BILL ANALYSIS Ó
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 504|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 504
Author: Lara (D)
Amended: 6/1/15
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE: 5-2, 4/21/15
AYES: Hancock, Leno, Liu, McGuire, Monning
NOES: Anderson, Stone
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 5-2, 5/28/15
AYES: Lara, Beall, Hill, Leyva, Mendoza
NOES: Bates, Nielsen
SUBJECT: Juvenile records
SOURCE: California Public Defenders Association
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children
DIGEST: This bill limits certain cost liabilities related to
sealing juvenile records to persons over the age of 26, as
specified, and provides that in considering a petition to seal
certain juvenile records, an unfulfilled order of restitution
shall not be a bar to sealing, and outstanding restitution fines
and court-ordered fees shall not be considered when assessing a
petitioner's rehabilitation nor be a bar to sealing a record, as
specified.
ANALYSIS:
SB 504
Page 2
Existing law:
1)Provides that a person who was under the age of 18 at the time
of the commission of a misdemeanor and is eligible for or has
previously received expungement relief, may petition the court
for an order sealing the record of conviction and other
official records in the case, including records of arrests
resulting in the criminal proceeding and records relating to
other offenses charged in the accusatory pleading, whether
defendant was acquitted or charges were dismissed. Thereafter
the conviction, arrest, or other proceeding shall be deemed
not to have occurred, and the petitioner may answer
accordingly any question relating to their occurrence. (Pen.
Code § 1203.45, subd. (a).)
2)States that a person who petitions for an order sealing a
record may be required to reimburse the court for the actual
cost of services rendered, whether or not the petition is
granted and the records are sealed or expunged, at a rate to
be determined by the court, not to exceed $150, and to
reimburse the county for the actual cost of services rendered,
whether or not the petition is granted and the records are
sealed or expunged, at a rate to be determined by the county
board of supervisors, not to exceed $150, and to reimburse any
city for the actual cost of services rendered, whether or not
the petition is granted and the records are sealed or
expunged, at a rate to be determined by the city council, not
to exceed $150. Ability to make this reimbursement shall be
determined by the court and shall not be a prerequisite to a
person's eligibility under this section. The court may order
reimbursement in a case in which the petitioner appears to
have the ability to pay, without undue hardship, all or any
portion of the cost for services established pursuant to this
subdivision. (Pen. Code § 1203.45, subd. (g).)
3)Provides that the "father, mother, spouse, or other person
liable for the support of a minor person, the person himself
or herself if he or she is an adult, or the estates of those
persons shall, unless indigent, be liable for the cost to the
county and court for any investigation related to the sealing
and for the sealing of any juvenile court or arrest records
SB 504
Page 3
pursuant to Section 781 pertaining to that person. The
liability of those persons and estates shall be a joint and
several liability." (Welf. & Inst. Code § 903.3(a).)
4)Provides in the event a petition is filed for an order sealing
a record, the father, mother, spouse, or other person liable
for the support of a minor, that person if he or she is an
adult, or the estate of that person, may be required to
reimburse the county and court for the actual cost of services
rendered, whether or not the petition is granted and the
records are sealed or expunged, at a rate to be determined by
the county board of supervisors for the county and by the
court for the court, not to exceed $150. Ability to make this
reimbursement shall be determined by the court and shall not
be a prerequisite to a person's eligibility under this
section. The court may order reimbursement in any case in
which the petitioner appears to have the ability to pay,
without undue hardship, all or any portion of the cost for
services. (Welf. & Inst. Code § 903.3, subd. (b).)
5)Provides that the father, mother, spouse, or other person
liable for the support of the minor, the person himself or
herself if he or she is an adult, the estate of that person,
or the estate of the minor, shall not be liable for the costs
described in this section if a petition to declare the minor a
dependent child of the court is dismissed at or before the
jurisdictional hearing, as specified. (Welf. & Inst. Code §
903.3(c).
6)Provides that five years or more after the jurisdiction of the
juvenile court has terminated over a person adjudged a ward of
the court or after a minor appeared before a probation
officer, or, in any case, at any time after the person has
reached the age of 18, the person or county probation officer,
with specified exceptions, may petition the juvenile court for
sealing of the records, including arrest records, relating to
the person's case, in the custody of the juvenile court, the
probation officer, or any other agency or public official.
(Welf. & Inst. Code § 781(a).) Current law provides that once
the court has ordered the person's records sealed, the
proceedings in the case shall be deemed never to have
SB 504
Page 4
occurred, and the person may reply accordingly to any inquiry
about the events. (Id.)
7)Requires the juvenile court to order the petition of a minor
who is subject to the jurisdiction of the court dismissed if
the minor satisfactorily completes a term of probation or an
informal program of supervision, as specified, and requires
the court to seal all records in the custody of the juvenile
court pertaining to that dismissed petition, except as
specified. (Welf. & Inst. Code § 786.)
This bill:
1)Limits the records sealing payment provisions described above
to persons who are 26 years of age and older.
2)Revises the provision described above concerning liability
provide instead that a person who is 26 years of age or older
shall, unless indigent, be liable for the cost to the county
and court for any investigation related to the sealing and for
the sealing of any juvenile court or arrest records pursuant
to Section 781 pertaining to that person, and makes additional
technical changes.
