Rep. Norm Thurston — Voting Record

Bill

Number

H.B. 501 (2025GS)

Sponsor

Rep. Wilcox, Ryan D.

Final action

Governor Signed 3/24/2025

Outcome

Became law — signed by Gov. Spencer J. Cox

Summary

What it does

• This bill:
• requires the director of the Division of Human Resource Management to work with the Division of Law Enforcement and Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands to create specialized pay plans for specific positions;
• requires the current salary survey for a law enforcement officer to include a survey of all state law enforcement agencies that employ, respectively, comparable positions; and
• makes technical and conforming changes.

Every vote on this bill

Bill text

11
63A-17-110
63A-17-307
63A-17-110
63A-17-307
0
Law Enforcement Salary Amendments
2025 GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Ryan D. Wilcox
Senate Sponsor: Derrin R. Owens
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill addresses law enforcement officer salaries.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
requires the director of the Division of Human Resource Management to work with the 
Division of Law Enforcement and Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands to create 
specialized pay plans for specific positions;
 requires the current salary survey for a law enforcement officer to include a survey of all 
state law enforcement agencies that employ, respectively, comparable positions; and
makes technical and conforming changes.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Utah Code Sections Affected:
AMENDS:
63A-17-110
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2022, Chapters 169, 274
63A-17-307
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2023, Chapter 489
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1, Section 
63A-17-110
 is amended to read:
63A-17-110
. State pay plans for DNR law enforcement officers and wildland 
firefighters.
(1)
As used in this section:
(a)
"Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands" means the division created in Section 
65A-1-4
 within the Department of Natural Resources.
(b)
"Division of Law Enforcement" means the division created in Section 
79-2-702
within the Department of Natural Resources.
(a)
(c)
"DNR 
peace
law enforcement
 officer" means an employee of the Department of 
Natural Resources who is designated as a 
peace
law enforcement
 officer by law.
(b)
(d)
"Wildland firefighter" means an employee of the Division of Forestry, Fire, and 
State Lands who is:
(i)
trained in firefighter techniques; and
(ii)
assigned to a position of hazardous duty.
(2)
The director shall:
(a)
coordinate directly with the Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands and the 
Division of Law Enforcement to 
establish 
a 
specialized state pay 
plan
plans
 for 
DNR 
peace
law enforcement
 officers and wildland firefighters that:
(i)
meets the requirements of Section 
63A-17-307
;
(ii)
distinguishes the salary range
 and proposed pay progression
 for each DNR peace 
officer
 and 
;
(iii)
distinguishes the salary range for each 
wildland firefighter classification;
(iii)
(iv)
includes for each DNR 
peace
law enforcement
 officer and wildland 
firefighter classification:
(A)
the minimum qualifications; and
(B)
any training requirements; and
(iv)
(v)
provides standards for:
(A)
performance evaluation; and
(B)
promotion; and
(b)
include, in the plan described in Subsection 
63A-17-307(5)
, recommendations on 
funding and salary increases for DNR 
peace
law enforcement
 officers and wildland 
firefighters.
Section 2, Section 
63A-17-307
 is amended to read:
63A-17-307
. State pay plans -- Applicability of section -- Exemptions -- Duties of 
director.
(1)
(a)
This section, and the rules made by the division under this section, apply to each 
career and noncareer employee not specifically exempted under Subsection 
(2)
.
(b)
If not exempted under Subsection 
(2)
, an employee is considered to be in classified 
service.
(2)
The following employees are exempt from this section:
(a)
members of the Legislature and legislative employees;
(b)
members of the judiciary and judicial employees;
(c)
elected members of the executive branch and employees designated as schedule AC 
as provided under Subsection 
63A-17-301(1)(c)
;
(d)
employees of the State Board of Education;
(e)
officers, faculty, and other employees of state institutions of higher education;
(f)
employees in a position that is specified by statute to be exempt from this Subsection 
(2)
;
(g)
employees in the Office of the Attorney General;
(h)
department heads and other persons appointed by the governor under statute;
(i)
schedule AS employees as provided under Subsection 
63A-17-301(1)(m)
;
(j)
department deputy directors, division directors, and other employees designated as 
schedule AD as provided under Subsection 
63A-17-301(1)(d)
;
(k)
employees that determine and execute policy designated as schedule AR as provided 
under Subsection 
63A-17-301(1)(l)
;
(l)
teaching staff, educational interpreters, and educators designated as schedule AH as 
provided under Subsection 
63A-17-301(1)(g)
;
(m)
temporary employees described in Subsection 
63A-17-301(1)(r)
;
(n)
patients and inmates designated as schedule AU as provided under Subsection 
63A-17-301(1)(o)
 who are employed by state institutions; and
(o)
members of state and local boards and councils and other employees designated as 
schedule AQ as provided under Subsection 
63A-17-301(1)(k)
.
(3)
(a)
The director shall prepare, maintain, and revise a position classification plan for 
each employee position not exempted under Subsection 
(2)
 to provide equal pay for 
equal work.
(b)
Classification of positions shall be based upon similarity of duties performed and 
responsibilities assumed, so that the same job requirements and the same salary 
range, subject to Section 
63A-17-112
, may be applied equitably to each position in 
the same class.
(c)
The director shall allocate or reallocate the position of each employee in classified 
service to one of the classes in the classification plan.
(d)
(i)
The division shall conduct periodic studies and interviews to provide that the 
classification plan remains reasonably current and reflects the duties and 
responsibilities assigned to and performed by employees.
(ii)
The director shall determine the need for studies and interviews after considering 
factors such as changes in duties and responsibilities of positions or agency 
reorganizations.
(4)
(a)
With the approval of the executive director and the governor, the director shall 
develop and adopt pay plans for each position in classified service.
