PRINTER'S NO. 2009
No. 1668 Session of 1977
INTRODUCED BY GARZIA, McCALL, RUGGIERO, COLE, LIVENGOOD AND
D. R. WRIGHT, SEPTEMBER 28, 1977
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT, SEPTEMBER 28, 1977
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of May 1, 1933 (P.L.103, No.69), entitled, as
2 amended "An act concerning townships of the second class; and
3 amending, revising, consolidating, and changing the law
4 relating thereto," providing for civil service protection for
5 employees and establishing a penalty.
6 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
7 hereby enacts as follows:
8 Section 1. The act of May 1, 1933 (P.L.103, No.69), known as
9 "The Second Class Township Code," reenacted and amended July 10,
10 1947 (P.L.1481, No.567), is amended by adding a subdivision and
11 sections to read:
12 ARTICLE V
13 TOWNSHIP OFFICERS
14 * * *
15 (l) Civil Service for Employees
16 Section 599.31. Appointments of Employees.--Hereafter each
17 and every appointment to and promotion in every township shall
18 be made only according to qualifications and fitness, to be
19 ascertained by examinations which shall be competitive as
1 hereinafter provided.
2 No person shall hereafter be suspended, removed or reduced in
3 rank as a paid employee in any township, except in accordance
4 with the provisions of this subdivision. This subdivision is
5 subject as heretofore to the power of the supervisors to
6 determine compensation.
7 Section 599.32. Civil Service Commission Created;
8 Appointments; Vacancies; Oath; Compensation.--There is hereby
9 created in each township a civil service commission hereinafter
10 referred to as the commission. The commission shall consist of
11 three commissioners who shall be qualified electors of the
12 township and shall be appointed by the township supervisors
13 initially to serve for the terms of two, four and six years, and
14 as terms thereafter expire shall be appointed for terms of six
15 years.
16 Any vacancy occurring in any commission for any reason
17 whatsoever shall be filled by the township supervisors for the
18 unexpired term within the period of thirty days after such
19 vacancy occurs.
20 Each member of the commission created by this subdivision,
21 before entering upon the discharge of the duties of his office,
22 shall take an oath or affirmation to support the Constitution of
23 the United States and of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and to
24 perform his official duties with fidelity. The civil service
25 commissioners shall receive no compensation.
26 Section 599.33. Offices Incompatible with Civil Service
27 Commissioner.--No commissioner shall at the same time hold an
28 elective or appointed office under the United States Government,
29 the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or any political subdivision of
30 the Commonwealth, except that one member may be a township
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1 supervisor.
2 Section 599.34. Organization of Commission; Quorum.--The
3 commission first appointed shall organize within ten days of its
4 appointment and shall elect one of its members as the chairman
5 and one as the secretary. The commission shall thereafter meet
6 and organize on the first Monday of each even-numbered year. The
7 secretary of the commission shall give each commissioner twenty-
8 four hours' notice in writing of each and every meeting of the
9 commission. Two members of the commission shall constitute a
10 quorum and no action of the commission shall be valid unless it
11 shall have the concurrence of at least two members.
12 Section 599.35. Clerks and Supplies, Etc.--The township
13 shall furnish to the commission, on its requisition, such
14 clerical assistance as may be necessary for the work of the
15 commission. The township shall provide a suitable and convenient
16 room for the use of the commission. The commission shall order
17 from the township the necessary stationery, postage, printing
18 and supplies, and the elected and appointed officials of every
19 such township shall aid the commission in all proper ways in
20 carrying out the provisions of this subdivision relating to
21 civil service.
22 Section 599.36. Rules and Regulations.--The commission shall
23 have power to prescribe, amend and enforce rules and regulations
24 for carrying into effect the provisions of this subdivision and
25 shall be governed thereby. Before any such rules and regulations
26 are in force the same shall be first approved by the township
27 supervisors. When such rules and regulations have been so
28 approved, they shall not be annulled, amended, or added to,
29 without the approval of the said supervisors. All rules and
30 regulations and modifications thereof shall be printed by the
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1 townships and made available for public distribution or
2 inspection.
3 Section 599.37. Minutes and Records.--The commission shall
4 keep minutes of its proceedings and records of examinations and
5 other official actions. All recommendations of applicants for
6 appointment received by the commission shall be kept and
7 preserved for a period of five years, and all such records and
8 all written causes of removal filed with the commission, except
9 as otherwise provided in section 599.51, shall be open to public
10 inspection and subject to reasonable regulation.