3)Revises the provision described above concerning petitioning
the court to seal juvenile records to provide that an
unfulfilled order of restitution that has been converted to a
civil judgment shall not be a bar to sealing a record, as
specified.
4)Revises the provision described above concerning petitioning
the court to seal juvenile records to provide that outstanding
restitution fines and court-ordered fees shall not be
considered when assessing whether a petitioner's
rehabilitation has been attained to the satisfaction of the
court and shall not be a bar to sealing a record, as
specified.
SB 504
Page 5
5)Revises the provision described above concerning petitioning
the court to seal juvenile records to technically recast the
statute's language.
Background
Existing law states that a person who petitions for an order
sealing a juvenile misdemeanor record may be required to
reimburse the court for the actual cost of services rendered,
whether or not the petition is granted and the records are
sealed or expunged, at a rate to be determined by the court, not
to exceed $150, and to reimburse any county for the actual cost
of services rendered, whether or not the petition is granted, at
a rate to be determined by the county board of supervisors, not
to exceed $150, and to reimburse any city for the actual cost of
services rendered, whether or not the petition is granted, at a
rate to be determined by the city council, not to exceed $150.
(Pen. Code § 1203.45(g).)
Existing law further provides that the "father, mother, spouse,
or other person liable for the support of a minor person, the
person himself or herself if he or she is an adult, or the
estates of those persons, unless indigent," be liable for the
cost to the county and court for any investigation related to
the sealing and for the sealing of any juvenile court or arrest
records pertaining to that person. Upon a petition filed for an
order sealing a record, the father, mother, spouse, or other
person liable for the support of the minor, that person if he or
she is an adult, or the estate of that person, may be required
to reimburse the county and court for the actual cost of
services rendered, whether or not the petition is granted and
the records sealed or expunged, at a rate to be determined by
the county board of supervisors and court, respectively, not to
exceed $150. (Welf. & Inst. Code § 903.3(a)-(b).)
Ability to make these reimbursements is to be determined by the
court and shall not be a prerequisite to a person's eligibility.
The court may order reimbursement in a case which the petitioner
appears to have the ability to pay, without undue hardship, all
SB 504
Page 6
or any portion of the cost for services established.
Existing law provides that five years or more after the
jurisdiction of the juvenile court has terminated over a person
adjudged a ward of the court or after a minor appeared before a
probation officer, or in any case at any time after the person
has reached the age of 18, the person or county probation
officer, with specified exceptions, may petition the juvenile
court for sealing of the records, including arrest records,
relating to the person's case, as specified.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: Yes
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Potential ongoing revenue loss to courts and counties
potentially in the range of $200,000 (Local/General Fund) due
to the prohibition on charging a fee to a person under 26
years of age to seal his or her juvenile record.
Potentially significant state-reimbursable costs (General
Fund) by removing county and city authority to charge a fee to
recoup actual costs. Although counties and cities may not
currently be charging a fee, this bill prohibits local
agencies from ever charging a fee to recoup such costs.
SUPPORT: (Verified5/29/15)
California Public Defenders Association (co-source)
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children (co-source)
SB 504
Page 7
Alliance for Boys and Men of Color
All of Us or None
American Civil Liberties Union of California
American Friends Service Committee
A New Way of Life Re-Entry Project
Asian Americans Advancing Justice
At The Crossroads
Berkeley Youth Alternatives
California Attorneys for Criminal Justice
California Coalition for Women Prisoners
Californians for Safety and Justice
Californians United for a Responsible Budget
Community Works' Project WHAT!
City of Richmond
Courage Campaign
Dignity and Power Now
Drug Policy Alliance
Ella Baker Center for Human Rights
Justice Now
Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay
Area
National Association of Social Workers, California Chapter
National Center for Lesbian Rights
National Center for Youth Law
National Employment Law Project
RYSE Youth Center
Urban Peace Movement
The W. Haywood Burns Institute
OPPOSITION: (Verified5/29/15)
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT:
The author states in part:
Under current law, the records-sealing fee serves as
an obstacle for a youth's successful reentry.
SB 504
Page 8
Adjudicated youth who seek to clear their records must
pay $150 to petition the court to seal his or her
records. Filing the petition is a risk, because
payment does not guarantee expungement, yet many of
these youth have minor misdemeanors and will be
eligible for expungement.
The current law is cost-prohibitive and
counterintuitive. Without sealed records, these youth
will have limited opportunities and will likely
recidivate. When employers and landlords conduct
background checks on applicants, a juvenile record can
be used as a basis for a denial. Sealing records is
the best way to ensure that these youth's past
mistakes do not continuously hinder their future
opportunities. As long as the fee remains as an
obstacle to these youth's rehabilitation, record
sealing is an ineffective tool. . . .
Ultimately, SB 504 will improve economic outcomes for
California's youth by eliminating a fiscal barrier to
reentry and reducing the chances of recidivism. By
eliminating the fee for record sealing for youth under
twenty-six, SB 504 will also increase young people's
ability to positively contribute to our state, which
is the ultimate goal of our corrections and
rehabilitation system.
Prepared by:Alison Anderson / PUB. S. /
6/1/15 18:45:03
**** END ****