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HomeMy Public PortalAboutPolicy Resolution-26POLICY RESOLUTION NO. 26 A POLICY RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NAPA, STATE OF CALIFORNIA, ESTABLISHING AN EMPLOYEE TUITION REIMBURSEMENT PROGRAM WHEREAS, the City of Napa proposes to establish a Tuition Reimbursement Program designed to encourage employees to continue their self -development by enrolling in classroom courses which will prepare them in new concepts and methods needed to meet the changing demands of City service; and WHEREAS, the City of Napa is desirous of providing a policy and procedure for said employees to obtain educational reimbursement. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Napa, State of California, that the policy in the matter of tuition reimbursement shall be, only for full-time employees filling regular positions, on other than a limited -term basis, who have completed their initial City probationary period and who are performing their jobs satisfactorily. Employees in Federally funded, limited -term positions are eligible to participate in the program provided such reimbursement can be provided by Federal funds. Employees are not eligible for reimbursement if their educational costs are being defrayed by another agency such as the U.S. Veterans' Administration, the California State Department of Veteran's Affairs or the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Tuition Reimbursement Program shall be applied as follows: POLICY FOR TUITION REIMBURSEMENT 1. Courses must be related to the work of the employee's position, career development or occupation in such a fashion as will offer substantial benefit to the City. 2. Courses will be taken outside the employee's working hours unless extenuating circumstances exist and approval to use City time is prearranged with the employee's department manager and approved by the City Manager. 3. Courses must be taken for credit; audited courses will not be reimbursed. 4. Courses must be taken at accredited institutions. Correspondence courses from reputable institutions will be considered only when equivalent courses are not available at local accredited schools, or when the employee's circumstances prevent him from attending local courses. 5. Prerequisite courses for eligible courses or courses which are required for the completion of a specific program are also eligible for tuition reimbursement. 6. Courses are not eligible for tuition reimbursement if they: a. Duplicate in-service training which is available. b. Duplicate training which the employee has already had. 7. Conventions, workshops, institutes, etc., are not included in the Tuition Reimbursement Program. 8. Reimbursement shall be subject to certification by the department concerned that the course of study meets the eligibility requirements of this Policy. 9. Requests for reimbursement, must be approved before the course is undertaken and such approval shall be subject to the availability of funds for tuition reimbursement within the Department involved. gApo1res126.doc 10. Reimbursement shall be made only upon presentation of evidence of payment for and successful completion of courses as evidenced by a "C" grade or better or a "Pass" for a Pass/Fail course. NATURE OF REIMBURSEMENT 1. Reimbursement may be made for out-of-pocket expenditures for tuition, registration fees, laboratory fees, required textbooks, and parking permits. Other related expenses and incidental costs are not reimbursable. 2. Reimbursement shall be limited as follows: a. The maximum reimbursement that may be received by an employee in one fiscal year shall be one thousand ($1,000) dollars. b. An employee shall be reimbursed for expenses totaling ten ($10.00) dollars or more for single course. Expenses less than ten ($10.00) dollars for a single course are not reimbursable. PROCEDURE FOR TUITION REIMBURSEMENT 1. The employee shall submit his/her request to their Department Manager who shall either recommend approval of the request or deny it, based on the criteria set forth in this policy. If the Department Manager recommends approval, he/she shall forward the application to the Director of Personnel for approval. 2. The employee shall apply for Tuition Reimbursement through such supervisory channels as are designated by the manager of his/her department, on forms provided by the Director of Personnel. 3. An employee may appeal denial of the request (unless the reason for denial is lack of tuition funds) under the current grievance procedure or appropriate M.O.U. --- 4. Upon completion of an approved course, the employee shall request the institution to certify fees paid and grade achieved, and to send certification to the Personnel Department. The employee shall have also presented evidence of payment of required textbook costs. 5. The Department Manager may require that the employee evaluate the course in writing. CONTINUED SERVICE REQUIREMENT An employee must continue in a full-time, regular position in the City service for one (1) year from the date of completion of the course. Failure to continue in the City service, through resignation or discharge, will result in the forfeiture of any tuition reimbursement payments received less than one (1) year prior to separation. In such situation, the employee agrees that the Finance Department is authorized to make a deduction from the employee's final payroll check for the appropriate amount of tuition reimbursement to be forfeited. I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing resolution was duly and regularly adopted by the City Council of the City of Napa at a regular meeting of said City Council held on the 3rd day of March, 1999, by the following roll call vote: AYES: Sercu, Techel, Busenbark, Martin and Henderson NOES: None ABSENT: None ATTEST: a�-- CITY CLERK O HE CITY OF NAPA gApo1res126.doc