Elected representatives of four state legislative districts, representing areas across California’s southern Central Valley, have joined together to call on the federal government to delay implementation of proposed federal overtime rules.
The rules, set to go into effect on December 1, 2016, would create significant additional costs for non-profits – including those serving veterans, schools, small businesses, and local governments by more than doubling the salary level by which employees would be exempt from federal overtime rules.
The letter was signed by State Senate Republican Leader Jean Fuller, State Senator Andy Vidak, State Assemblywoman Shannon Grove, and State Assemblyman Devon Mathis.
Quoted from the attached letter:
“Dear Majority Leader McCarthy,
We are writing to express our appreciation for your support on behalf of small businesses, non-profits, local governments, and all those who would be severely harmed by an upcoming rule by the federal government that would significantly increase the number of employees required to take overtime pay. Though the rule appears well-intended, the fact is implementation would further damage our region’s already struggling economy.
By more than doubling the existing overtime standard, the federal government would cause a diversion of scarce resources from those who need assistance most by requiring non-profits to spend more on administrative costs, which would result in fewer services to the public from reduced employee hours."
The final rule can be found at the Federal Register’s website site: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2016/05/23/2016-11754/defining-and-delimiting-the-exemptions-for-executive-administrative-professional-outside-sales-and.
In short, the rule would more than double the current threshold of $455 per week ($23,660 annually) for those who are exempt from federal overtime rules to a new threshold of $47,476 annually. The reality is that this salary level is still far too high for a number of locations across the country, including California's Central Valley.
Nationally, a host of organizations and nonprofits, including Habitat for Humanity, YMCA, the Salvation Army, and the National Head Start Association, have called for a delayed implementation.
