HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3583        FILED ON: 2/19/2021

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 4143

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Mindy Domb

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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act relative to the pesticide board.

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PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3583        FILED ON: 2/19/2021

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 4143

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Second General Court
(2021-2022)

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An Act relative to the pesticide board.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1. Section 2 of chapter 132B of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2018 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the definition of “Commissioner” and inserting in place thereof the following definition:-

“Commissioner”, the commissioner of environmental protection.

SECTION 2. Said section 2 of said chapter 132B, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out the definition of “Department” and inserting in place thereof the following definition:-

“Department”, the department of environmental protection.

SECTION 3. Section 3 of said chapter 132B, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the words “food and agriculture”, in lines 1 and 2, and inserting in place thereof the following words:- environmental protection.

SECTION 4. Said section 3 of said chapter 132B, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out the words “food and agriculture”, in line 35, and inserting in place thereof the following words:- environmental protection.

SECTION 5. Section 3A of said chapter 132B, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the word “five”, in line 6, and inserting in place thereof the following figure:- 6.

SECTION 6. Said section 3A of said chapter 132B, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word “designee”, in line 10, the following words:- , the commissioner of the department of environmental protection or their designee.

SECTION 7. (a) Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, this section shall facilitate the orderly transfer of the employees, proceedings, rules and regulations, property and legal obligations and functions of state government from the pesticide control board, the pesticide control board subcommittee and the pesticide program within the department of agricultural resources, as transferor agency, to the department of environmental protection, as the transferee agency.

(b) Subject to appropriation, any employees transferred to the transferee agency, including those who immediately before the effective date of this act held permanent appointment in positions classified under chapter 31 of the General Laws or have tenure in their positions as provided by section 9A of chapter 30 of the General Laws or did not hold such tenure, or held confidential positions, are hereby transferred to the transferee agency, without interruption of service within the meaning of section 9A of chapter 30, without impairment of seniority, retirement or other rights of the employee, and without reduction in compensation or salary grade, notwithstanding any change in title or duties resulting from such reorganization, and without loss of accrued rights to holidays, sick leave, vacation and benefits, and without change in union representation or certified collective bargaining unit as certified by the state labor relations commission or in local union representation or affiliation. Any collective bargaining agreement in effect immediately before the transfer date shall continue in effect and the terms and conditions of employment therein shall continue as if the employees had not been so transferred. The reorganization shall not impair the civil service status of any such reassigned employee who immediately before the effective date of this act either held a permanent appointment in a position

classified under chapter 31 of the General Laws or had tenure in a position by reason of section 9A of chapter 30 of the General Laws.

(c) Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, all such employees shall continue to retain their right to bargain collectively pursuant to chapter 150E of the General Laws and shall be considered employees for the purposes of chapter 150E. Nothing in this section shall confer upon any employee any right not held immediately before the date of the transfer, or to prohibit any reduction of salary grade, transfer, reassignment, suspension, discharge or layoff not prohibited before such date.

(d) All petitions, requests, investigations, filings and other proceedings appropriately and duly brought before the transferor agency, or pending before it before the effective date of this act, shall continue unabated and remain in force, but shall be assumed and completed by the transferee agency.

(e) All orders, advisories, findings, rules and regulations duly made and all approvals duly granted by the transferor agency, which are in force immediately before the effective date of this act, shall continue in force and shall thereafter be enforced, until superseded, revised, rescinded or canceled, in accordance with law, by the transferee agency.

(f) All books, papers, records, documents, equipment, buildings, facilities, cash and other property, both personal and real, including all such property held in trust, which immediately before the effective date of this act are in the custody of the transferor agency, shall be transferred to the transferee agency.

(g) All duly existing contracts, leases and obligations of the transferor agency, shall continue in effect but shall be assumed by the transferee agency. No such existing right or remedy of any character shall be lost, impaired or affected by this act.