Juneau -- Wednesday, the Alaska Senate passed a bill that would ensure the Legislature has sufficient time to review all collective bargaining agreements (CBAs) negotiated with state employee unions. Senate Bill 269, sponsored by Senator Drue Pearce, would require that the final contracts reached between the state and state employee unions be submitted to the Legislature no later than the 45th day of the legislative session to receive consideration that calendar year.

An amendment included in today's bill gives the legislature the discretion to review changes to a timely filed but previously rejected CBA for consideration in the calendar year under which that agreement was negotiated.

"Often the Legislature does not receive the detailed terms of CBAs until the final days of the session," said Senator Pearce. "It is a challenge to make reasoned decisions involving complex contractual terms in a short period of time. SB 269 would alleviate this problem by requiring the terms of a CBA to be submitted by the 45th day of the Legislative session."

SB 269 also conforms existing statutes to a 1999 decision by the Alaska Supreme Court. The Court ruled that if the Legislature does not fund the monetary terms of a CBA, none of the provisions take effect.

SB 269 passed the Senate by a vote of 15 to 5. It now moves to the House for consideration.