BILL ANALYSIS Ó
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Kevin de León, Chair
SB 371 (De León) - Claims against the state.
Amended: April 10, 2013 Policy Vote: None
Urgency: Yes Mandate: No
Hearing Date: April 15, 2013
Consultant: Mark McKenzie
This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.
Pursuant to the committee's rules, the Suspense File rule does
not apply to the provisions of this bill as judgments and
settlement are considered valid obligations of the state.
Additionally, judgments and settlements may have time
sensitivity.
Bill Summary: SB 371, an urgency measure, would appropriate
$15,557,808 from the General Fund to the Department of Justice
(DOJ) to pay two settlements. Any funds appropriated in excess
of the amounts required for payment of these claims shall revert
to the General Fund
Fiscal Impact: One-time General Fund appropriation of
$15,557,808 from the General Fund to DOJ in 2012-13 according to
the following schedule:
$40,000 to pay the settlement in Doe v. State of
California, Los Angeles Superior Court, Case No. BC445151.
$15,517,808 to pay the settlement in Ragatz v. State of
California (CalFire), Solano Superior Court, Case No.
FCSO38995.
Background: This bill is one of several annual bills carried by
the chairs of the Appropriations Committees to provide
appropriation authority for legal settlements approved by DOJ
and the Department of Finance (DOF). These settlements were
entered into lawfully by the state upon advice of counsel (DOJ).
They are binding state obligations.
Proposed Law: This bill would appropriate General Fund revenues
to pay the following claims against the state:
Doe v. State of California
SB 371 (De León)
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Los Angeles Superior Court, Case No. BC445151
$40,000 settlement
On September 10, 2010, the plaintiffs filed suit, alleging that
the State and then-Governor Schwarzenegger, in his official
capacity, had failed to ensure that public school districts do
not charge impermissible pupil fees. Plaintiffs also filed a
first amendment complaint on April 7, 2011, alleging that the
State and a number of individually-named state officials and
departments (Education defendants) failed to ensure that public
school districts do not charge impermissible student fees.
Governor Brown's signing of AB 1575 (Lara), Chap 776/2012, on
September 29, 2012, has provided the plaintiffs with the relief
they sought by their first amended complaint, with the exception
of attorney's fees. AB 1575 prohibits the assessment of fees by
public schools on pupils for specified educational activities,
requires the State Department of Education to distribute
guidance to public schools regarding pupil fees, and establishes
a complaint process to address allegations of the imposition of
unlawful pupil fees.
Plaintiffs' counsel, the American Civil Liberties Union, billed
approximately $192,000 in fees and costs in litigating this
case. On the grounds of the catalyst theory, plaintiffs
requested $95,000 in attorney's fees to settle the case, $47,500
from the State, and $47,500 from the Education defendants. To
avoid the expense of litigating the attorney's fees issue, the
parties have agreed to resolve the attorney's fees and specify
the form of dismissal of this matter through agreement. The
State Department of Education and the State Board of Education
have agreed to the proposed settlement and have made payment
from existing resources, while DOJ negotiated a reduced amount
of $40,000. The petitioners had a strong basis for an
attorney's fees claim based on the catalyst theory of recovery.
Ragatz v. State of California (CalFire)
Solano Superior Court, Case No. FCSO38995
$15,517,808 settlement
This is a personal injury claim arising from a traffic accident.
On July 14, 2011, an employee of the Department of Forestry and
Fire Protection (CalFire) was responding to a fire in Yolo
County. The employee failed to move his vehicle completely off
the freeway prior to stopping, and failed to engage the
SB 371 (De León)
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vehicle's hazard lights. Ms. Ragatz sustained permanent,
life-altering brain injuries when her vehicle collided with the
State fire vehicle, which may have been obscured by smoke. On
December 9, 2011, Ms. Ragatz, by and through her conservator,
filed a personal injury suit. The plaintiff is young, faces
uncertain employment prospects, and a lifetime of care. A
settlement agreement was reached through mediation on December
17, 2012. The Attorney General's Office has evaluated the
State's liability and has concluded that the $15 million
settlement is an appropriate amount to resolve this litigation.
The settlement agreement includes 6 months of interest applied
to the settlement amount at a rate of 7 percent.