SENATE PUBLIC AFFAIRS COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
SENATE BILL 60
49th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2010
AN ACT
RELATING TO PUBLIC EMPLOYEES; ENACTING THE HAZARDOUS DUTY OFFICERS' EMPLOYER-EMPLOYEE RELATIONS ACT; PROVIDING PROCEDURES FOR EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYEES TO FOLLOW IN CERTAIN ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIONS; PROVIDING CERTAIN RIGHTS TO HAZARDOUS DUTY OFFICERS IN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
Section 1. SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the "Hazardous Duty Officers' Employer-Employee Relations Act".
Section 2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Hazardous Duty Officers' Employer-Employee Relations Act:
A. "emergency medical technician" means an individual who has been licensed by the department of health as an emergency medical technician;
B. "firefighter" means an individual who is employed as a non-volunteer firefighter and who has taken the oath prescribed for firefighters;
C. "hazardous duty officer" or "officer" means an individual who is employed full-time by the state or a political subdivision of the state as a firefighter, emergency medical technician or paramedic, provided that "hazardous duty officer" does not include an individual who has not completed the probationary period established by the individual's employer as a condition of employment; and
D. "paramedic" means an individual who has been licensed by the department of health as a paramedic.
Section 3. INVESTIGATIONS OF HAZARDOUS DUTY OFFICERS--REQUIREMENTS--LIMITATION.--
A. When a hazardous duty officer is under investigation by the officer's employer for alleged actions that could result in administrative sanctions being levied against the officer, any interrogation of the officer shall be conducted:
(1) when the officer is on duty or during the officer's normal waking hours, unless the urgency of the investigation requires otherwise; and
(2) at the employer's facility, unless the urgency of the investigation requires otherwise.
B. Prior to commencement of an interrogation session:
(1) the officer shall be informed of the name and rank of the person in charge of the interrogation and all other persons who will be present during the interrogation;
(2) the officer shall be informed of the nature of the investigation, and the names of all known complainants shall be disclosed to the officer unless the chief administrator of the officer's employer determines that the identification of the complainant shall not be disclosed because it is necessary for the protection of an informant or because disclosure would jeopardize or compromise the integrity or security of the investigation; and
(3) a reasonable attempt shall be made to notify the officer's immediate superior of the pending interrogation.
C. During an interrogation session, the following requirements shall be adhered to:
(1) each interrogation session shall not exceed two hours unless the parties mutually consent to continuation of the session;
(2) there shall not be more than two interrogation sessions within a twenty-four-hour period, unless the parties mutually consent to additional sessions, provided that there shall be at least a one-hour rest period between the sessions;
(3) the combined duration of the officer's work shift and an interrogation session shall not exceed fourteen hours within a twenty-four-hour period, unless the urgency of the investigation requires otherwise;
(4) there shall not be more than two interrogators at any given time;
(5) the officer shall be allowed to attend to physical necessities as they occur in the course of an interrogation session; and
(6) the officer shall not be subjected to offensive language or illegal coercion by the officer's interrogator in the course of an interrogation session.
D. An interrogation of an officer shall be recorded, and the complete interrogation shall be published as a transcript; provided that any recesses called during the interrogation shall be noted in the transcript. An accurate copy of the transcript or tape shall be provided to the officer, upon written request, no later than fifteen working days after the investigation has been completed.
Section 4. POLYGRAPH EXAMINATIONS.--After reviewing all the information collected in the course of an investigation of a hazardous duty officer, the chief administrator of the officer's employer may order the officer to submit to a polygraph examination administered by a licensed polygraph examiner, provided that:
A. all other reasonable investigative means have been exhausted; and
B. the officer has been advised of the administrator's reasons for ordering the polygraph examination.
Section 5. RIGHT TO PRODUCE EVIDENCE.--When a hazardous duty officer is under investigation for an administrative matter, the officer shall be permitted to produce any relevant documents, witnesses or other evidence to support the officer's case and the officer may cross-examine any adverse witnesses during any grievance process or appeal involving disciplinary action.
Section 6. PERSONNEL FILES.--
A. No document containing comments adverse to a hazardous duty officer shall be entered into the officer's personnel file unless the officer has read and signed the document. When an officer refuses to sign a document containing adverse comments, the document may be entered into an officer's personnel file if:
(1) the officer's refusal to sign is noted on the document by the chief administrator of the officer's employer; and
(2) the notation regarding the officer's refusal to sign the document is witnessed by a third party.
B. A hazardous duty officer may file a written response to any document containing adverse comments entered into the officer's personnel file, and the response shall be filed with the officer's employer within thirty days after the document was entered into the officer's personnel file. A hazardous duty officer's written response shall be attached to the document.
Section 7. CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS--NOTIFICATION.--When a hazardous duty officer is under administrative investigation and a determination is made to commence a criminal investigation, the officer shall be immediately notified of the investigation and shall be afforded all the protections set forth in the bill of rights of the United States constitution and of the constitution of New Mexico.
Section 8. FORCED DISCLOSURE OF FINANCIAL INFORMATION.--A hazardous duty officer shall not be required by an employer to disclose information regarding the officer's financial status, unless all other reasonable investigative means have been exhausted or except as otherwise required by law.
Section 9. POLITICAL ACTIVITY.--
A. A hazardous duty officer shall not be prohibited by an employer from engaging in any political activity when the officer is off duty, except as otherwise provided by law.
B. A hazardous duty officer who is an employee of a political subdivision of the state shall not, as a condition of that employment, be prohibited from seeking election to, or serving as a member of, the governing body of any other political subdivision of the state.
Section 10. EXERCISE OF RIGHTS.--A hazardous duty officer shall not be subjected to any retaliation by an employer due to the officer's lawful exercise of the officer's rights under the Hazardous Duty Officers' Employer-Employee Relations Act.
Section 11. APPLICABILITY.--The provisions of the Hazardous Duty Officers' Employer-Employee Relations Act govern the relationships between hazardous duty officers, as employees, and the state or any of its political subdivisions, including home rule municipalities and class H counties, as employers; provided that nothing in that act shall supersede or otherwise affect the application of any statute or local ordinance relating to criminal investigations or procedure.
Section 12. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the provisions of this act is July 1, 2010.
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