Section 71. Accrual of liabilities

1. Notwithstanding any other provision
  of this article, a county may by local law provide for the operation  of
  a  plan  on  an  accrued  liability  basis  whereby  amounts  charged to
  participants  shall  be  based  on  the  estimated  total  liability  of
  participants  actuarially computed, arising each year. A county also may
  by local law provide for the operation of a plan on an experience rating
  basis, whereby amounts charged to participants  shall  be  based  either
  partially  or  totally  on  the  past  liability of participants.   Once
  adopted, an accrued liability basis or an experience rating basis  shall
  not thereafter be discontinued.
    2.  If  a  county  elects  to operate its plan on an experience rating
  basis, the chief elected  official  of  such  county  shall  create  and
  appoint  a  labor-management  safety  committee.  The  purposes  of  the
  committee shall be to educate public employees of the plan  participants
  in  proper  health  and  safety  procedures  in  the  work places of the
  participants,  and  to  design  such  additional  programs  as  may   be
  appropriate  to  the  development  of  a  safe  working  environment  in
  participants' facilities and job sites. The committee  shall  accomplish
  these  purposes by establishing and maintaining such employee safety and
  health  programs  as  it  deems  appropriate  and  by  publicizing   the
  availability  of such programs. The purposes and powers of the committee
  may be expanded by the county by adopting rules and regulations pursuant
  to section sixty-five of this chapter.
    3. The committee, which  shall  be  appointed  by  the  chief  elected
  official, shall be comprised of an equal number of employer and employee
  representatives  consisting  of  not  less than three nor more than five
  representatives each of the employer and of the employees, respectively.
  The participants in the plan shall submit to the chief elected  official
  a list of candidates for the labor-management safety committee. In cases
  in  which  employee  organizations  recognized or certified to represent
  employees of the participants pursuant to article fourteen of the  civil
  service  law  exist, such recognized or certified employee organizations
  shall submit a list of  employee  candidates  for  the  labor-management
  safety  committee  to  the  chief  elected  official.  The chief elected
  official shall create the committee from  the  lists  of  candidates  so
  submitted.  The  chief  elected  official,  or person designated by him,
  shall act as the chairperson of the committee, but shall not be entitled
  to vote on any committee business. The members of  the  committee  shall
  serve  without  salary,  but  shall  be  entitled  to  reimbursement for
  reasonable and necessary expenses incurred in the performance  of  their
  official  duties  pursuant  to this section. The committee shall meet at
  least four times a year, with at least  one  meeting  in  each  calendar
  quarter.  The  chairperson shall designate the dates of the meeting, and
  shall give at least ten days written notice to each committee member  of
  each meeting. The costs and expenses of the committee and its health and
  safety programs shall be an administrative expense of the plan.
    4.  A  recognized  or  certified  employee  organization  may  file  a
  grievance in writing with the  chief  elected  official  of  the  county
  alleging  that the county is not complying with subdivision two or three
  of this section. The grievance shall designate in detail the particulars
  in which the employee organization alleges  the  county  has  failed  to
  comply with either or both such subdivisions. The chief elected official
  shall answer the grievance in writing within fifteen days of its filing.
    5.  If  such answer is unsatisfactory to the employee organization, or
  is not received by the employee  organization  within  fifteen  calendar
  days,  then  the  employee  organization  may  submit  the  grievance to
  arbitration. In such event the employee organization  shall  request  in
  writing  a list of three arbitrators from the nearest regional office of

  the American arbitration association. The association shall compile  and
  send  a  copy  of  such  list  to  each party. Each party shall rank the
  arbitrators in order of decreasing preference  from  one  to  three  and
  shall  return the marked list within ten calendar days of receipt to the
  regional office of the American arbitration association from  which  the
  list was requested. Such office shall then determine the arbitrator most
  acceptable to both parties.
    6.  The arbitrator selected shall hear arguments from both parties and
  from such additional witnesses as  the  arbitrator  deems  necessary  to
  assist  in  rendering a decision. Within thirty days of such hearing the
  arbitrator shall render a decision which shall be final and  binding  on
  both parties.