Employer Mandated Health Care

The GGRA has researched the potential petition of 11 judges from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals asking the larger judicial panel to overturn the emergency stay order granted to the City on January 9, 2008. We have decided not to pursue the petition because of minimal opportunity for success. The emergency stay order was granted without a dissenting opinion, and the schedule for the appeal totals 3 ½ months which is a short time frame to the court.

The GGRA is completing research on the potential petition of Justice Kennedy of the United States Supreme Court asking Justice Kennedy to overturn the emergency stay order granted to the City by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. The research includes the procedures to follow in requesting the stay reversal, the legal arguments required to support the request, and the potential outcomes both positive and negative. We will follow up with more information when the analysis is complete.

The appeal process has started in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. We will post filings as they are submitted to the court. We believe this case will most likely end up in front of the US Supreme Court, and take many more months to complete.

On Thursday, January 31, 2008 at 3pm the GGRA will host a meeting for the restaurant community to discuss the details of implementing the Healthcare Security Ordinance. The meeting will be held in the Beluga Room at Farallon Restaurant at 450 Powell Street. Donna Levitt, the Executive Director of the Office of Labor Standard Enforcement, will present a power point presentation and answer questions about the details of the ordinance. This is an excellent opportunity to clarify implementation issues. Bookkeepers, controllers, CFO’s, managers and owners are welcome. Please RSVP to Donnalyn at 415.781.5348 ext 2.

After the implementation discussion is complete, the GGRA staff and attorney will discuss legal issues and answer questions about process, timeline, potential outcomes, etc.