[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Council of the Borough of Bellevue
as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 5-6-1980 by Ord. No. 80-5]
There is hereby created in the Borough of Bellevue a Civil Service
Commission, hereinafter referred to as "Commission."
The Commission shall consist of three Commissioners, who shall
be qualified electors of the Borough of Bellevue and shall be appointed
by the Town Council of the Borough of Bellevue to serve for terms
of three years starting in January.
Any vacancy occurring in said Commission for any reason whatsoever
shall be filled by the Town Council of the Borough of Bellevue for
the unexpired term within the period of 30 days after the vacancy
occurs.
Each member of the Commission created by the ordinance, before
entering upon the discharge of his office, shall take an oath or affirmation
to support the Constitution of the United States and of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania, and to perform his official duties with fidelity,
together with such loyalty oath as is prescribed and required by law.
The Civil Service Commissioners shall receive no compensation.
No Commissioner shall at the same time hold an elective or appointed
office under the United States Government, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
or any political subdivision of the commonwealth.
The Commission first appointed shall organize within 10 days
of its appointment and shall elect one of its members as the Chairman
and one as the Secretary. The Commission shall thereafter meet and
organize on the first Monday of February of each even-numbered year.
The Secretary of the Commission shall give each Commissioner 24 hours'
notice, in writing, of each and every meeting of the Commission. Two
members of the Commission shall constitute a quorum, and no action
of the Commission shall be valid unless it shall have the concurrence
of at least two members.
The Borough of Bellevue shall furnish to the Commission, on
its requisition, such clerical assistance as may be necessary for
the work of the Commission. The Borough of Bellevue shall provide
a suitable and convenient room for the use of the Commission. The
Commission shall order from the Borough of Bellevue the necessary
stationery, postage, printing and supplies, and the elected and appointed
officials of the Borough of Bellevue shall aid the Commission in all
proper ways in carrying out the provisions of this article relating
to civil service.
The Commission shall have power to prescribe, amend and enforce
rules and regulations for carrying into effect the provisions of this
article and shall be governed thereby. Before any such rules and regulations
are in force, the same shall be first approved by the Town Council
of the Borough of Bellevue. When such rules and regulations have been
so approved, they shall not be annulled, amended or added to without
the approval of the Town Council. All rules and regulations and modifications
thereof shall be made available by the Borough of Bellevue for public
distribution or inspection.
The Commission shall keep minutes of its proceedings and records of examinations and other official actions. All recommendations of applicants for appointment received by the Commission shall be kept and preserved for a period of five years, and all such records and all written causes of removal filed with the Commission, except as otherwise provided in § 10-25 of this article, shall be open to public inspection and subject to reasonable regulation.
The Commission shall have power to make investigations concerning
all matters touching the administration and enforcement of this article
and rules and regulations adopted thereunder. The Chairman of the
Commission is hereby given power to administer oaths and affirmations
in connection with such investigations.
A.
The Commission shall have power to issue subpoenas over the signature
of the Chairman, to require the attendance of witnesses and the production
of records and papers pertaining to any investigation or inquiry.
The fees of such witnesses for attendance and travel shall be the
same as for witnesses appearing in courts and shall be paid from appropriations
for the incidental expenses of the Commission.
B.
All officers in public service and employees shall attend and testify
when required to do so by the Commission.
C.
If any person shall refuse or neglect to obey any subpoena issued
by the Commission, he shall, upon conviction thereof, been sentenced
to pay a fine of not more than $1,000 plus costs and, in default of
payment of said fine and costs, to a term of imprisonment not to exceed
30 days. Each day that a violation of this article continues or each
section of this article which shall be found to have been violated
shall constitute a separate offense.
D.
If any person shall refuse or neglect to obey any subpoena issued
by the Commission, it may apply by petition to the Court of Common
Pleas of Allegheny County for its subpoena, requiring the attendance
of such person before the Commission or the Court to testify and to
produce any records and papers necessary and, in default thereof,
shall be held in contempt of court.
The Commission shall make an annual report to the Town Council
of the Borough of Bellevue containing a brief summary of its work
during the year, which shall be available for public inspection.
[Amended 9-1-1981 by Ord. No. 81-10]
A.
Each and
every appointment to the police force or as fire apparatus operators
paid directly by the Borough of Bellevue shall be made only according
to qualifications and fitness, to be ascertained by examination, which
shall be competitive as hereinafter provided.
B.
