Committee takes first look at proposal to let assistant attorneys general unionize; witnesses flag administrative and funding complexities

The Senate Committee on Government Operations held a first look at S.145 on April 22, a bill that would explicitly include assistant attorneys general under the State Employee Labor Relations Act and thereby permit them to organize and collectively bargain.

Sophie Sedatny of the Office of Legislative Council told the committee the constitutional amendment proposal on the ballot (referred to in the hearing as Proposal 3) would broadly grant public employees the right to organize, but that S.145 addresses statutory mechanics: which labor-relations statute would apply, how bargaining units are determined, and what procedural rules would govern elections and bargaining. Sedatny said the proposed constitutional change “would arguably give assistant attorney generals the right” to organize, but statutory follow-up would be needed to define the process.

Todd Daloz, an assistant attorney general, told the committee there are 97 assistant attorneys general (AAGs). He explained that not all AAG positions sit structurally in the Attorney General’s Office: about 45 are appointed and managed under the Attorney General’s Office, while roughly 52 are funded and appointed through other state agencies—most prominently the Agency of Human Services and other departments—meaning multiple appointing authorities and funding streams cover the group.

Why it matters: witnesses and senators warned that adding AAGs to the labor-relations statute without addressing appointing authority, employer-of-record definitions and funding could leave bargaining implementation unworkable. Committee members noted a prior legislative fix for deputy state's attorneys (Act 81) created a single employer-of-record construct for bargaining; witnesses said that a comparable mechanism would likely be needed here but would be more complex because AAG salaries and positions are split across many budgets.

Sophie Sedatny said the bill as drafted is a narrow change—three words added to include assistant attorneys general—but cautioned that other statutory provisions may be required to make collective bargaining operational for an AAG workforce dispersed across departments. Daloz described the appointing-authority split and the practical impact on hiring and pay: the agency that holds the position number and budget signs off on appointments and compensation for many of the AAGs who work in other agencies.

Committee members asked whether the AAGs would form a single bargaining unit analogous to the deputy state's attorneys. Witnesses said the deputy state's-attorneys solution came after litigation and a legislative fix that named a single executive director as employer of record; replicating that approach for AAGs would be more complicated because of the varied funding and appointing authorities.

No formal vote was taken. Senators asked for additional information, including a breakdown of how many AAGs are in each agency, examples of funding streams, and input from the Attorney General’s Office leadership (including Chief Assistant Attorney General Sarah London) before the committee advances the measure.

Ending: the committee treated the hearing as an informational first look and signaled it will request more detailed implementation analysis and stakeholder input—particularly on employer-of-record design and unit definition—before drafting a bill that could move forward.