BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 576|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 576
Author: Torres (D), et al
Amended: 7/2/09 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE : 7-0, 6/9/09
AYES: Leno, Benoit, Cedillo, Hancock, Huff, Steinberg,
Wright
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 76-0, 4/30/09 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Vandalism: graffiti: recovery of costs
SOURCE : Los Angeles City Attorneys Office
DIGEST : This bill allows governmental entities
responsible for the clean-up of property that has been
vandalized to receive restitution from a person who has
been convicted of or adjudicated of the vandalism.
ANALYSIS : Existing law provides that in every case in
which a victim, as defined, has suffered economic loss as a
result of the defendant's or the juvenile offender's
conduct, the court is required to impose an order upon the
defendant or the juvenile offender to make restitution to
the victim or victims, as specified.
This bill includes in the definition of "victim" for the
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purpose of restitution "any governmental entity that is
responsible for repairing, replacing, or restoring public
or privately owned property that has been defaced with
graffiti or other inscribed material as defined in
subdivision (e) of Section 594, and that has sustained an
economic loss as the result of a violation of Sections
594.3, 594.4, 640.5, 640.6 or 640.7 of the Penal Code."
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 7/1/09)
Los Angeles City Attorney's Office (source)
American Federation of State, County and Municipal
Employees, AFL-CIO
Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs
California Business Properties Association
California District Attorneys Association
City of Huntington Park
City of Los Angeles
City of Oxnard
City of Santa Rosa
LA County Probation Officers Union, AFSCME, Local 685
League of California Cities
Riverside Sheriffs' Association
San Bernardino County Sheriff
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office,
This bill attempts to address the problems caused by
graffiti. Currently, government entities are not
considered victims when it comes to damages caused by
graffiti, even though they may be the ones incurring
the cost of cleaning it up.
Graffiti is a costly and pervasive problem affecting
all residents, property owners, businesses, and public
agencies across the state. The California Research
Bureau estimates that the statewide cost of graffiti
abatement is potentially upwards of $350 million
annually. The majority of these costs are borne
entirely by local governments. One of the main
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reasons local governments continue to shoulder the
economic impact of graffiti is because cost recovery
procedures are too cumbersome and ineffective.
While these numbers are staggering, perhaps more
disturbing is the power graffiti has to cause fear and
insecurity within a community. The graffiti epidemic
is an assault on an individual's peace of mind, making
graffiti a social crime that directly targets the
quality of life and freedom citizens are both entitled
to and desire within their neighborhoods. Graffiti,
distinct from many other crimes, requires proactive
enforcement and dedicated investigation. However, the
ability of local law enforcement to diligently
investigate and prosecute individuals committing acts
of graffiti is hampered only by law enforcement's
limited resources.
To be successful in our continued fight against
graffiti, it is critical that local governments are
able to recover costs of graffiti abatement via
criminal restitution.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Arambula, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Tom Berryhill, Blakeslee, Block, Blumenfield,
Brownley, Buchanan, Caballero, Charles Calderon, Chesbro,
Conway, Cook, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon, DeVore,
Duvall, Emmerson, Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong,
Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani, Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick,
Gilmore, Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill,
Huber, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Knight, Krekorian, Lieu,
Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Monning, Nava,
Niello, Nielsen, John A. Perez, V. Manuel Perez,
Portantino, Price, Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Silva,
Skinner, Solorio, Audra Strickland, Swanson, Torlakson,
Torres, Torrico, Tran, Villines, Yamada, Bass
NO VOTE RECORDED: Carter, Miller, Nestande, Smyth
RJG:nl 7/2/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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