Late Thursday, the House of Representatives approved the Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2010 (H.R. 4899) that included an amendment (pdf) incorporating the Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act (PSEECA), which would provide firefighters, police officers, and emergency medical personnel with collective bargaining rights in states and localities that do not currently provide them, establish minimum standards for collective bargaining rights for these groups, and give the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) the power to regulate and enforce these rights. As explained in a press release issued by Rep. George Miller (D-CA), chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, the bill that cleared the House:

will guarantee collective bargaining rights for first responders employed by states and localities. States would administer and enforce their own labor laws, while the [FLRA] would only step in where such laws do not exist or do not meet minimum standards. The language prohibits public safety officers from engaging in a lockout, sickout, work slowdown, strike, or any other organized job action that will disrupt the delivery of emergency services.

A recent Congressional Research Service report, however, questioned the Constitutional basis for enacting such a law.  Although this measure had been introduced in both the House and Senate as stand-alone bills (H.R. 413; S. 1611, 3194), it is likely that it was added to the larger spending measure in order to facilitate passage. It was approved by a narrow 239-182 margin. It remains to be seen how the Senate will react to this bill when it returns from the July 4 recess. In May, Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), who introduced the stand-alone bill in the Senate, had also introduced the PSEECA as an amendment to the supplemental appropriations bill when it was considered in the Senate, but withdrew it days later.