No person
shall hereafter be suspended, removed or reduced in rank as a paid
employee in the police force or as a paid operator of fire apparatus
of the Borough of Bellevue except in accordance with the provisions
of this article. However, nothing in this article shall apply to retirement
nor shall anything herein prevent the Borough of Bellevue from adopting
a compulsory retirement age for its employees or for any class or
classes thereof and from retiring all such employees automatically
when they reach such age.
[Amended 9-1-1981 by Ord. No. 81-10]
A.
The Commission shall make rules and regulations, to be approved as provided in § 10-9 hereof, providing for the examination of applicants for positions in the police force and as paid operators of fire apparatus, which rules and regulations shall prescribe the minimum qualifications of all applicants to be examined and the passing grades. All examinations for positions shall be practical in character and shall relate to such matters and include such inquiries as will fairly test the merit and fitness of the persons examined to discharge the duties of the employment sought by them. All examinations shall be open to all applicants who have the minimum qualifications required by the rules and regulations. Each applicant shall be subject to the regulations adopted by the Commission and shall be required to submit to a physical examination as provided in § 10-23 of this article.
B.
Public notice of the time and place of every examination, together
with the information as to the kind of position or place to be filled,
shall be given by publication once in a newspaper of general circulation
in the Borough of Bellevue at least two weeks prior to each examination,
and a copy of the notice shall be prominently posted on the bulletin
boards at the Borough of Bellevue Municipal Building, including the
bulletin board in the police room or other public place.
C.
The Commission shall post in the office of the Borough of Bellevue
the eligibles list, containing the names and grades of those who have
passed the examination. Persons, male or female, who served in the
military or naval service of the United States during any war in which
the United States has been, is now or shall hereafter be engaged and
who have honorable discharges from such service, who have successfully
passed the examination, shall be given the additional credits and
preference in appointment provided for by law.
Each person desiring to apply for examination shall file with
the Commission a formal application, in which the applicant shall
state under oath or affirmation:
A.
His full name and residence or post office address.
B.
His citizenship, place and date of birth.
C.
His condition of health and physical capacity for public service.
D.
His business or employment and his residence for the past five years.
E.
Such other information as may be required by the Commission's
rules and regulations, showing the applicant's qualifications
for the position for which he is being examined.
A.
The Commission may refuse to examine or, if examined, may refuse
to certify after examination as eligible, any applicant who is found
to lack any of the minimum qualifications for examination prescribed
in the rules and regulations adopted for the position or employment
for which he has applied, or who is physically disabled and unfit
for the performance of the duties of the position to which he seeks
employment, or who is addicted to the habitual use of intoxicating
liquors or narcotic drugs, or who has been guilty of any crime involving
moral turpitude, or of infamous or notoriously disgraceful conduct,
or who has been dismissed from public service for delinquency or misconduct
of office, or who is affiliated with any group whose policies or activities
are subversive to the form of government set forth in the Constitutions
and laws of the United States and Pennsylvania.
B.
If any applicant or other person feels himself aggrieved by the action
of the Commission in refusing to examine him or to certify him as
eligible after examination, the Commission shall, at the request of
such person, within 10 days, appoint a time and place where he may
appear personally and by counsel. Whereupon the Commission shall then
review its refusal to make such examination or certification and take
such testimony as may be offered. The decision of the Commission shall
be final.
Every position or employment in the police force or as paid
operators of fire apparatus, except that of Chief of Police or equivalent,
shall be filled only in the following manner:
A.
The Town Council of the Borough of Bellevue shall notify the Commission of any vacancy which is to be filled and shall request the certification of a list of eligibles. The Commission shall certify for each existing vacancy from the eligible list, the names of three persons thereon, or a lesser number where three are not available, who have received the highest average. The Town Council shall thereupon, with sole preference to the merits and fitness of the candidates, make an appointment from the three names certified, unless it makes objections to the Commission as to one or more of the person so certified for any of the reasons stated in § 10-17 of this article. Should such objections be sustained by the Commission, as provided in said section, the Commission shall thereupon strike the name of such persons from the eligible list and certify the next highest name for each name stricken off. As each subsequent vacancy occurs in the same or another position, precisely the same procedure shall be followed.
B.
In the case of a vacancy in the office of Chief of Police or equivalent
official, the appointive power may nominate a person to the Commission.
It shall thereupon become the duty of the Commission to subject such
person to a noncompetitive examination, and if such person shall be
certified by the Commission as qualified, he may then be appointed
to such position and thereafter shall be subject to all the provisions
of this article.
