Long Beach civil service operation in disarray
State review shows key functions neglected

For release: Immediate, Thursday, March 25, 2010

The City of Long Beach civil service operation is so flawed that it is impossible to determine if employees are qualified for positions they hold or receiving salaries commensurate with their job title, according to a review by the New York State Civil Service Commission.

The review found a decline in the manner in which the Long Beach Commission administers two key components of the merit system since the issuance of a more expansive—and also highly critical— report in 2004. The new review was conducted because of the Long Beach Commission's failure to provide timely progress reports on the implementation of improvements directed by the State Civil Service Commission since 2004.

"The people of Long Beach have no assurance that their public employees are being hired, promoted and paid on the basis of merit and fitness as State law has required for 126 years," said Nancy G. Groenwegen, President of the State Civil Service Commission and Commissioner of the Department of Civil Service.

Two reports rated the effectiveness of Long Beach Commission operations on a 100-point scale. The administration of the appointment process received a score of 26, and the payroll certification program received a score of 0. In both cases, the Long Beach Commission was rated as "Not in Compliance" with Civil Service Law and Rules.

"The State Commission is particularly concerned because these serious deficiencies in the Long Beach Civil Service operations have persisted for at least six years, despite many changes in Long Beach Commission membership and staff," Commissioner Groenwegen said.

The Long Beach Commission has jurisdiction over at least 1,086 classified service employees—477 employed by the City, 576 by the Board of Education, and 33 by the Housing Authority, based on workforce data provided for the 2008 calendar year. The Long Beach Commission was unable to produce any definitive documentation of the number of Library employees. Of the classified workforce, 730, or approximately 67%, are in the competitive class.

The lack of basic records and documents regarding the appointment process makes it impossible for the Commission to certify many of the personnel transactions under its jurisdiction as being in accordance with Civil Service Law and Rules.

For instance, local civil service agencies are required by law to maintain a detailed employment history of each employee, which clearly indicates every change in status and compensation. The Long Beach employment histories are "deficient in that they are not up-to-date, do not contain accurate transaction information, nor refer to source documents to substantiate each transaction." If the Long Beach Commission cannot verify that each appointment, promotion or transfer conformed with Civil Service Law and Rules, it cannot certify the accuracy of the payroll, another core commission responsibility. Without these certifications, it is illegal for a fiscal officer to pay the salaries.

Another basic document is the rank-ordered eligible list of candidates who have passed a competitive exam to qualify for their position. While the eligible lists themselves were available, the Long Beach Commission records often lacked the results of a canvass of eligible candidates to determine interest in a particular position. As a result, the Commission would be unable to substantiate that the candidate who was appointed or promoted was indeed among the top three who desired the position and therefore eligible for the appointment or promotion.

Finally, the minutes of the meetings of the Long Beach Commission give no indication that the Commission is meeting its responsibility to review the full range of transactions such as applicant eligibility for examination or appointment, establishment of eligible or preferred lists, transfers and reinstatements, or to monitor part-time or seasonal employment. The Long Beach Commission's minutes also lacked any indication that action was taken to review instances where employees were paid more than the assigned salary grade for their positions.

In one instance, an employment history indicated an employee had resigned in October 2008, yet the person appeared on the payroll in December 2009. No documentation was found indicating the Long Beach Commission reviewed the appropriateness of the transaction that returned the person to the payroll.

In a letter dated March 11, the Long Beach Commission informed the State Commission that the secretary has been relieved of responsibilities for dealing with employee benefits and would be able to devote all her hours to civil service matters. The State Commission directed members of the Long Beach Commission to submit by May 1, 2010, a plan and timeline for complying with 27 corrective actions that the review identified—some dating to 2004— and to appear in person at the May 2010 meeting of the State Commission for follow-up discussions.

"Other municipal commissions have found a solution to their lack of resources and expertise by turning over civil service administration to the typically professional and efficient county operation," Commissioner Groenwegen said. "Residents of the City of Long Beach should seriously consider this alternative."

The State Civil Service Commission oversees merit system administration by 97 local jurisdictions. Periodic reviews of some or all of a locality's operations are part of that process. To review the State Civil Service Commission's complete reports on Long Beach, visit
http://www.cs.state.ny.us/pio/CityofLongBeachAppointmentProcessFinalReportMarch2010.pdf and
http://www.cs.state.ny.us/pio/LongBeachCity%20PayrollCertMSPCR02-17-10.pdf.

-30-