Editor's Note: The following provisions were attached to Ord. No. 356: IMPORTANT STATUTORY DECISIONS AND REQUIREMENTS: AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT: After January 26, 1992, the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) forbids any employer, public or private, from requiring a job applicant to undergo a physical or psychological examination until after the applicant has been extended an offer of employment. This statutory requirement has been incorporated into the Rules and Regulations for the Township of Patterson. Although the ADA does not specifically require that a medical examination be conducted only after an offer of promotion, for consistency and reduced costs, both physical and psychological examinations, for promotions, have been treated in the same manner. COURT DECISIONS: Veterans' Preference: Two recent court decisions interpreting the employment rights of veterans under the Veterans Preference Act, 51 Pa.C.S.A. § 7101 et seq., were reviewed. The Township of Patterson will, therefore, follow a Federal Appeals Court decision holding that veterans receive preference in hiring but not in promotional opportunities. In Brickhouse v. Spring Ford Area School District, 625 A. 2d 711 Pa. Cmwlth. 1993, the Commonwealth Court interpreted a section of the Veterans' Preference Act which provided that a veteran who possessed the requisite qualifications and is eligible for appointment to, or promotion in, a public position shall be given preference by the appointing power making the appointments or promotion. [51 Pa.C.S.A. § 7104(a)]. Brickhouse applied for a social studies teaching position and was, by the Court's own admission, not the most qualified candidate. However, the Court noted that the threshold qualifications for the position were simply a Pennsylvania teaching certificate for social studies. Since Brickhouse was the only veteran and met the minimum qualifications, he had an automatic right of appointment ahead of any nonveteran and, therefore, the Court directed that he be reinstated and receive back pay. Carter v. City of Philadelphia, C.A.3 (Pa.) 1993. The third Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that the language of the Veterans' Preference Act, which provided that a veteran who appears on the certified list shall be given preference in appointment, must be adhered to in a promotional context. However, Carter being a Federal Court decision, the opinion failed to cite controlling Pennsylvania Appellate Court decision. The Township of Patterson has taken the position that the veterans are not entitled to preference in promotional settings and will not be awarded additional points. Also in promotional matters, a veteran whose name appears on a certified list of three receives no preference. By the adoption of Civil Service Rules and Regulations, the Township of Patterson utilizes a certification process and eligibility list. Statutory language identifies two criteria considered most important in the hiring process. That is, the candidate must possess the requisite qualifications and must be eligible for appointment to or promotion in a public position. By following a procedure where the employer only considers the top three certified names for any particular appointment, the Township of Patterson complies fully with the Veterans' Preference Act and the First Class Township Code. Yet we avoid the necessity of hiring a veteran on that certified list where a veteran who ranks below the top three candidates could lawfully assert a right to appointment before the nonveterans, such as in the Brickhouse case listed above. We therefore assure that the hiring or promoting of employees not only complies with the Veterans' Preference Act but only the most highly qualified employees are hired or promoted.