[Amended 6-2-1992 by Ord. No. 92-15]
No person shall be eligible to apply for examination unless
he is at least 18 years of age at the date of application. An applicant
need not be a resident of the Borough of Bellevue. The Town Council
of the Borough of Bellevue may authorize the Commission, by rule or
regulation, to require police officers and paid firemen to become
residents of the Borough of Bellevue or a resident within a certain
area after appointment to such positions.
All original appointments to any position in the police force or as paid operators of fire apparatus must be for a probationary period of not less than six months and not more than one year, but during the probationary period an appointee may be dismissed only for a cause specified in § 10-17 of this article. If at the close of a probationary period the conduct or fitness of the probationer has not been satisfactory to the Town Council, the probationer shall be notified, in writing, that he will not receive a permanent appointment. Thereupon, his appointment shall cease, otherwise his retention shall be equivalent to a permanent appointment.
Whenever there are urgent reasons for the filling of a vacancy
in any position in the police force or as paid operators of fire apparatus
and there are no names on the eligible list for such appointment,
the Town Council may nominate a person to the Commission for noncompetitive
examination; he may be appoint provisionally to fill such vacancy.
It shall thereupon become the duty of the Commission within three
weeks to hold a competitive examination and certify a list of eligibles,
and a regular appointment shall then be made from the name or names
submitted by the Commission, provided that nothing herein contained
shall prevent the appointment, without examination, of persons temporarily
as police officers in cases of riot or other emergency or as operators
of fire apparatus in emergency cases.
[Amended 9-1-1981 by Ord. No. 81-10; 6-2-1992 by Ord. No. 92-15]
A.
Vacancies in the competitive position of Sergeant shall be filled
by promotion from among persons holding positions of patrolman in
the Borough of Bellevue Police Force. Promotion shall be based upon
merit to be ascertained by tests to be provided by the Civil Service
Commission and upon the superior qualifications of the person to be
promoted as shown by his previous service and experience. The Civil
Service Commission shall maintain a list of those persons qualified
for promotion to the position of Sergeant, from which list the Town
Council of the Borough of Bellevue shall make all promotions from
among the first three names appearing on the list at the time the
promotion is made.
B.
No patrolman on the Borough of Bellevue Police Force shall be eligible
for promotion to the position of Sergeant until such patrolman shall
have completed at least five years' service in the grade of patrolman.
C.
The Town Council shall have power to determine in each instance whether
an increase in salary shall constitute a promotion.
A.
All applicants for examination shall undergo a physical examination,
which shall be conducted under the supervision of a physician appointed
by the Commission. No person shall be eligible for appointment until
such physician certifies that the applicant is free from any bodily
or mental defect, deformity or disease that might incapacitate him
for the discharge of the duties of the position desired.
B.
All police officers shall as a minimum be required to have passed
vision, hearing, health, physical fitness, driving, and psychological
and/or psychiatric examinations.
A.
No person employed in the police force or as fire apparatus operators
shall be suspended, removed or reduced in rank except for the following
reasons:
(1)
Physical or mental disability affecting his or her ability to continue
in service, in which case the person shall receive an honorable discharge
from service. In determining physical or mental disability, Council
may refer to the standards set forth in Rule III, § 10,
of the Civil Service Commission.
(2)
Neglect or violation of any official duty.
(3)
Violation of any law which provided that such violation constitutes
a misdemeanor or felony.
(4)
Inefficiency, neglect, intemperance, immorality, disobedience of
orders or conduct unbecoming an officer.
(5)
Intoxication while on duty.
(6)
Engaging or participating in conducting of any political or election
campaign otherwise than to exercise his own right of suffrage.
B.
A person so employed shall not be removed for religious, racial or
political reasons.
C.
A written statement of any charges made against any person so employed
shall be furnished to such person within five days after the same
are filed.
D.
If for reasons of economy or other reasons it shall be deemed necessary
by the Town Council of the Borough of Bellevue to reduce the number
of paid employees of the police force or of the fire apparatus operators,
then the Town Council shall apply the following procedures:
(1)
If there are any employees eligible for retirement under the terms
of any retirement or pension law, then such reduction in numbers shall
be made by retirement of such employees, starting with the oldest
employee and following in order of age, respectively.
