Amended in Assembly March 29, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2458

Introduced by Assembly Member Obernolte

February 19, 2016

An act to amend Section begin delete 77203 of end delete begin insert 68502.5 of, and to repeal and add Section 77203 of, end insert the Government Code, relating to courts.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2458, as amended, Obernolte. Courts: unexpended funds.

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Existing law, until June 30, 2014, authorized a trial court to carry unexpended funds over from one fiscal year to the next. Existing law, commencing June 30, 2014, authorizes a trial court to carry over unexpended funds in an amount not to exceed 1% of the court’s operating budget from the prior fiscal year. Existing law exempts certain funds from the calculation of the 1% authorized to be carried over from the prior fiscal year.

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This bill would repeal the 1% limitation described above, and authorize a trial court to carry unexpended funds over from one fiscal year to the next. The bill would also make conforming changes.

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Existing law, until June 30, 2014, authorized a trial court to carry unexpended funds over from one fiscal year to the next. Existing law, commencing June 30, 2014, authorizes a trial court to carry over unexpended funds in an amount not to exceed 1% of the court’s operating budget from the prior fiscal year. Existing law exempts certain funds from the calculation of the 1% authorized to be carried over from the prior fiscal year.

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This bill would, notwithstanding the provision described above, authorize a trial court to petition the Department of Finance to carry over funds in an amount greater than 1% of the court’s operating budget from the prior fiscal year. The bill would authorize the department to approve the petition if the additional funds are dedicated by the trial court to a specific technology or efficiency upgrade.

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Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  begin delete yes end delete begin insert no end insert . State-mandated local program: no.

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

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begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

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begin insert Section 68502.5 of the end insert begin insert Government Code end insert begin insert is
amended to read: end insert

68502.5.  

(a) The Judicial Council may, as part of its trial court
budget process, seek input from groups and individuals as it deems
begin delete appropriate end delete begin insert appropriate, end insert including, but not limited to, advisory
committees and the Administrative Director of the Courts. The
trial court budget process may include, but is not limited to, the
following:

(1) The receipt of budget requests from the trial courts.

(2) The review of the trial courts’ budget requests and evaluate
them against performance criteria established by the Judicial
Council by which a court’s performance, level of coordination,
and efficiency can be measured.

(3) The annual adoption of the projected cost in the subsequent
fiscal year of court begin delete operations end delete begin insert operations, end insert as defined in Section
begin delete 77003 end delete begin insert 77003, end insert for each trial court. This estimation shall serve as a
basis for recommended court budgets, which shall be developed
for comparison purposes and to delineate funding responsibilities.

(4) The annual approval of a schedule for the allocation of
moneys to individual courts and an overall trial court budget for
forwarding to the Governor for inclusion in the Governor’s
proposed State Budget. The schedule shall be based on the
performance criteria established pursuant to paragraph (2), on a
minimum standard established by the Judicial Council for the
operation and staffing of all trial court operations, and on any other
factors as determined by the Judicial Council. This minimum
standard shall be modeled on court operations using all reasonable
and available measures to increase court efficiency. The schedule
of allocations shall begin delete assure end delete begin insert ensure end insert that all trial courts receive funding
for the minimum operating and staffing standards before funding
operating and staffing requests above the minimum standards, and
shall include incentives and rewards for any trial court’s
implementation of efficiencies and cost saving measures.

(5) The reallocation of funds during the course of the fiscal year
to ensure equal access to the trial courts by the public, to improve
trial court operations, and to meet trial court emergencies. Neither
the state nor the counties shall have any obligation to replace
moneys appropriated for trial courts and reallocated pursuant to
this paragraph.

(6) The allocation of funds in the State Trial Court Improvement
and Modernization Fund to ensure equal access to trial courts by
the public, to improve trial court operations, and to meet trial court
emergencies, as expressly authorized by statute.

(7) Upon approval of the trial courts’ budget by the Legislature,
the preparation during the course of the fiscal year of allocation
schedules for payments to the trial courts, consistent with Section
68085, which shall be submitted to the Controller’s office at least
15 days before the due date of any allocation.

(8) The establishment of rules regarding a court’s authority to
transfer trial court funding moneys from one functional category
to another in order to address needs in any functional category.

(9) At the request of the presiding judge of a trial court, an
independent review of the funding level of the court to determine
whether it is adequate to enable the court to discharge its statutory
and constitutional responsibilities.

(10) From time to time, a review of the level of fees charged
by the courts for various services and prepare recommended
adjustments for forwarding to the Legislature.

(11) Provisions set forth in rules adopted pursuant to Section
77206 of the Government Code.

(b) Courts and counties shall establish procedures to allow for
the sharing of information as it relates to approved budget proposals
and expenditures that impact the respective court and county
budgets. The procedures shall include, upon the request of a court
or county, that a respective court or county shall provide the
requesting court or county a copy of its approved budget and, to
the extent possible, approved program expenditure component
information and a description of budget changes that are anticipated
to have an impact on the requesting court or county. The Judicial
Council shall provide to the Legislature on December 31, 2001,
and yearly thereafter, budget expenditure data at the program
component level for each court.

(c) (1) The Judicial Council shall retain the ultimate
responsibility to adopt a budget and allocate funding for the trial
courts and perform the other activities listed in subdivision (a) that
best begin delete assure end delete begin insert ensure end insert their ability to carry out their functions, promote
implementation of statewide policies, and promote the immediate
implementation of efficiencies and cost saving measures in court
operations, in order to guarantee equal access to the courts.