11 Section 599.38. Investigations.--The commission shall have
12 power to make investigations concerning all matters touching the
13 administration and enforcement of this subdivision and rules and
14 regulations adopted thereunder. The chairman of the commission
15 is hereby given power to administer oaths and affirmations in
16 connection with such investigations.
17 Section 599.39. Subpoenas.--The commission shall have power
18 to issue subpoenas over the signature of the chairman, to
19 require the attendance of witnesses and the production of
20 records and papers pertaining to any investigation or inquiry.
21 The fees of such witnesses for attendance and travel shall be
22 the same as for witnesses appearing in the courts and shall be
23 paid from appropriations for the incidental expenses of the
24 commission.
25 All officers in public service and employees shall attend and
26 testify when required to do so by the commission.
27 If any person shall refuse or neglect to obey any subpoena
28 issued by the commission, he shall upon conviction thereof in a
29 summary proceeding, be sentenced to pay a fine not to exceed one
30 hundred dollars ($100), and in default of the payment of such
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1 fine and costs, shall be imprisoned not to exceed thirty days.
2 If any person shall refuse or neglect to obey any subpoena
3 issued by the commission, it may apply by petition to the court
4 of common pleas of the county for its subpoena, requiring the
5 attendance of such persons before the commission or the court to
6 testify and to produce any records and papers necessary, and in
7 default thereof, shall be held in contempt of court.
8 Section 599.40. Annual Report.--The commission shall make an
9 annual report to the supervisors containing a brief summary of
10 its work during the year, which shall be available for public
11 inspection.
12 Section 599.41. General Provisions Relating to
13 Examinations.--The commission shall make rules and regulations,
14 to be approved as provided in section 599.36, providing for the
15 examination of applicants for employment and for promotions,
16 which rules and regulations shall prescribe the minimum
17 qualifications of all applicants to be examined and the passing
18 grades. All examinations for positions or promotions shall be
19 practical in character and shall relate to such matters and
20 include such inquiries as will fairly test the merit and fitness
21 of the persons examined to discharge the duties of the
22 employment sought by them. All examinations shall be open to all
23 applicants who have the minimum qualifications required by the
24 rules and regulations. Each applicant shall be subject to the
25 regulations adopted by the commission, and shall be required to
26 submit to a physical examination as provided in section 599.49.
27 Public notice of the time and place of every examination,
28 together with the information as to the kind of position or
29 place to be filled, shall be given by publication once in a
30 newspaper of general circulation in the township, at least two
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1 weeks prior to each examination, and a copy of the notice shall
2 be prominently posted in the office of the commission or other
3 public place.
4 The commission shall post in its office the eligible list,
5 containing the names and grades of those who have passed the
6 examination. Persons, male or female, who served in the military
7 or naval service of the United States during any war in which
8 the United States has been, is now, or shall hereafter be
9 engaged, and who have honorable discharges from such service,
10 who have successfully passed the examination, shall be given the
11 additional credits and preference in appointment and promotion
12 provided for by law.
13 Section 599.42. Application for Examination.--Each person
14 desiring to apply for examination shall file with the commission
15 a formal application in which the applicant shall state under
16 oath or affirmation: (i) the full name and residence or post
17 office address, (ii) citizenship, place and date of birth, (iii)
18 the condition of health and physical capacity for public
19 service, (iv) any business or employment and residence for the
20 past five years, and (v) such other information as may be
21 required by the commission's rules and regulations, showing the
22 applicant's qualifications for the position for which he is
23 being examined.
24 Section 599.43. Rejection of Applicant; Hearing.--The
25 commission may refuse to examine, or, if examined, may refuse to
26 certify after examination as eligible, any applicant who is
27 found to lack any of the minimum qualifications for examination
28 prescribed in the rules and regulations adopted for the position
29 or employment for which the applicant has applied, or who is
30 physically disabled and unfit for the performance of the duties
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1 of the position to which the applicant seeks employment, or who
2 is addicted to the habitual use of intoxicating liquors or
3 narcotic drugs, or who has been guilty of any crime involving
4 moral turpitude, or of infamous or notoriously disgraceful
5 conduct, or who has been dismissed from public service for
6 delinquency or misconduct of office, or who is affiliated with
7 any group whose policies or activities are subversive to the
8 form of government set forth in the constitutions and laws of
9 the United States and Pennsylvania.
10 If any applicant feels aggrieved by the action of the
11 commission, in refusing to examine the applicant or to certify
12 the applicant as eligible after examination, the commission
13 shall, at the request of such applicant, within ten days,
14 appoint a time and place where the applicant may appear
15 personally and by counsel. Thereupon the commission shall review
16 its refusal to make such examination or certification and take
17 such testimony as may be offered. The decision of the commission
18 shall be final.
