BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1749
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 12, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
AB 1749 (Lowenthal and Strickland) - As Amended: April 27,
2010
Policy Committee:
JudiciaryVote:10-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: No
SUMMARY
This bill extends certain protections under the Whistleblower
Protection Act to judicial branch employees. Specifically, this
bill:
1)Includes employees of the Supreme Court, the courts of appeal,
the superior courts, and the Administrative Office of the
Courts (AOC) within the definition of "employee" for the
purposes of the California Whistleblower Protection Act,
except as specified.
2)Authorizes such an employee who files a written complaint
alleging actual or attempted acts of reprisal or retaliation,
for having made a protected disclosure, to also file a copy of
the written complaint with the State Personnel Board (SPB).
3)Requires the SPB to investigate any claim filed per (2) and
make a recommendation regarding the alleged retaliation to the
employees hiring entity.
4)Provides that any person who intentionally engages in acts of
reprisal or retaliation against a judicial employee, for
having made a protected disclosure, is subject to punishment
for a misdemeanor, and shall be liable in an action for civil
damages brought by the injured party.
5)Exempts from (4) justices and judges, subject to the
jurisdiction of the Commission on Judicial Performance, to the
extent that they are immune from liability under the doctrine
of judicial immunity.
AB 1749
Page 2
FISCAL EFFECT
1)Assuming a similar proportion of complaints from court
employees (22,000) as for employees currently covered under
the Whistleblower Protection Act (about 330,000), the SPB
would likely incur minor costs (less than $25,000) for a
handful of additional investigations each year. The SPB
currently investigates about 67 cases each year.
2)The courts may similarly incur minor costs to provide legal
defense for judicial officials that would be the object of a
complaint pursuant to the Act. In addition, because the bill
creates a cause of action for an additional pool of employees,
it could impact court backlogs and costs.
COMMENTS
Purpose . The authors proposed this bill in response to
testimony heard last fall at a legislative oversight hearing
regarding the judicial branch. The bill extends to judicial
branch employees certain additional rights under the
Whistleblower Protection Act to complain about improper
governmental activities and protections against retaliation for
making those complaints and other protected disclosures. The
bill is supported by labor organizations and the Judicial
Council.
Analysis Prepared by : Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081