, or special district or any subdivision or agency ther eof that
the commission determines has sufficient legal distinctiveness properly to carry out the functions of a public employer. S. 447.203(2),
F.S.
8 S. 447.301(2), F.S.
9 See s. 447.309(1), F.S.
10 S. 447.201(3), F.S.
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 Registration of an Employee Organization
An employee organization seeking to become a certified bargaining agent 11 for a unit12 of public
employees must register with and be certified by PERC. To register, the employee organization must
submit an application, under oath, to PERC that includes the following information:
 The name and address of the organization and of any parent organization or organization with
which it is affiliated.
 The names and addresses of the principal officers and all representatives of the organization.
 The amount of the initiation fee and of the monthly dues which members must pay.
 The current annual audited financial statement of the organization.
 The name of its business agent, if any; the name of its local agent for service of process, if
different from the business agent; and the addresses where such person or persons can be
reached.
 A pledge, in a form prescribed by PERC, that the employee organization will conform to the
laws of the state and that it will accept members without regard to age, race, sex, religion, or
national origin.
 A copy of the current constitution and bylaws of the employee organization.
 A copy of the current constitution and bylaws of the state and national groups with which the
employee organization is affiliated or associated. 13
A registration granted to an employee organization is valid for one year and must be renewed annually
by filing an application under oath with PERC. The renewal application must reflect any changes in the
information provided to PERC in conjunction with the employee organization’s preceding application for
registration or previous renewal, whichever is applicable. Each application for renewal of registration
must include a current annual audited financial statement, certified by an independent certified public
accountant (CPA), containing the following information:
 Assets and liabilities at the beginning and end of the fiscal year.
 Receipts of any kind and the sources thereof.
 Salary, allowances, and other direct or indirect disbursements, including reimbursed expenses,
to each officer and employee who, during the fiscal year, received more than $10,000 in the
aggregate from the employee organization and any affiliated employee organization.
 Direct and indirect loans made to any officer, employee, or member which aggregated more
than $250 during the fiscal year.
 Direct and indirect loans to any business enterprise. 14
In addition, on or after October 1, 2023, certain employee organizations 15 certified as bargaining agents
for public employees must submit the following information and documentation, as of the 30th day
immediately preceding the date of renewal, in their registration renewal applications:
 The number of employees in the bargaining unit who are eligible for representation by the
employee organization.
 The number of employees in the bargaining unit who have submitted signed membership
authorization forms without a subsequent revocation of such membership.
 The number of employees in the bargaining unit who paid dues to the employee organization.
 The number of employees in the bargaining unit who did not pay dues to the employee
organization.
11 “Bargaining agent” means the employee organization which has been certified by PERC as representing the employees in the
bargaining unit, as provided in s. 447.307, F.S., or its representative. S. 447.203(12), F.S.
12 “Bargaining unit” means either that unit determined by PERC, that unit determined through local regulations promulgated pu rsuant to
s. 447.603, F.S., or that unit determined by the public employer and the public employee organization and approved by PERC to be
appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining. However, no bargaining unit shall be defined as appropriate wh ich includes
employees of two employers that are not departments or divisions of the state, a county, a municipality, or other political e ntity. S.
447.203(8), F.S.
13 S. 447.305(1), F.S.
14 S. 447.305(2), F.S.
15 Employee organizations that have been certified as the bargaining agent to represent law enforcement officers, correctional officers,
correctional probation officers, or firefighters are exempt from providing this information. S. 447.305(9), F.S.
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  Documentation provided by an independent CPA retained by the employee organization that
verifies the information provided.16
Certification of an Employee Organization
After registering with PERC, an employee organization may begin the certification process. In order to
be certified, an employee organization selected by a majority of public employees in a unit as their
representative must request recognition by the public employer. If satisfied as to the majority status of
the employee organization and the appropriateness of the proposed unit, the employer will recognize
the employee organization as the collective bargaining representative for that unit. Following
recognition by the employer, the employee organization must immediately petition PERC for
certification. If the unit proposed by the employee organization is deemed appropriate, PERC will
immediately certify the employee organization as the exclusive representative of all employees in the
unit. If the unit is inappropriate, PERC may dismiss the petition. 17
If the employer refuses to recognize the employee organization, the employee organization may file a
petition with PERC for certification as the bargaining agent. The petition must be accompanied by dated
statements signed by at least 30 percent of the employees in the proposed unit.18 Upon finding the
petition to be sufficient, PERC must order an election by secret ballot to determine whether the
employee organization will be certified.19 The petitioning employee organization is placed on the ballot
along with any other registered employee organization that submits dated statements signed by at least
10 percent of the employees in the proposed unit.20 When an employee organization is selected by a
majority of the employees voting in an election, PERC must certify that employee organization as the
exclusive collective bargaining representative of all employees in the unit. 21 PERC may pass on the
cost of the election to the public employer and employee organization. 22
Certified Bargaining Agent
The certified bargaining agent and the chief executive of the public employer must bargain collectively
and in good faith to determine the wages, hours, and terms and conditions of employment of the
employees in the unit.23 Any collective bargaining agreement reached between the parties must be put
in writing and signed by the chief executive officer and the bargaining agent. Such agreement is not
binding on the employer until the agreement has been ratified by the employer and the employees in
the unit.24 A collective bargaining agreement may not provide for a term of existence of more than three
years and must contain all of the terms and conditions of employment. 25 The bargaining agent also has
the authority to process grievances to settle disputes between the employer and the employees in the
unit.26 In addition, bargaining agents are required to provide their members with an annual audited
financial report that includes a detailed breakdown of revenues and expenditures and an accounting of
membership dues and assessments.27
Revocation of Certification
An employee or group of employees who no longer desires to be represented by the certified
bargaining agent may file a petition to revoke certification with PERC. The petition must be
accompanied by dated statements signed by at least 30 percent of the employees in the unit, indicating
that such employees no longer desire to be represented by the certified bargaining agent. PERC may
dismiss a petition it finds to be insufficient. If PERC finds the petition to be sufficient, it must
16 S. 447.305(3), F.S.
17 S. 447.307(1)(a), F.S.
18 S. 447.307(2), F.S.
19 S. 447.307(3)(a), F.S.
20 S. 447.307(2), F.S.
21 S. 447.307(3)(b), F.S.
22 See s. 447.307(3)(a), F.S.; see also R. 60CC-2.006, F.A.C.
23 S. 447.309(1), F.S.
24 Id.
25 S. 447.309(5), F.S.
26 See s. 447.401, F.S.
27 S. 447.305(11), F.S.
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 immediately order an election by secret ballot.28 If a majority of employees voting in the election vote
against the certified bargaining agent, the employee organization’s certification is revoked; otherwise,
the employee organization’s certification is retained.29
An employee organization that applies for a registration renewal must petition for recertification as a
bargaining agent if less than 60 percent of its unit members paid dues during its last registration period.
If the employee organization fails to petition PERC for recertification within one month of its registration
renewal application, the certification is revoked.30
PERC may initiate an investigation to confirm the validity of the information submitted in an initial or
renewal registration application. PERC may revoke or deny an employee organization’s registration or
certification if it finds that the employee organization failed to cooperate with the