19 Section 599.44. Manner of Filling Appointments.--Every
20 position or employment, except that of chief of police, chief of
21 the fire department, or a supervisor or equivalent, shall be
22 filled only by the supervisors who shall notify the commission
23 of any vacancy which is to be filled and shall request the
24 certification of a list of eligibles. The commission shall
25 certify for each existing vacancy from the eligible list, the
26 names of three persons thereon, who have received the highest
27 average. The supervisors shall thereupon, with sole reference to
28 the merits and fitness of the candidates, make an appointment
29 from the three names certified, unless they make objections to
30 the commission as to one or more of the persons so certified for
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1 any of the reasons stated in section 599.43. Should such
2 objections be sustained by the commission, as provided in said
3 section, the commission shall thereupon strike the name of such
4 person from the eligible list and certify the next highest name
5 for each name stricken off. As each subsequent vacancy occurs in
6 the same or another position precisely the same procedure shall
7 be followed.
8 In the case of a vacancy in the office of chief of police,
9 chief of the fire department, or a supervisor or equivalent
10 official, the supervisors may nominate a person to the
11 commission. It shall thereupon become the duty of the commission
12 to subject such person to a noncompetitive examination, and if
13 such person shall be certified by the commission as qualified,
14 he may then be appointed to such position, and thereafter shall
15 be subject to all the provisions of this subdivision.
16 Section 599.45. Age, Applicant's Residence.--No person shall
17 be eligible to apply for examination unless the applicant is at
18 least eighteen years of age at the date of application. An
19 applicant need not be a resident of the township. The township
20 supervisors may, by ordinance, require employees to become
21 residents of the township after appointment to such positions.
22 Section 599.46. Probationary Period.--All original
23 appointments to any position shall be for a probationary period
24 of not less than six months, and not more than one year, but
25 during the probationary period an appointee may be dismissed
26 only for a cause specified in section 599.43. If at the close of
27 a probationary period the conduct of fitness of the probationer
28 has not been satisfactory to the supervisors, the probationer
29 shall be notified in writing that the person will not receive a
30 permanent appointment. Thereupon, the appointment shall cease;
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1 otherwise retention shall be equivalent to a permanent
2 appointment.
3 Section 599.47. Provisional Appointments.--Whenever there
4 are urgent reasons for the filling of a vacancy in any position
5 and there are no names on the eligible list for such
6 appointment, the supervisors may nominate a person to the
7 commission for noncompetitive examination, and if such nominee
8 shall be certified by the commission as qualified after such
9 noncompetitive examination, the nominee may be appointed
10 provisionally to fill such vacancy. It shall thereupon become
11 the duty of the commissioner within three weeks to hold a
12 competitive examination and certify a list of eligibles and a
13 regular appointment shall then be made from the name or names
14 submitted by the commission: Provided, That nothing herein
15 contained shall prevent the appointment, without examination, of
16 persons, temporarily as police officers in cases of riot or
17 other emergency or as operators of fire apparatus in emergency
18 cases.
19 Section 599.48. Promotions.--Promotions shall be based on
20 merit to be ascertained by examinations to be prescribed by the
21 commission. All questions relative to promotions shall be
22 practical in character and such as will fairly test the merit
23 and fitness of persons seeking promotion.
24 The supervisors shall have power to determine in each
25 instance whether or not an increase in salary shall constitute a
26 promotion.
27 Section 599.49. Physical Examination.--All applicants for
28 appointment shall undergo a physical examination which shall be
29 conducted under the supervision of a doctor of medicine
30 appointed by the commission. No person shall be eligible for
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1 appointment until such doctor of medicine certifies that the
2 applicant is free from any bodily or mental defect, deformity or
3 disease that might incapacitate him for the discharge of the
4 duties of the position desired.
5 Section 599.50. Removals.--No person employed in any police
6 or fire force of any township shall be suspended, removed or
7 reduced in rank except for the following reasons:
8 (1) Physical or mental disability affecting the ability to
9 continue in service, in which cases the person shall receive an
10 honorable discharge from service.
11 (2) Neglect or violation of any official duty.
12 (3) Violation of any law of this Commonwealth which provided
13 that such violation constitutes a misdemeanor or felony.
14 (4) Inefficiency, neglect, intemperance, disobedience of
15 orders, or conduct unbecoming an officer.
16 (5) Intoxication while on duty.
17 (6) Engaging or participating in conducting of any political
18 or election campaign otherwise than to exercise his own right of
19 suffrage.
