BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1712
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 3, 2005
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY
Dave Jones, Chair
AB 1712 (Hancock) - As Amended: April 11, 2005
SUBJECT : DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
KEY ISSUE : SHOULD THE CITY OF BERKELEY, WHICH OPERATES ITS OWN
HEALTH DEPARTMENT WITHIN ALAMEDA COUNTY, BE AUTHORIZED TO RAISE
FEES FOR CERTIFIED COPIES OF MARRIAGE CERTIFICATES, AND BIRTH
AND DEATH RECORDS BY UP TO $2, FOR THE PURPOSE OF FUNDING
GOVERNMENTAL OVERSIGHT AND COORDINATION OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
PREVENTION, INTERVENTION AND PROSECUTION EFFORTS, AS ALLOWED
LAST YEAR FOR ALAMEDA COUNTY?
SYNOPSIS
This bill, sponsored by the Berkeley City Council, is a clean up
to last year's AB 2010 (Hancock), Chapter 830 of the Statutes of
2004, that permitted Alameda and Solano Counties to raise fees,
until 2010, by up to $2 for certified copies of marriage
certificates, birth certificates, fetal death records and death
records in order to fund governmental oversight and coordination
of that county's domestic violence prevention, intervention and
prosecution efforts. The City of Berkeley, located within
Alameda County, runs its own Health Department and, as a result,
provides certified copies of marriage certificates, birth
certificates, fetal death records and death records. However,
last year's legislation only provided the fee increase to
individuals who purchased their records through the County, not
the City. This bill would clean-up a loophole in last year's
legislation by allowing the Berkeley City Council to charge the
additional $2 for records sold by the City and have the
additional funds used for purposes of oversight and coordination
of domestic violence prevention, intervention, and prosecution
efforts. Like last year's bill, the additional $2 fee will
sunset on January 1, 2010.
SUMMARY : Seeks to authorize the City of Berkeley to increase
the fees for copies of specified records in order to assist in
domestic violence prevention. Specifically, this bill :
1)Authorizes the Berkeley City Council, upon making specified
findings and declarations, to increase the fees for certified
AB 1712
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copies of marriage certificates, birth certificates, fetal
death records and death records by up to $2, with further
increases permitted on an annual basis, based on the Consumer
Price Index (CPI) for the San Francisco metropolitan area for
the preceding year.
2)Directs that these fees be deposited into a special fund to be
used for governmental oversight and coordination of domestic
violence and family violence prevention, intervention and
prosecution efforts.
3)Provides that the authorization for the fee increases will
sunset on January 1, 2010.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Sets forth the fees to be charged for certified copies of
marriage records, birth certificates, fetal death records and
death records. (Health and Safety Code Section 103625.)
2)Authorizes the Alameda County Board of Supervisors, upon
making specified findings and declarations, to increase the
fees, until January 1, 2010, for marriage licenses and for
certified copies of marriage certificates, birth certificates,
fetal death record and death records by up to $2, with
possible increases based on the CPI, with the fees used for
governmental oversight and coordination of domestic violence
and family violence prevention, intervention and prosecution
efforts. (Health & Safety Code Section 103627; Welfare &
Institutions Code Section 18309.)
FISCAL EFFECT : As currently in print, this bill is keyed
non-fiscal.
COMMENTS : The Berkeley City Council, the sponsors of this
bill, seek authorization to raise fees for certified copies of
marriage certificates, birth certificates and death records.
This bill is a clean up to last year's AB 2010 (Hancock),
Chapter 830 of the Statutes of 2004, that permitted Alameda and
Solano Counties to raise fees, until 2010, for certified copies
of marriage certificates, birth certificates and death records
by up to $2, in order to fund governmental oversight and
coordination of that county's domestic violence prevention,
AB 1712
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intervention and prosecution efforts.
The City of Berkeley, located within Alameda County, runs its
own Health Department and, as a result, provides certified
copies of marriage certificates, birth certificates and death
records. However, last year's legislation only provided the fee
increase to individuals who purchased their records through the
County, not the City. This bill would clean-up a loophole in
last year's legislation by allowing the Berkeley City Council to
charge the additional $2 for records sold by the City and have
the additional funds be used for purposes of domestic violence
prevention, intervention, and prosecution efforts regarding
domestic violence. Like last year's bill, the additional $2 fee
will sunset on January 1, 2010.
The money raised by the City of Berkeley would be placed in a
special fund to provide for oversight and coordination of
domestic violence prevention, intervention and prosecution
efforts in Alameda County. These efforts include coordination
among the court system, the district attorney's office, the
public defender's office, law enforcement, the probation
department, mental health, substance abuse, child welfare
services, adult protective services, and other agencies and
community based organizations. The bill authorizes a fee
increase of up to $2, with further increases permitted on an
annual basis, using the Consumer Price Index for the San
Francisco metropolitan area.
In support of the bill, the author argues that last year's
legislation only applied to individuals purchasing copies of
records through Alameda County:
For individuals residing in Berkeley, and who purchase
their marriage certificate, birth, or death records
through the city, the statute does not apply. This
bill would remedy that situation by specifically
authorizing the Berkeley City Council to participate
in the pilot program to provide oversight and
coordination of domestic violence prevention and
intervention efforts.
There is a lack of coordination and oversight among
the many entities involved in
domestic violence. This lack of coordination leads to
duplicative efforts and
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prevents local agencies from effective oversight of
domestic violence related
programs. In addition, existing domestic violence
related funds are prohibited
from being used for anything other than direct
services. This bill would allow the
City of Berkeley to increase fees for birth and death
certificates to fund oversight
and coordination of domestic violence efforts.
Related Prior Legislation . AB 2010 (Hancock), Chapter 830 of
the Statutes of 2004, authorized Alameda and Solano Counties to
increase the fees for marriage licenses, and for certified
copies of marriage certificates, birth certificates, fetal death
record and death records by $2.00, for the purpose of funding
governmental oversight and coordination of domestic violence
prevention, intervention, and prosecution efforts. The measure
sunsets on January 1, 2010.
SB 425 (Torlakson), Chapter 90 of the Statues of 2001, allowed
the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors to increase fees on
marriage licenses and on certified copies of marriage
certificates, birth certificates, fetal death records, and death
records for the purpose of funding that county's governmental
oversight and coordination of domestic violence prevention,
intervention, and prosecution efforts. The measure sunsets on
January 1, 2007.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
None on file.
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Leora Gershenzon / JUD. / (916)
319-2334