BILL ANALYSIS
------------------------------------------------------------
|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1536|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|1020 N Street, Suite 524 | |
|(916) 445-6614 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
------------------------------------------------------------
THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1536
Author: Cardenas (D), et al
Amended: 8/30/01 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE : 5-0, 6/26/01
AYES: McPherson, Burton, Margett, Polanco, Vasconcellos
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 8-3, 9/6/01
AYES: Alpert, Bowen, Burton, Escutia, Karnette, Murray,
Perata, Speier
NOES: Battin, Johnson, Poochigian
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 67-6, 6/5/01 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Juvenile justice: Truancy Court Pilot Project
SOURCE : Los Angeles Superior Court, Juvenile Division,
Hon. Terry
Friedman
DIGEST : This bill creates the Truancy Court Pilot
Project in Los Angeles, as specified.
ANALYSIS : Current law provides that any minor who has
four or more truancies within one school year is under the
jurisdiction of the juvenile court and may be judged a ward
of the court.
Current law creates the truancy mediation program to assist
in the resolution of juveniles who are habitually absent
CONTINUED
AB 1536
Page
2
from school.
This bill creates the Truancy Court Pilot Project in Los
Angeles with the following features:
1. One Division of the Juvenile Court in Los Angeles
This bill provides that, as "a pilot project, one
division of the juvenile court in Los Angeles County
selected by the Judicial Council shall be devoted solely
to issues involving truancy in violation of Section 601
of the Welfare and Institutions Code, to be known as the
'truancy court.'"
2. Jurisdiction
This bill requires that the truancy court "have
jurisdiction over the parents or guardians of a truant,
as well as the truant, but shall exercise such
jurisdiction only upon referral by the truant's school,
the School Attendance Review Board, and the Los Angeles
County Truancy Mediation Program, following their
diligent attempts to resolve the minor's truancy
problem."
3. Truancy Hearing
Truancy court hearing shall be conducted in juvenile
courts geographically located throughout Los Angeles
County to ensure that all residents of the county have
access to the truancy court without placing an undue
hardship on the minors and their families who appear in
the court. The truancy court shall ensure that no minor
and his or her parent or parents or legal guardian or
guardians shall be required to attend a truancy court
hearing that is conducted in a court which is located
more than 30 miles from the juvenile court nearest the
residence of the minor and his or her parent or parents
or legal guardian or guardians. The truancy court may
take steps to ensure that the minor and his or her parent
or parents or legal guardian or guardians are provided
transportation assistance to access the truancy court
without undue hardship.
AB 1536
Page
3
4. Staffing and Collaboration
This bill requires the truancy court to "be staffed by a
team of professionals, including a district attorney,
public defender, school district liaison, probation
officer, mental health professional, special education
expert, and case manager who volunteer for assignment to
the truancy court, to consider and discuss the
circumstances of each case and attempt to reach consensus
on the action plan prior to a court hearing."
5. Coordination
This bill requires the Los Angeles Countywide Criminal
Justice Coordinating Council to coordinate the pilot
project.
6. Evaluation and Reports
The Juvenile Division of the Los Angeles Superior Court
will be required to prepare and submit to the
Legislature, on or before April 15, 2004, an evaluation
of the Truancy Court Pilot Project. This evaluation
shall identify outcome measures to determine the
effectiveness of the pilot project, which shall include,
but not be limited to, all of the following, to the
extent that data is available:
A. The number of cases handled by the truancy courts.
B. The attendance rates or other appropriate outcome
measures for youth handled by the truancy court
compared to youth handled by other juvenile courts in
Los Angeles.
C. Quantification of the annual per capita costs of
the truancy court compared to the costs of handling
truancy matters in other juvenile courts in Los
Angeles.
7. Appropriation
The bill appropriates the sum of $750,000 from the
General Fund to the Judicial Council for disbursement in
AB 1536
Page
4
accordance with the purposes of this act.
8. Sunset
This bill sunsets these provisions on January 1, 2004.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2001-02 2002-03
2003-04 Fund
LA truancy pilot $750* $1,500
$1,500 General
*Appropriated in the bill
SUPPORT : (Verified 9/6/01)
Los Angeles Superior Court, Juvenile Division, Hon. Terry
Friedman (source)
Juvenile Court Judges of California
Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors
Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department
Los Angeles County Probation Union, AFSCME, Local 685
Los Angeles Police Department
Judicial Council
Trial Courts' Consolidated Legislation Committee
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The author's office states:
"Existing law provides for making habitually truant
minors a ward of the juvenile court (Welfare and
Institutions Code sec. 601.). This bill would provide
that, as a pilot project, one division of the juvenile
court in Los Angeles County selected by the Judicial
Council shall be devoted solely to issues involving
truancy, which would have jurisdiction over the parents
or guardians of a truant, but shall exercise such
jurisdiction only upon referral by specified agencies.
AB 1536
Page
5
"This bill seeks to remedy the problem of pupil
truancy, which is one predictor of future criminal
behavior and often leads to escalating negative
behavior. The current system of addressing truancy
cases prior to court intervention, School Attendance
Review Boards or SARBs, operate at varying levels of
efficiency and effectiveness.
"Also, most truancy cases do not get adequate attention
and priority in delinquency courts with calendars full
of serious crimes.
"In addition, the pilot project would be composed of a
multi-disciplinary team made up of a delinquency court
judge, a district attorney, public defender, school
district liaison, probation officer, mental health
professional, special education expert, and case
manager who volunteer for assignment to the truancy
court, to consider and discuss the circumstances of
each case and attempt to reach consensus on the action
plan prior to a court hearing."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Aanestad, Alquist, Aroner, Bates, Bogh, Briggs,
Calderon, Canciamilla, Cardenas, Cardoza, Chan, Chavez,
Chu, Cogdill, Cohn, Corbett, Correa, Cox, Daucher, Diaz,
Dickerson, Dutra, Firebaugh, Florez, Frommer, Goldberg,
Harman, Havice, Horton, Jackson, Keeley, Kehoe, Kelley,
La Suer, Leach, Leslie, Liu, Longville, Lowenthal,
Maddox, Maldonado, Matthews, Migden, Mountjoy, Nakano,
Nation, Negrete McLeod, Oropeza, Robert Pacheco, Papan,
Pavley, Pescetti, Reyes, Richman, Salinas, Shelley,
Simitian, Steinberg, Strickland, Strom-Martin, Thomson,
Vargas, Wayne, Wesson, Wiggins, Wright, Hertzberg
NOES: Ashburn, Bill Campbell, John Campbell, Leonard, Rod
Pacheco, Runner
RJG:cm 9/6/01 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
**** END ****