20 A person so employed shall not be removed for religious,
21 racial or political reasons. A written statement of any charges
22 made against any person so employed shall be furnished to such
23 person within five days after the same are filed with the
24 commission.
25 If for reasons of economy or other reasons it shall be deemed
26 necessary by any township to reduce the number of paid
27 employees, then such township shall apply the following
28 procedure: (i) if there are any employees eligible for
29 retirement under the terms of any retirement or pension law,
30 then such reduction in numbers shall be made by retirement of
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1 such employees, (ii) if the number of paid employees eligible
2 for retirement is insufficient to effect the necessary reduction
3 in numbers, or if there are no persons eligible for retirement,
4 or if no retirement or pension fund exists, then the reduction
5 shall be effected by furloughing the person or persons,
6 including probationers last appointed. Such removal shall be
7 accomplished by furloughing in numerical order commencing with
8 the person last appointed until such reduction shall have been
9 accomplished. In the event of an increase in employment, the
10 employees furloughed shall be reinstated in the order of their
11 seniority in the service.
12 Section 599.51. Hearings on Dismissals and Reductions.--If
13 the person suspended, removed or reduced in rank shall demand a
14 hearing by the commission, the demand shall be made to the
15 commission. Such person may make written answers to any charges
16 filed against him not later than the day fixed for hearing. The
17 commission shall grant a hearing which shall be held within a
18 period of ten days from the filing of charges in writing, unless
19 continued by the commission for cause at the request of the
20 supervisors or the accused. At any such hearing, the person
21 against whom the charges are made may be present in person and
22 by counsel. The supervisors may suspend any such person, without
23 pay, pending the determination of the charges, but in the event
24 the commission fails to uphold the charges, then the person
25 sought to be suspended, removed or demoted shall be reinstated
26 with full pay for the period during which such person was
27 suspended, removed or demoted, and no charges shall be
28 officially recorded against such person's record. A stenographic
29 record of all testimony taken at such hearings shall be filed
30 with, and preserved by the commission, which record shall be
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1 sealed and not be available for public inspection in the event
2 the charges are dismissed.
3 An aggrieved employee shall have immediate right of appeal to
4 the court of common pleas of the county, and the case shall
5 there be determined as the court deems proper. No order of
6 suspension made by the commission shall be for a longer period
7 than one year. Such appeal shall be taken within sixty days from
8 the date of entry by the commission of its final order and shall
9 be by petition. Upon such appeal being taken and docketed, the
10 court of common pleas shall fix a day for a hearing and shall
11 proceed to hear the appeal on the original record and such
12 additional proof or testimony as the parties concerned may
13 desire to offer in evidence. The decision of the court affirming
14 or reversing the decision of the commission shall be final, and
15 the employee shall be suspended, discharged, demoted or
16 reinstated in accordance with the order of court.
17 The supervisors and the person sought to be suspended,
18 removed or demoted shall at all times have the right to employ
19 counsel before the commission and upon appeal to the court of
20 common pleas.
21 Section 599.52. Employees Exempted.--All appointments,
22 including the chief of police or equivalent official, prior to
23 the effective date of this act, shall continue to hold their
24 positions and shall not be required to take any examination
25 under the provisions of this subdivision, except such as may be
26 required for promotion: Provided, That this section shall not be
27 construed to apply to persons employed temporarily in emergency
28 cases.
29 Section 599.53. Discrimination on Account of Political or
30 Religious Affiliations.--No question in any form of application
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1 for examination or in any examination shall be so framed as to
2 elicit information concerning the political or religious
3 opinions or affiliations of any applicant, nor shall inquiry be
4 made concerning such opinion or affiliations and all disclosures
5 thereof shall be discountenanced.
6 No discrimination shall be exercised, threatened or promised
7 by any person against or in favor of any applicant or employee
8 because of political or religious opinions or affiliations or
9 race, and no offer or promise or reward, favor or benefit,
10 directly or indirectly, shall be made to or received by any
11 person for any act done or duty omitted or to be done under this
12 subdivision.
13 Section 599.54. Penalty.--Any supervisor who, by vote,
14 causes to be appointed any person contrary to the provisions of
15 this subdivision, or any supervisor or member of the commission
16 who willfully refuses to comply with, or conform to, the
17 provisions of this subdivision, shall be deemed guilty of a
18 misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof, shall be sentenced to
19 pay a fine not exceeding one hundred dollars ($100), or suffer
20 imprisonment not exceeding three months, or both.
21 Section 599.55. Employee Defined.--For purposes of this
22 subdivision, the term "employee" shall include all persons who
23 are hired by the township supervisors and who receive any
24 remuneration for the services performed.
25 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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