BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2881
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Date of Hearing: April 19, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY
Mark Stone, Chair
AB 2881
(Committee on Judiciary) - As Amended April 12, 2016
PROPOSED CONSENT
SUBJECT: CIVIL LAW: OMNIBUS BILL
KEY ISSUE: SHOULD A NUMBER OF SMALL BUT IMPORTANT TECHNICAL,
CLARIFYING, AND MOSTLY NOn-SUBSTANTIVE CHANGES TO THE CIVIL LAW
BE MADE TO VARIOUS SECTIONS OF THE CALIFORNIA CODES?
SYNOPSIS
This non-controversial bill is the Assembly Judiciary
Committee's biennial omnibus civil law bill. The purpose of the
omnibus bill is to increase the efficiency of the legislative
process, conserve legislative resources, and eliminate the need
to unnecessarily hear a number of technical, clarifying, or
modest stand-alone bills that might otherwise have to be
introduced and heard separately through the legislative process.
This year's omnibus bill incorporates various proposals
submitted by various groups seeking to make technical,
clarifying, or other modest changes to civil law, including the
State Controller's Office, the California Law Revision
Commission, The Trust and Estates Section of the State Bar,
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Western Manufactured Housing Communities Association, Deposition
Reporters Association of California, and the California
Newspaper Publishers Association. It is believed that most, if
not all of these provisions are non-controversial. The omnibus
bill has no opposition on file.
SUMMARY: Makes various changes to the California codes as part
of the Committee's civil law omnibus bill. Specifically, this
bill:
1)Establishes public notice districts as the place for the
publication of notice as provided, and repeals provisions
regarding judicial districts, as provided.
2)Adds "mobilehome" to the notice provided by a hosting platform
to occupants listing a residence for short-term rental on a
hosting platform.
3)Requires the Controller to establish and maintain trial court
revenue distribution guidelines.
4)Redefines a "capital asset" as property with an estimated life
of one year or greater, other than inventory, for the purpose
of trust planning.
5)Extends the sunset relating to non-certification of a court
reporter's instant visual display of testimony or proceedings.
6)Clarifies the definition of "officer" in the California Public
Records Act.
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7)Makes other technical and conforming changes.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Provides that where judicial districts in a county have been
consolidated, or where the municipal and superior courts in a
county have unified, the territory embraced within the
respective prior component judicial districts shall be
separate judicial districts for the purpose of publication
within a judicial district. (Government Code Section
71042.5.)
2)Requires a county recorder to keep on file a map approved by
the county surveyor establishing the boundaries of a judicial
district, as provided, that shows the boundaries of all
consolidated or unified districts and component districts as
of the date of consolidation or unification. (Government Code
Section 71042.6.)
3)Requires a hosting platform to provide a notice, as specified,
to occupants listing a residence for short-term rental on a
hosting platform. (Business and Professions Code Section
22592.)
4)Requires the Controller to establish, supervise, and as
necessary revise a uniform accounting system, including a
system of audit, to the end that all fines, penalties,
forfeitures, and fees assessed by courts, and their collection
and appropriate disbursement, shall be properly and uniformly
accounted for. (Government Code Section 71380.)
5)Requires each installment or partial payment of a fine,
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penalty, forfeiture or fee to be prorated among the state and
local shares according to the uniform accounting system
established by the State Controller, as provided. (Penal Code
Section 1462.5.)
6)Defines "capital asset" as defined in Section 1221 of the
Internal Revenue Code for purposes of allocations of receipts
during the administration of a trust. (Probate Code Section
16350.)
7)Provides that the report of the official reporter, or official
reporter pro tempore, of any court, duly appointed and sworn,
when transcribed and certified as being a correct transcript
of the testimony and proceedings in the case, is prima facie
evidence of that testimony and proceedings. (Code of Civil
Procedure Section 273.)
8)Provides that until January 1, 2017, the instant visual
display of the testimony or proceedings, or both, shall not be
certified and cannot be used, cited, distributed, or
transcribed as the official certified transcript of the
proceedings. Further provides that until January 1, 2017, the
instant visual display of the testimony or proceedings, or
both, shall not be cited or used in any way or at any time to
rebut or contradict the official certified transcript of the
proceedings as provided by the official reporter or official
reporter pro tempore. (Ibid.)
9)Defines civil executive officers of the state, as provided.
(Government Code Sections 1001.)
FISCAL EFFECT: As currently in print this bill is keyed fiscal.
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COMMENTS: This bill is the Assembly Judiciary Committee's
biennial omnibus civil law bill. The purpose of the omnibus
bill is intended to increase the efficiency of the legislative
process, conserve legislative resources, and eliminate the need
to unnecessarily hear a number of technical, clarifying, or
modest stand-alone bills that might otherwise have to be
introduced and heard separately through the legislative process.
Although it appears that most-if not all of these
provisions-are non-controversial, this analysis provides a brief
review of most of this bill's provisions.
Implements recommendations by the California Law Revision
Commission involving the publication of certain legal notices.
