BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 504|
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 504
Author: Lara (D)
Amended: 7/14/15
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
SENATE FLOOR: 25-13, 6/2/15
AYES: Allen, Beall, Block, De León, Galgiani, Glazer, Hall,
Hancock, Hernandez, Hertzberg, Hill, Hueso, Lara, Leno, Leyva,
Liu, McGuire, Mendoza, Mitchell, Monning, Pan, Pavley, Roth,
Wieckowski, Wolk
NOES: Anderson, Bates, Berryhill, Cannella, Fuller, Gaines,
Huff, Moorlach, Morrell, Nguyen, Nielsen, Stone, Vidak
NO VOTE RECORDED: Jackson, Runner
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 58-19, 8/31/15 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Court records: sealing
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
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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.
Assembly Amendments provide that a court is not prohibited from
enforcing a civil judgment for an unfulfilled order of
restitution, and a minor is not relieved from the obligation to
pay victim restitution, restitution fines, and court-ordered
fines and fees because the minor's records are sealed. The
amendments additionally specify that a victim or a local
collection program may continue to enforce victim restitution
orders, restitution fines, and court-ordered fines and fees
after a record is sealed and the juvenile court shall have
access to any records that have been sealed for the limited
purposes of enforcing a civil judgment or restitution order, as
specified.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)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.
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2)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.
3)States that any person who was under the age of 18 when he or
she was arrested for a misdemeanor, may petition the court in
which the proceedings occurred or, if there were no court
proceedings, the court in whose jurisdiction the arrest
occurred, for an order sealing the records in the case,
including any records of arrest and detention, in certain
circumstances.
This bill:
1)Provides that only a person 26 years of age or older may be
charged a fee for petitioning the court for an order sealing
his or her record.
2)Prohibits an unfulfilled order of restitution that has been
converted to a civil judgment from barring the sealing of a
record pursuant to provisions of law related to sealing of
juvenile records.
3)States that outstanding restitution fines and court-ordered
fees shall not be considered when assessing whether a
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petitioner's rehabilitation has been attained to the
satisfaction of the court and shall not be a bar to sealing a
record.
4)Recasts provisions within the existing statute into new
subdivisions.
5)Provides that a court is not prohibited from enforcing a civil
judgment for an unfulfilled order of restitution and a minor
is not relieved from the obligation to pay victim restitution,
restitution fines, and court-ordered fines and fees because
the minor's records are sealed.
6)Specifies that a victim or a local collection program may
continue to enforce victim restitution orders, restitution
fines, and court-ordered fines and fees after a record is
sealed and the juvenile court shall have access to any records
sealed pursuant to the provisions in this bill for the limited
purposes of enforcing a civil judgment or restitution order.
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,
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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
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 Assembly Appropriations Committee, potentially
moderate state-reimbursable costs (General Fund) by removing
county and city authority to charge a fee to recoup actual
costs, in the $100,000 to $150,000 range. Although some
counties and cities do not currently charge a fee, this bill
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prohibits local agencies from ever charging a fee to recoup such
costs. According to some estimates, the average cost is about
$102. However, in some cases, this cost includes trial court
costs and the actual cost to the County Probation Department is
less than $100. If mandate claims were submitted for 1,500
petitions statewide for which fees could not be charged, the
reimbursable state mandated cost would be less than $150,000.
SUPPORT: (Verified8/31/15)
California Public Defenders Association (co-source)
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children (co-source)
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
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OPPOSITION: (Verified8/31/15)
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.
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
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ability to positively contribute to our state, which
is the ultimate goal of our corrections and
rehabilitation system.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 58-19, 8/31/15
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brown, Burke,
Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh,
Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia,
Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Roger Hernández,
Holden, Irwin, Jones-Sawyer, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez,
Low, Maienschein, McCarty, Medina, Mullin, Nazarian,
O'Donnell, Olsen, Perea, Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas,
Rodriguez, Santiago, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Waldron,
Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins
NOES: Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Brough, Chávez, Dahle, Beth
Gaines, Gallagher, Grove, Harper, Jones, Kim, Mathis,
Melendez, Obernolte, Patterson, Salas, Steinorth, Wagner
NO VOTE RECORDED: Chang, Hadley, Mayes
Prepared by:Alison Anderson / PUB. S. /
8/31/15 19:58:27
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