BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 1900 Page 1 Date of Hearing: April 13, 2016 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Lorena Gonzalez, Chair AB 1900 (Jones-Sawyer) - As Amended March 31, 2016 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Policy |Judiciary |Vote:|9 - 0 | |Committee: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- Urgency: Yes State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No SUMMARY: This bill authorizes the sale of the San Pedro Courthouse. Specifically, this bill: AB 1900 Page 2 1)Authorizes Judicial Council to sell the San Pedro Courthouse, a surplus property, at fair market value, upon the terms and conditions that the Judicial Council deems in the best interests of the state, conditioned on the Council consulting with LA County on the sale and first offering the County the right to purchase the property at fair market value. 2)Provides that the proceeds from the sale shall be deposited into the Special Fund for Economic Uncertainties, and then immediately transferred to the Immediate and Critical Needs Account (ICNA) of the State Court Facilities Construction Fund. FISCAL EFFECT: Up to several million dollars of one-time revenue to the ICNA from the proceeds of the sale, less the Judicial Council's administrative costs, and ongoing savings in avoided operations and maintenance costs for the courthouse. COMMENTS: 1)Background and Purpose. As a result of budget constraints, since 2008, 53 courthouses (215 courtrooms) were closed statewide. Currently, 48 courthouses and 200 courtrooms remain closed, including eight courthouses and 78 courtrooms in LA County. In June 2013, the Superior Court of Los Angeles County closed the San Pedro Courthouse and shifted the court's caseload to the new Deukmejian Courthouse in Long Beach. Currently, there are no plans to reopen the San Pedro Courthouse. Although the San Pedro Courthouse has been vacated since its closure, the Judicial Council continues to pay for the costs of the operations and the maintenance of that site. This bill allows the Judicial Council to sell the AB 1900 Page 3 San Pedro Courthouse in accordance with authority provided to the Council under current law. 2)Immediate and Critical Needs Account. The Immediate and Critical Needs Account of the State Court Facilities Construction Fund (ICNA) was established by SB 1407 (Perata), Chapter 311, Statutes of 2008, and provides funds for court construction projects and other facility-related expenses. Under SB 1407, Judicial Council is authorized up to $5 billion in bond financing for court construction projects, to be repaid by revenues from increases in civil and criminal fines and fees and other revenue. Judicial Council initially selected 41 immediate and critical need projects. However, revenues intended for INCA projects were instead diverted for several years due to court budget shortfalls, hence two projects were cancelled and 11 projects have been delayed indefinitely. Analysis Prepared by:Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081