(b)
The director shall design each pay plan to achieve, to the degree that funds permit, 
comparability of state salary ranges to the market using data obtained from private 
enterprise and other public employment for similar work.
(c)
The director shall adhere to the following in developing each pay plan:
(i)
each pay plan shall consist of sufficient salary ranges to:
(A)
permit adequate salary differential among the various classes of positions in 
the classification plan; and
(B)
reflect the normal growth and productivity potential of employees in that class.
(ii)
The director shall issue rules for the administration of pay plans.
(d)
The establishing of a salary range is a nondelegable activity and is not appealable 
under the grievance procedures of 
Part 6, Grievance Provisions
, 
Title 67, Chapter 
19a, Grievance Procedures
, or otherwise.
(e)
The director shall make rules, accordance with 
Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah 
Administrative Rulemaking Act
, providing for:
(i)
agency approved salary adjustments within approved salary ranges, including an 
administrative salary adjustment; and
(ii)
structure adjustments that modify salary ranges, including a cost of living 
adjustment or market comparability adjustment.
(5)
(a)
On or before October 31 of each year, the director shall submit an annual 
compensation plan to the executive director and the governor for consideration in the 
executive budget and to the State Employee Benefits Advisory Commission created 
in Section 
63C-31-102
.
(b)
The plan described in Subsection 
(5)(a)
 may include recommendations, including:
(i)
salary increases that generally affect employees, including a general increase or 
merit increase;
(ii)
salary increases that address compensation issues unique to an agency or 
occupation;
(iii)
structure adjustments, including a cost of living adjustment or market 
comparability adjustment; or
(iv)
changes to employee benefits.
(c)
(i)
(A)
Subject to Subsection 
(5)(c)(i)(B)
 or 
(C)
, the director shall incorporate 
the results of a salary survey of a reasonable cross section of comparable 
positions in private and public employment in the state into the annual 
compensation plan.
(B)
The salary survey for a law enforcement officer, as defined in Section 
53-13-103
, a correctional officer, as defined in Section 
53-13-104
, or a 
dispatcher, as defined in Section 
53-6-102
, shall at minimum include the three 
largest political subdivisions 
in the state
and all state law enforcement agencies
that employ, respectively, comparable positions.
(C)
The salary survey for an examiner or supervisor described in 
Title 7, Chapter 
1, Part 2, Department of Financial Institutions
, shall at minimum include the 
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Federal Reserve, and National Credit 
Union Administration.
(ii)
The director may cooperate with or participate in any survey conducted by other 
public and private employers.
(iii)
The director shall obtain information for the purpose of constructing the survey 
from the Division of Workforce Information and Payment Services and shall 
include employer name, number of persons employed by the employer, employer 
contact information and job titles, county code, and salary if available.
(iv)
The division shall acquire and protect the needed records in compliance with the 
provisions of Section 
35A-4-312
.
(d)
The director may incorporate any other relevant information in the plan described in 
Subsection 
(5)(a)
, including information on staff turnover, recruitment data, or 
external market trends.
(e)
The director shall:
(i)
establish criteria to assure the adequacy and accuracy of data used to make 
recommendations described in this Subsection 
(5)
; and
(ii)
when preparing recommendations use accepted methodologies and techniques 
similar to and consistent with those used in the private sector.
(f)
(i)
Upon request and subject to Subsection 
(5)(f)(ii)
, the division shall make 
available foundational information used by the division or director in the drafting 
of a plan described in Subsection 
(5)(a)
, including:
(A)
demographic and labor market information;
(B)
information on employee turnover;
(C)
salary information;
(D)
information on recruitment; and
(E)
geographic data.
(ii)
The division may not provide under Subsection 
(5)(f)(i)
 information or other data 
that is proprietary or otherwise protected under the terms of a contract or by law.
(g)
The governor shall:
(i)
consider salary and structure adjustments recommended under Subsection 
(5)(b)
in preparing the executive budget and shall recommend the method of distributing 
the adjustments;
(ii)
submit compensation recommendations to the Legislature; and
(iii)
support the recommendation with schedules indicating the cost to individual 
departments and the source of funds.
(h)
If funding is approved by the Legislature in a general appropriations act, the 
adjustments take effect on the July 1 following the enactment unless otherwise 
indicated.
(6)
(a)
The director shall make rules, in accordance with 
Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah 
Administrative Rulemaking Act
, for the granting of incentive awards, including 
awards for cost saving actions, awards for commendable actions by an employee, or a 
market-based award to attract or retain employees.
(b)
An agency may not grant a market-based award unless the award is previously 
approved by the division.
(c)
In accordance with Subsection 
(6)(b)
, an agency requesting the division's approval of 
a market-based award shall submit a request and documentation, subject to 
Subsection 
(6)(d)
, to the division.
(d)
In the documentation required in Subsection 
(6)(c)
, the requesting agency shall 
identify for the division:
(i)
any benefit the market-based award would provide for the agency, including:
(A)
budgetary advantages; or
(B)
recruitment advantages;
(ii)
a mission critical need to attract or retain unique or hard to find skills in the 
market; or
(iii)
any other advantage the agency would gain through the utilization of a 
market-based award.
(7)
(a)
The director shall regularly evaluate the total compensation program of state 
employees in the classified service.
(b)
The division shall determine if employee benefits are comparable to those offered by 
other private and public employers using information from:
(i)
a study conducted by a third-party consultant; or
(ii)
the most recent edition of a nationally recognized benefits survey.
Section 3. 
Effective Date.
This bill takes effect on 
May 7, 2025
.
2-28-25 12:51 PM