Personal services contracts: state employees: physician and psychologist positions.

Authored by Assembly Members Connolly and Addis, the measure directs the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the State Department of State Hospitals to require a pre-contract cost analysis before entering into a personal services contract to fill budgeted BU-16 physician positions (including psychiatrists) or BU-19 psychologist positions, comparing the hourly cost of a contractor to the hourly cost of civil service physicians or psychologists as defined by the applicable collective bargaining agreements. If the contractor’s cost exceeds the civil service cost, the departments must utilize an available civil service physician or psychologist before hiring a contractor.

In addition to the cost-analysis trigger, the bill establishes an annual reporting obligation. By January 15 of each year, CDCR and DSH must provide a report to BU-16, BU-19, the Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review, and the Assembly Committee on Budget detailing the number of analyses completed in the prior fiscal year, the number and cost of contractors employed, and the number of civil service physicians and psychologists utilized in extra shifts and the cost thereof, with the report submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.

The measure adds a new Government Code section applicable to two departments and two bargaining units, and it does not create an appropriation. It positions the legislative budget and fiscal oversight committees to review procurement decisions and related costs, while maintaining the broader civil service framework that governs personal services contracting and non-displacement protections. The operative text emphasizes the cost-comparison requirement prior to contracting and the annual transparency provided by the mandated reports, without specifying penalties for noncompliance. The absence of an explicit effective date leaves the operative timing to standard enactment rules.