Under existing law, certain types of notices must be published
in a "judicial district" - for example, a notice of a
foreclosure sale, or a sale of stored property. Judicial
districts were originally established for the business and
elections of the courts of limited jurisdiction. However, due
to court consolidation, these boundaries have largely become
obsolete; and yet, current law still requires certain notices to
be published in a judicial district. Additionally, the
boundaries of these judicial districts are often difficult to
find. Indeed, this Committee has learned that some
jurisdictions no longer have these maps on hand, and parties who
file the required notices must go to a private company to
retrieve them in order to fully comply with the law.
Accordingly, it seems safe to say that some notices may be
published in the wrong location, raising questions about the
legal validity of that notice. This bill implements the work of
the Law Revision Commission which has painstakingly reviewed and
retrieved historical judicial district maps, and has established
new "public notice districts." Under this bill, the public
notice districts are described by reference to cities and towns
- hewing closely to areas of historical judicial districts.
This bill, consistent with other Law Revision
Commission-sponsored bills, maintains the Legislature's intent
in establishing public notice districts for public notice
purposes, minimizes disruption to the current practice, and
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reduces any confusion for parties.
Clarifies that "mobilehome" is part of the various residences
included in a notice required by a hosting platform that
facilitates the rental of residential units. SB 761 (Hall,
Chap. 239, Stats. 2015) requires a hosting platform that
facilitates the rental of residential units offered for tourist
or transient use, as defined, to provide a notice to the
occupant listing the residence. The notice specifies various
residences (e.g. room, home, condominium, apartment) but
inadvertently leaves out the term "mobilehome." This bill makes
that update and statutory correction.
Provides additional clarity to the distinct accounting roles
performed by the Judicial Council and the State Controller over
state trial courts. The Judicial Council and the State
Controller have important and distinct roles in overseeing our
trial courts. Generally, the Judicial Council oversees the
trial courts' budgetary, fiscal, and accounting procedures,
whereas the State Controller oversees trial court audits and
provides guidelines on the distribution of trial court revenues,
such as fines, fees, and penalties assessed by the courts.
Currently, the Judicial Council consults with the State
Controller to maintain appropriate regulations for recordkeeping
and accounting by the courts. However, current law does not
properly reflect the distinctive roles of the Judicial Council
and the State Controller. This bill clears up the division of
responsibilities between the Judicial Council and the State
Controller by clarifying that the State Controller maintains
trial court revenue distribution guidelines, and not accounting
systems.
Clarifies the definition of "capital asset" for the purpose of
trust planning. Generally, the characterization of money paid
into a trust (either income or principal) can determine who gets
the benefit of the distribution for certain trusts: income goes
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to the income- or life beneficiaries, while principal goes to
the remainder beneficiaries. Current law establishes default
rules to determine what is "income" and "principal." Currently,
distributions from a business entity are considered income,
unless an exception applies. One of these exceptions is the
proceeds from the sale of a business entity's capital assets.
In that instance, those distributions are considered principal.
As it stands, the definition of capital asset restates the
definition under federal tax law. However, the federal
definition does not capture certain kinds of property used in a
person's trade or business commonly distributed to trusts (e.g.
proceeds from the sale of depreciable real property). This
narrow definition has created confusion on what is considered
income or principal, and is inconsistent with the intent of
parties who create trusts. This bill updates this definition,
and redefines a capital asset as property with an estimated life
of one year or greater, other than inventory.
Extends the sunset relating to non-certification of a court
reporter's instant visual display of testimony or proceedings.
AB 170 (Mendoza, Chap. 87, Stats. 2009) provides that a court
reporter's instant visual display of testimony or proceedings
(commonly known as "real-time reporting"), or both, may not be
certified and cannot be used, cited, distributed, or transcribed
as the official transcript of the proceedings. This provision
of law will sunset on January 1, 2017. In order to allow the
Legislature additional time to assess the technology of
real-time reporting to ensure that it can provide access to
justice, to a level similar to traditional court reporting
services, this bill extends the sunset to 2022.
Clarifies the definition of "officer" in the California Public
Records Act. Under the California Public Records Act, any
"state agency" is required to disclose public records unless it
is subject to an exemption. Currently, a "state agency" is
defined as any "state office, officer, department, division,
bureau, board, and commission or other state body or agency,"
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excluding the legislature and the courts. However, the statute
does not define "officer." While the meaning of "officer" would
appear to have the same meaning of "executive officers" provided
under Section 1001 of the Government Code, the law is unclear as
to whether members of state commissions are "officers" for
purposes of the CPRA. This bill makes that update and statutory
correction.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
California Law Revision Commission
State Controller Betty Yee
Western Manufactured Housing Communities Association
The Trusts and Estates Section of the State Bar (TEXCOM)
Deposition Reporters Association of California
California Newspaper Publishers Association
Opposition
AB 2881
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None on file
Analysis Prepared by:Eric Dang / JUD. / (916) 319-2334