Amended in Assembly March 21, 2013

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1313

Introduced by Assembly Member Donnelly

February 22, 2013

An act to begin delete amend Section 77003 of end delete begin insert add Section 69614.5 to end insert the Government Code, relating to courts.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1313, as amended, Donnelly. begin delete Trial court funding. end delete begin insert Judgeships: allocation. end insert

begin insert

Existing law specifies the number of judges of the superior court for each county, and allocates additional judgeships to the various counties in accordance with uniform standards for factually determining additional need in each county, as approved by the Judicial Council, and other specified criteria. Existing law requires the Judicial Council to report biennially to the Legislature and the Governor on the factually determined need for new judgeships in each superior court, using that uniform criteria.

end insert begin insert

This bill would require the Judicial Council, upon the availability of funding, to allocate 12 additional judges each fiscal year to those counties in which the current judicial position allocations are disproportionate to the Judicial Council’s recommendation of assessed judicial need.

end insert begin delete

Existing law establishes the Trial Court Trust Fund, the proceeds of which are required to be apportioned for authorized purposes, including apportionment to the trial courts to fund trial court operations. Existing law, for the purpose of funding trial court operations, authorizes the Judicial Council to establish bank accounts for the superior courts, into which shall be deposited all moneys appropriated in the Budget Act and allocated or reallocated to each court by the Judicial Council, moneys held in trust, and other moneys as deemed necessary or appropriate. “Court operations” is defined for these purposes.

end delete begin delete

This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to the provisions defining court operations.

end delete

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

begin insert

begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

end insert

begin insert The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following: end insert

begin insert

(a) The judicial branch is a constitutionally guaranteed function
of government.

end insert begin insert

(b) The greatest need for judicial positions can be found in
moderate-to-large courts in the Inland Empire and Central Valley
where historic underfunding and rapid population growth have
outstripped judicial resources.

end insert begin insert

(c) This is not just an isolated occurrence as many other counties
throughout the state also suffer from a lack of funding and
positions.

end insert begin insert

(d) The lack of access to the courts creates, particularly with
respect to business and commercial litigation, which must take
secondary consideration to criminal and public safety matters, a
backlog of cases and the overall disuse of the justice system.

end insert begin insert

(e) A disparate lack of adequate judicial representation
exemplifies a real harm to the public’s safety, victims of crime,
and witnesses as well.

end insert

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 69614.5 is added to the end insert begin insert Government Code end insert begin insert , to
read: end insert

begin insert

begin insert 69614.5. end insert   

(a) Upon the availability of funding, the Judicial
Council shall allocate up to 12 additional judges each fiscal year
to those counties in which the current judicial position allocations
are disproportionate to the Judicial Council’s recommendation
of assessed judicial need.

(b) Allocation of judicial positions shall be made first to those
counties with the greatest disparity between their current judicial
position allocations and the Judicial Council’s recommendation
of assessed judicial need.

(c) This section shall apply until the ratio of judges to population
in an individual county reaches 90 percent of the Judicial Council’s
recommendation of assessed judicial need for that country.

(d) It shall be a top priority for the Judicial Council to fulfill
the requirements of this section.

end insert

begin delete

SECTION 1.  

Section 77003 of the Government Code is
amended to read:

77003.  

(a) As used in this chapter, “court operations” means
all of the following:

(1) Salaries, benefits, and public agency retirement contributions
for superior court judges and for subordinate judicial officers.

(A) For purposes of this paragraph, the term “subordinate
judicial officers” includes both of the following:

(i) All commissioner or referee positions created prior to July
1, 1997, including positions created in the municipal court prior
to July 1, 1997, which thereafter became positions in the superior
court as a result of unification of the municipal and superior courts
in a county, and including those commissioner positions created
pursuant to former Sections 69904, 70141, 70141.9, 70142.11,
72607, 73794, 74841.5, and 74908.

(ii) Any staff who provide direct support to commissioners.

(B) “Subordinate judicial officers” does not include
commissioners or staff who provide direct support to the
commissioners whose positions were created after July 1, 1997,
unless approved by the Judicial Council, subject to the availability
of funding.

(2) The salary, benefits, and public agency retirement
contributions for other court staff.

(3) Court security, but only to the extent consistent with court
responsibilities under Article 8.5 (commencing with Section 69920)
of Chapter 5.

(4) Court-appointed counsel in juvenile court dependency
proceedings and counsel appointed by the court to represent a
minor pursuant to Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 3150)
of Part 2 of Division 8 of the Family Code.

(5) Services and supplies relating to court operations.

(6) Collective bargaining under Sections 71630 and 71639.3
with respect to court employees.

(7) Subject to paragraph (1) of subdivision (d) of Section 77212,
actual indirect costs for county and city and county general services
attributable to court operations, but specifically excluding, but not
limited to, law library operations conducted by a trust pursuant to
statute, courthouse construction, district attorney services,
probation services, indigent criminal defense, grand jury expenses
and operations, and pretrial release services.

(8) Except as provided in subdivision (b), and subject to Article
8.5 (commencing with Section 69920) of Chapter 5, other matters
listed as court operations in Rule 10.810 of the California Rules
of Court, as it read on January 1, 2007.

(b) However, “court operations” does not include collection
enhancements as defined in Rule 10.810 of the California Rules
of Court, as it read on January 1, 2007.

end delete