(2)
If the number of paid employees in the police force or of the fire
apparatus operators eligible for retirement is insufficient to effect
the necessary reduction in numbers, or if there are no persons eligible
for retirement, or if no retirement or pension fund exists, then the
reduction shall be effected by furloughing the person or persons,
including probationers, last appointed to the police force or as fire
apparatus operators. Such removal shall be accomplished by furloughing
in numerical order commencing with the person last appointed until
such reduction shall have been accomplished. In the event the said
police force or the number of fire apparatus operators shall again
be increased, the employees furloughed shall be reinstated in the
order of their seniority in the service.
A.
If the person suspended, removed or reduced in rank shall demand
a hearing by the Commission, the demand shall be made to the Commission.
Such person may make written answers to any charges filed against
him not later than the day fixed for hearing. The Commission shall
grant him a hearing, which shall be held within a period of 10 days
from the filing of charges, in writing, unless continued by the Commission
for cause at the request of Town Council or the accused. At any such
hearing, the person against whom the charges are made may be present
in person and by counsel. The Town Council may suspend any such person,
without pay, pending the determination of the charges against him,
but in the event the Commission fails to uphold the charges, then
the person sought to be suspended, removed or demoted shall be reinstated
with full pay for the period during which he was suspended, removed
or demoted, and no charges shall be officially recorded against his
record. A stenographic record of all testimony taken at such hearings
shall be filed with and preserved by the Commission, which record
shall be sealed and not be available for public inspection in the
event the charges are dismissed.
B.
All parties concerned shall have immediate right of appeal to the
Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, and the case shall there
be determined as the Court deems proper. No order of suspension made
by the Commission shall be for a longer period than one year. Such
appeal shall be taken within 60 days from the date of entry by the
Commission of its final order and shall be by petition. Upon such
appeal being taken and docketed, the Court of Common Pleas shall fix
a day for a hearing and shall proceed to hear the appeal on the original
record and such additional proof or testimony as the parties concerned
may desire to offer in evidence. The decision of the Court affirming
or revising the decision of the Commission shall be final, and the
employee shall be suspended, discharged, demoted or reinstated in
accordance with the order of Court.
C.
The Town Council and the person sought to be suspended, removed or
demoted shall at all times have the right to employ counsel before
the Commission and upon appeal to the Court of Common Pleas, each
party to pay his or her own counsel fees.
All appointments in the police force or as a fire apparatus
operator of the Borough of Bellevue, including the Chief of Police
or equivalent official, prior to the creation of the Commission shall
continue to hold their positions and shall not be required to take
any examination under the provisions of this article, except such
as may be required for promotion, provided that this section shall
not be construed to apply to persons employed temporarily in emergency
cases.
A.
No question in any form of application for examination or in any
examination shall be so framed as to elicit information concerning
the political or religious opinions or affiliations of any applicant,
nor shall inquiry be made concerning such opinion or affiliations,
and all disclosures thereof shall be discountenanced.
B.
No discrimination shall be exercised, threatened or promised by any
person against or in favor of any applicant or employee because of
political or religious opinions or affiliations or race, and no offer
or promise or reward, favor or benefit, directly or indirectly, shall
be made to or received by any person for any act done or duty omitted
or to be done under the provisions of this article.
Any member of the Town Council who, by his or her vote, causes
to be appointed any person to the police force or as a fire apparatus
operator contrary to the provisions of this article or any member
of Town Council or member of the Commission who wilfully refuses to
comply with or conform to the provisions of this article shall, upon
conviction thereof, be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $1,000
plus costs and, in default of payment of said fine and costs, to a
term of imprisonment not to exceed 30 days. Each day that a violation
of this article continues or each section of this article which shall
be found to have been violated shall constitute a separate offense.
A.
"Police force," as used in this article, shall mean a police force
organized and operating as prescribed by law, the members of which
devote their normal working hours to police duty or duty in connection
with the bureau, agencies or services connected with police protection
work and who are paid a stated salary or compensation for such work
by the Borough of Bellevue. "Police force," as used in this article,
shall not include:
B.
"Fire apparatus operators," as used in this article, shall mean any
person who operates fire apparatus and devotes his normal working
hours to operating any piece of fire apparatus or other services connected
with fire protection work and who is paid a stated salary or compensation
for such work by the Borough of Bellevue.
[Adopted 3-20-1996 by Ord. No. 96-14]
The Town Council of the Borough of Bellevue hereby approves
the rules and regulations adopted by the Borough of Bellevue Civil
Service Commission on March 20, 1996, by Resolution No. 1.
