BILL ANALYSIS Ó
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Kevin de León, Chair
AB 1617 (Gatto) - State Claims.
Amended: June 11, 2014 Policy Vote: None
Urgency: Yes Mandate: No
Hearing Date: August 11, 2014
Consultant: Mark McKenzie
Pursuant to the committee's rules, the Suspense File rule does
not apply to the provisions of this bill as claims are
considered valid obligations of the state. Additionally, claims
may have time sensitivity.
Bill Summary: AB 1617, an urgency measure, would appropriate
$745,043 from specified funds to the California Victim
Compensation and Government Claims Board (Board) for the payment
of 136 state claims. The bill would also appropriate $1,450,200
from the General Fund to the board for the payment of three
erroneous conviction claims.
Fiscal Impact:
Stale-dated warrants : General Fund appropriations in the
amount of $450,950 to pay 121 claims, and appropriations
according to a specified schedule from various funds in the
amount of the amount of $294,033 to pay15 claims. All but
two of these claims are for reissuance of stale-dated
warrants (expired checks). The two remaining claims are
$234 for a dental coverage overcharge, and $172 for overpaid
mobile home registration fees. The individual stale-dated
warrant claim amounts range from $60 to $47,142.
Erroneous convictions : General Fund appropriations in the
amount of $1,450,200 to pay the claims of Francisco Carilllo
($683,000), Jose Luis Diaz ($305,300), and Johnny Williams
($461,600).
Background: The State Board of Control was established in 1945.
It was revised and renamed the Victim Compensation and
Government Claims Board by Chapter 1016/2000 (AB 2491, Jackson).
Government Code 13928 requires the Board to ensure that all
claims that have been approved by the Board, and for which no
legally available appropriation exists, are submitted for
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legislative approval at least twice during each calendar year.
In general, the board will approve claims in November and
February. Those claims are reported to the chairs of the
Appropriations Committees who introduce bills appropriating
General Funds and special funds to pay the claims. These bills
may appropriate funds in amounts to the penny for tens to
hundreds of claims. Government Code 906 provides for the
payment of interest on claims approved by the Board for which an
appropriation has been made beginning 30 days after the
effective date of the law by which the appropriation is enacted.
The re-issuance of stale-dated warrants is the most prevalent
claim approved by the Board. For stale-dated warrants, the
Controller must confirm that (1) the check was not cashed and
has not been issued and (2) more than three years have elapsed
since the check was issued and the monies have reverted to the
General Fund or to the relevant special fund. For these
warrants an appropriation is needed to reissue the payment.
This category also may include state treasury bonds that have
not been redeemed within ten years of their maturity date (there
are no such claims in this bill), but the majority of warrants
are payroll or tax refund checks.
Existing law, Penal Code Section 4900 et seq., authorizes a
person convicted and imprisoned for a felony to submit a claim
to the Board for pecuniary injury sustained as a result of
erroneous conviction and imprisonment. Pursuant to SB 618
(Leno), Chap. 800/2013, if a person has secured a declaration of
factual innocence from the court after having his or her
conviction set aside, the finding is grounds for payment of a
claim against the state and upon application by the petitioner,
the Board shall, without a hearing, recommend to the Legislature
an appropriation to cover the claim. Likewise, if the court
finds the petitioner has proven his or her innocence by a
preponderance of the evidence, or the court grants a writ of
habeas corpus concerning a person who is unlawfully imprisoned,
or when the court vacates a judgment for a person on the basis
of new evidence concerning a person who is no longer unlawfully
imprisoned, and the court finds the evidence points unerringly
to innocence, the Board shall, upon application by the claimant,
without a hearing, recommend to the Legislature an appropriation
to cover the petitioner's claim.
If these provisions do not apply, the claimant is required to
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introduce evidence in support of his or her claim at a hearing
before the Board, and the Attorney General (AG) may introduce
evidence in opposition. The claimant must prove, by a
preponderance of the evidence, that the crime was either not
committed at all, or, if committed, was not committed by the
claimant; that the claimant did not contribute to the arrest or
conviction for the crime; and that the claimant sustained
pecuniary injury though the erroneous conviction and
imprisonment. If a claimant meets the burden of proof, the
Board shall recommend to the Legislature that an appropriation
of $100 per day of incarceration served in a state prison
subsequent to the claimant's conviction.
Proposed Law: AB 1617 would appropriate $745,043 from specified
funds to the Board for the payment of 136 state claims. The
bill would also appropriate $1,450,200 from the General Fund to
the board for the payment of three erroneous conviction claims.
AB 1617 is an urgency measure.
Related Legislation: SB 1031 (deLeón), currently pending on the
Assembly Floor, would appropriate $776,946.59 in various state
funds, including $699,346.53 from the General Fund, to the board
for the payment of 332 state claims for reissuance of
stale-dated warrants. The bill would also appropriate $305,900
to the board for payment of the erroneous conviction claim of
Mario Rocha.
Staff Comments: Out of a total of 136 claims, 134 of them are
for stale-dated warrants, with individual claims ranging from
$60 to $43,476. The two remaining claims are $234 for a dental
coverage overcharge, and $172 for overpaid mobile home
registration fees.
Erroneous Conviction Claims .
(1) Jose Luis Diaz, binding finding of factual innocence,
$305,300.
Convicted of rape and related charges in 1984, Diaz served
10 years in state prison. In 2012, the Santa Clara D.A.
filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus based on new
evidence that pointed unerringly to the claimant's
innocence. On March 4, 2014, the court granted the writ
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and ruled that a Board hearing to determine these facts was
not required pursuant to Penal Code Section 851.86.
(2) Johnny Williams, binding finding of factual innocence,
$461,600.
Convicted of lewd and lascivious conduct against a child,
Williams served almost 13 years in state prison. In 2012,
the California DNA Project and the Northern California
Innocence Project filed a petition for writ of habeas
corpus asking that the conviction be reversed based on DNA
evidence. (Sperm samples from the victim's t-shirt
conclusively excluded Williams as the source.)
On March 8, 2013, the Alameda County D.A. conceded
Williams' factual innocence and the Alameda County Superior
Court reversed the conviction and ordered Williams released
from custody and all parole conditions. A Board hearing to
determine these facts was not required as the court
findings are binding pursuant to Penal Code Section 851.86
(SB 618, Chap. 800/2013).
(3) Francisco Carillo, binding factual findings and
credibility determinations by the court, $683,300.
Convicted of murder and six counts of attempted murder
related to a 1991 gang-related drive-by shooting, Carillo
served almost 19 years in prison. In 2010, Carillo filed a
petition for writ of habeas corpus with the L.A. Superior
Court on the basis that five of the six eyewitnesses had
recanted. The judge found that the five witnesses who
recanted were credible, and that the remaining witness who
identified Carillo as the shooter was not credible. The
court also determined that Carillo's testimony that he was
home with his father the night of the shooting was
credible. The D.A. conceded Carillo met his burden of
proof and on March 16, 2011, Carillo was released. A Board
hearing to determine these facts was not required as the
court findings are binding pursuant to Penal Code Section
490(b) 86 (SB 618, Chap. 800/2013).
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