Civil service: veterans' preference.

Existing law, the State Civil Service Act, requires the Department of Human Resources to administer the Personnel Classification Plan of the State of California, including allocating every position to the appropriate class. Existing law requires the allocation of a position to a class be derived from, and determined by, ascertaining the duties and responsibilities of the position, and be based on the principle that all positions are to be included in the same class if certain qualifications apply, including, but not limited to, that the positions are sufficiently similar in respect to duties and responsibilities that the same descriptive title may be used, and substantially the same requirements as to education, experience, knowledge, and ability are demanded of incumbents. Existing law also prescribes a comprehensive civil service personnel system for the state and specifically provides certain preferences for veterans. Existing law grants to a person retired from the United States military, honorably discharged from active military duty with a service-connected disability, or honorably discharged from active duty eligibility for civil service examinations for which they meet the minimum qualifications for the classification. Existing law requires that, in evaluating minimum qualifications, related military experience be considered state civil service experience in a comparable class, based on the duties and responsibilities assigned. This bill would require the department, on or before January 1, 2026, to review the department Personnel Classification Plan of the State of California and identify which classes are compatible with creating a waiver for a bachelor's degree requirement for a veteran, as defined, who has served at the level of E-6 or higher for more than 2 years. For a class identified by the department, where a bachelor's degree is required as a minimum qualification for a civil service examination, the bill would require the department to, commencing July 1, 2026, waive the bachelor's degree requirement for a veteran who has served at the level of E-6 or higher for more than 2 years.