BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    






                                          
                     SENATE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS COMMITTEE
                              Senator Ray Haynes, Chair



          BILL NO: ACA 15                  HEARING: June 20, 2002
          AUTHOR: Howard Wayne             FISCAL: No
          VERSION: April 2, 2002           CHIEF COUNSEL: Scott Johnson
          REFERRED: Sen Jud (6-0) 6/11/02


                                 Court Consolidation

           SUMMARY  

          Sponsored by the California Law Review Commission, this measure  
          would amend California's Constitution to delete obsolete  
          references to the municipal courts as part of the State's trial  
          court structure.


           BACKGROUND  

          Municipal courts have been eliminated in California subsequent  
          to the passage of SCA 4 of 1996 approved by the voters as  
          Proposition 220 on the June 2, 1998 ballot.  That measure  
          provided that the municipal and superior courts within a county  
          shall be unified upon a majority vote of the superior court  
          judges and a majority vote of the municipal court judges within  
          each county pursuant to Article VI, Section 5(e) of the  
          Constitution.  By July 2001 all 58 counties had merged their  
          superior and municipal courts.  However, various references  
          remain in the State Constitution and this measure will delete  
          those obsolete references as well as make conforming and related  
          changes.


           ANALYSIS  

          This proposed constitutional amendment would:

          1.  Delete a reference to municipal courts in Section 1 of  
          Article VI of the Constitution, vesting the judicial power of  
          the state in its various courts.











          2.  Repeal Section 5 of Article VI of the Constitution governing  
          the organization of the municipal courts.

          3.  Provide that the Judicial Council shall consist of the Chief  
          Justice, one other judge of the Supreme Court, three judges of  
          courts of appeal, ten judges of superior courts, two nonvoting  
          court administrators and any other nonvoting members as  
          determined by the voting membership of the Council, each  
          appointed by the Chief Justice for a three year term; four  
          members of the State Bar appointed by its governing body for  
          three year terms, and one member of each house of the  
          Legislature appointed as provided by the house.

          4.  Provide that the Commission on Judicial Performance consists  
          of one judge of a court of appeal and two judges of superior  
          courts, each appointed by the Supreme Court; two members of the  
          State Bar of California who have practiced law for 10 years,  
          appointed by the Governor, and six citizens who are not judges,  
          retired judges, or members of the State Bar, two appointed by  
          the Governor, two by the Senate Rules Committee, and two by the  
          Speaker of the Assembly.

          5.  Eliminate a reference to original jurisdiction for trial  
          courts other than superior courts.

          6.  Eliminate provisions setting standards for eligibility to be  
          a municipal court judge.

          7.  Eliminate provisions regarding election of municipal court  
          judges; and

          8.  Create a sunset date of January 1, 2007 for transitional  
          provisions governing the implementation of the unification of  
          municipal and superior courts.  These provisions govern the  
          transition of the courts' employees, records, and proceedings.


           COMMENTS 

          A two-thirds (2/3) vote of each house and majority of the voters  
          must approve this non-controversial amendment to the  
          Constitution.  The author hopes to place ACA 15 on the November  
          5, 2002 ballot.  The Secretary of the State has established June  
          27, 2002 as the deadline for measures to qualify for the  










          November ballot.
           

          NOTE:   Statutory cleanup to trial court consolidation is  
          embodied in SB 1316 (Senate Judiciary Committee bill) currently  
          pending in the Assembly Judiciary Committee.


           SUPPORT
           California Law Revision Commission (Sponsor)
           
          OPPOSITION  
          None know