(2) (A) When setting the allocations for trial courts, the Judicial
Council shall set a preliminary allocation in July of each fiscal
year. The preliminary allocation shall include an estimate of
available trial court reserves as of June 30 of the prior fiscal year
and each court’s preliminary allocation shall be offset by the
amount of reserves begin delete in excess of the amount end delete authorized to be carried
over pursuant to begin delete subdivision (b) of end delete Section 77203. In January of
each fiscal year, after review of available trial court reserves as of
June 30 of the prior fiscal year, the Judicial Council shall finalize
allocations to trial courts and each court’s finalized allocation shall
be offset by the amount of reserves begin delete in excess of the amount end delete
authorized to be carried over pursuant to begin delete subdivision (b) of end delete Section
77203.

(B) Upon preliminary determination of the allocations to trial
courts pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Judicial Council shall set
aside 2 percent of the total funds appropriated in Program 45.10
of Item 0250-101-0932 of the annual Budget Act and these funds
shall remain in the Trial Court Trust Fund. These funds shall be
administered by the Judicial Council and be allocated to trial courts
for unforeseen emergencies, unanticipated expenses for existing
programs, or unavoidable funding shortfalls. Unavoidable funding
shortfall requests for up to 1.5 percent of these funds shall be
submitted by the trial courts to the Judicial Council no later than
October 1 of each year. The Judicial Council shall, by October 31
of each year, review and evaluate all requests submitted, select
trial courts to receive funds, and notify those selected trial courts.
By March 15 of each year, the Judicial Council shall distribute the
remaining funds if there has been a request from a trial court for
unforeseen emergencies or unanticipated expenses that has been
reviewed, evaluated, and approved. Any unexpended funds shall
be distributed to the trial courts on a prorated basis.

(C) The Judicial Council shall, no later than April 15 of each
year, report to the Legislature, pursuant to Section 9795 of the
Government Code, and to the Department of Finance all requests
and allocations made pursuant to subparagraph (B).

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begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

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begin insert Section 77203 of the end insert begin insert Government Code end insert begin insert is repealed. end insert

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77203.  

(a) Prior to June 30, 2014, a trial court may carry over
all unexpended funds from the courts operating budget from the
prior fiscal year.

(b) Commencing June 30, 2014, a trial court may carry over
unexpended funds in an amount not to exceed 1 percent of the
court’s operating budget from the prior fiscal year. The calculation
of the 1 percent authorized to be carried over from the previous
fiscal year shall not include funds received by the court pursuant
to the following:

(1) Section 470.5 of the Business and Professions Code.

(2) Section 116.230 of the Code of Civil Procedure, except for
those funds transmitted to the Controller for deposit in the Trial
Court Trust Fund pursuant to subdivision (h) of that section.

(3) Subdivision (f) of Section 13963, Sections 26731, 66006,
68090.8, 70640, 70678, and 76223, subdivision (b) of Section
77207.5, and subdivision (h) of Section 77209.

(4) The portion of filing fees collected for conversion to
micrographics pursuant to former Section 26863, as that section
read immediately before its repeal, and Section 27361.4.

(5) Sections 1027 and 1463.007, subdivision (a) of Section
1463.22, and Sections 4750 and 6005, of the Penal Code.

(6) Sections 11205.2 and 40508.6 of the Vehicle Code.

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begin insert

begin insert SEC. 3. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 77203 is added to the end insert begin insert Government Code end insert begin insert , to
read: end insert

begin insert

begin insert 77203. end insert   

A trial court may carry over all unexpended funds from
the court’s operating budget from the prior fiscal year.

end insert

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SECTION 1.  

Section 77203 of the Government Code is
amended to read:

77203.  

(a) Prior to June 30, 2014, a trial court may carry over
all unexpended funds from the court’s operating budget from the
prior fiscal year.

(b) Commencing June 30, 2014, a trial court may carry over
unexpended funds in an amount not to exceed 1 percent of the
court’s operating budget from the prior fiscal year. The calculation
of the 1 percent authorized to be carried over from the previous
fiscal year shall not include funds received by the court pursuant
to the following:

(1) Section 470.5 of the Business and Professions Code.

(2) Section 116.230 of the Code of Civil Procedure, except for
those funds transmitted to the Controller for deposit in the Trial
Court Trust Fund pursuant to subdivision (h) of that section.

(3) Subdivision (f) of Section 13963, Sections 26731, 66006,
68090.8, 70640, 70678, and 76223, subdivision (b) of Section
77207.5, and subdivision (h) of Section 77209.

(4) The portion of filing fees collected for conversion to
micrographics pursuant to former Section 26863, as that section
read immediately before its repeal, and Section 27361.4.

(5) Sections 1027 and 1463.007, subdivision (a) of Section
1463.22, and Sections 4750 and 6005, of the Penal Code.

(6) Sections 11205.2 and 40508.6 of the Vehicle Code.

(c) Notwithstanding subdivision (b), a trial court may petition
the Department of Finance to carry over funds in an amount greater
than 1 percent of the court’s operating budget from the prior fiscal
year. The Department of Finance may approve the petition if the
additional funds are dedicated by the trial court to a specific
technology or efficiency upgrade.

end delete