Act No. 133

Public Acts of 2004

Approved by the Governor

June 3, 2004

Filed with the Secretary of State

June 3, 2004

EFFECTIVE DATE: June 3, 2004

STATE OF MICHIGAN

92ND LEGISLATURE

REGULAR SESSION OF 2004

Introduced by Senators Kuipers, Goschka, Leland, Schauer and Hardiman

ENROLLED SENATE BILL No. 985

AN ACT to amend 1935 PA 78, entitled "An act to establish and provide a board of civil service commissioners in cities, villages, and municipalities having full-time paid members in the fire or police departments, or both; to provide a civil service system based upon examination and investigation as to merit, efficiency, and fitness for appointment, employment, and promotion of all full-time paid members appointed in the fire and police departments and respective cities, villages, and municipalities; to regulate the transfer, reinstatement, suspension, and discharge of officers, fire fighters, and police officers; to prescribe penalties and provide remedies; and to repeal acts and parts of acts," by amending section 10 (MCL 38.510), as amended by 1986 PA 155.

The People of the State of Michigan enact:

Sec. 10. (1) The civil service commission in each city, village, or municipality shall require an individual applying for admission to an examination provided for under this act or under the rules and regulations of the commission to file in its office, within a reasonable time before the proposed examination, a formal application in which the applicant shall state under oath or affirmation all of the following:

(a) Full name, residence, and post-office address.

(b) United States citizenship.

(c) Attainment of the age of majority.

(d) Health and physical capacity for the position for which the applicant is applying.

(e) Each residence and business or place of employment for not less than the 3 previous years. The commission shall establish educational requirements, but the requirements shall not call for less than an eighth grade education. After acceptance by the civil service commission, the applicant shall be governed as to residence by the city or village charter.

(f) Other information as may reasonably and legally be requested regarding the applicant's qualifications and fitness for the position for which the applicant is applying.

(2) Blank forms for applications shall be furnished by the commission, without charge, to all individuals requesting applications. The commission may require, in connection with an application, certificates of citizens, physicians, or others having knowledge of the applicant as the good of the service requires. The commission may refuse to examine an applicant or, after examination, to certify as eligible, an applicant who falls under any of the following disqualifications:

(a) Lacks any of the established preliminary requirements for the examination or position of employment for which the applicant applied.

(b) Is so disabled as to be rendered unfit for the performance of the duties of the position to which the applicant seeks appointment.

(c) Is a habitual user of intoxicating liquors or an illegal user of 1 or more controlled substances.

(d) Has been found guilty of any felony.

(e) Has been dismissed from the public service for delinquency or misconduct.

(f) Has made a false statement of a material fact or practiced or attempted to practice a deception or fraud in the application, in the examination, or in securing eligibility.

(g) Refuses to comply with the rules and regulations of the commission.

(3) If an applicant feels aggrieved by the action of the commission in refusing to examine the applicant or, after an examination, to certify the applicant as eligible, the commission, at the request of the applicant, shall appoint a time and a place for a public hearing at which time the applicant may appear, personally or with counsel, and the commission shall then review its refusal of examination or certification, and testimony shall be taken. The commission shall subpoena, at the expense of the applicant, any competent witnesses requested by the applicant. After review, the commission shall file the testimony taken in its records and shall again make a decision, which decision shall be final.

(4) Before appointment, all applicants for a position in the fire or police department shall undergo a physical examination, which may be performed by a licensed physician, a licensed physician's assistant, or a certified nurse practitioner, to determine that an applicant is free from defects, deformity, or diseases that might incapacitate the applicant from the performance of the duties of the position desired. Applications will not be accepted if the person applying has not attained the age of majority under state law. If an applicant has formerly served upon the fire or police department of the city, village, or municipality to which application is made and has resigned from the department at a time when there were no charges of misconduct or other misfeasance pending against the applicant, within a period of 2 years next preceding the date of the application, and is a resident of the city, village, or municipality or the area authorized by city charter, then the applicant shall be eligible for reinstatement at the discretion of a civil service commission. The applicant, providing the former term of service justifies, may be reappointed to the fire or police department without examination other than a physical examination. If an applicant is reinstated to the fire or police department, the applicant shall be the lowest in rank in the department next above the probationers of the department. This subsection does not require new or additional third party reimbursement or worker's compensation benefits for services rendered.

This act is ordered to take immediate effect.

Secretary of the Senate

Clerk of the House of Representatives

Approved

Governor