BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE LOCAL GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE
Senator Dave Cox, Chair
BILL NO: AB 1883 HEARING: 6/16/10
AUTHOR: Evans FISCAL: No
VERSION: 5/25/10 CONSULTANT:
Weinberger
COUNTY FEES FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE PROGRAMS
Background and Existing Law
Counties can charge fees when they issue marriage licenses
or provide certified copies of vital records, such as birth
certificates and death records. Counties must add charges
on to their marriage license fees to fund domestic violence
shelters. The additional amount has increased over time
and is now $23 (SB 5, Presley, 1993).
In 2001, the Legislature authorized a pilot program in
Contra Costa County, allowing the County to provide
governmental oversight and coordination of domestic
violence prevention, intervention, and prosecution efforts
(SB 425, Torlakson, 2001). After making findings and
declarations about the need for governmental oversight and
coordination, the board of supervisors may fund the program
by increasing fees by a maximum of $4 on certified copies
of marriage certificates, birth certificates, fetal death
records, and death records. The County must deposit the
fees into a special county fund, with no more than 4% being
retained for administrative costs, and may increase the
fees each year by the Consumer Price Index (CPI). After a
County report to the Assembly and Senate Judiciary
Committees cited improved outcomes from the additional
funding for domestic violence prevention oversight and
coordination activities, legislators made Contra Costa's
program permanent (SB 968, Torlakson, 2006).
Legislators authorized similar pilot programs in Alameda
and Solano counties, allowing the counties to increase fees
for marriage licenses and certified copies of marriage
certificates, birth certificates, fetal death records, and
death records by up to $2 (AB 2010, Hancock, 2004).
Because the City of Berkeley runs its own domestic violence
programs and maintains birth certificates, fetal death, and
death records for city residents, it received a separate
authorization to increase vital records fees (AB 1712,
AB 1883 -- 5/25/10 -- Page 2
Hancock, 2005). Last year, legislation made the Alameda
County and Berkeley programs permanent (AB 73, Hayashi,
2009). Legislators also extended the sunset date for
Solano County's pilot program and authorized a similar
pilot program in Sonoma County (SB 635, Wiggins, 2009).
Rather than taking a county-by-county approach, domestic
violence prevention advocates want legislators to allow all
counties to adopt pilot programs to provide governmental
oversight and coordination of domestic violence prevention,
intervention, and prosecution efforts and to fund
community-based nonprofits.
Proposed Law
Assembly Bill 1883 authorizes a county board of
supervisors, upon making findings and declarations of the
need for governmental oversight and coordination of
domestic violence agencies and the need for funding
community based domestic violence programs, to increase
fees for certified copies of marriage certificates, birth
certificates, fetal death records, and death records by up
to $4, with five exceptions:
The authorization does not apply to the Contra
Costa County Board of Supervisors.
The Alameda County Board of Supervisors, upon
making findings on the need for funding for
community-based domestic violence programs, can
increase fees for certified copies of marriage
certificates, birth certificates, fetal death records,
and death records by up to $2 above the fee increase
that state law already authorizes it to adopt.
The Berkeley City Council, upon making findings on
the need for funding for community-based domestic
violence programs, can increase fees for birth
certificates, fetal death records, and death records
by up to $2 above the fee increase that state law
already authorizes it to adopt.
Until January 1, 2011, the Solano County Board of
Supervisors, upon making findings on the need for
funding for community-based domestic violence
programs, can increase fees for certified copies of
marriage certificates, birth certificates, fetal death
records, and death records by up to $2 above the fee
increase that state law already authorizes it to
adopt. After January 1, 2011, the Board can increase
fees on those documents by up to $4.
AB 1883 -- 5/25/10 -- Page 3
Until January 1, 2015, the Sonoma County Board of
Supervisors, upon making findings on the need for
funding for community-based domestic violence
programs, can increase fees for certified copies of
marriage certificates, fetal death records, and death
records by up to $2 above the fee increase that state
law already authorizes it to adopt. After January 1,
2015, the Board can increase fees on those documents
by up to $4.
The bill requires a board of supervisors or the Berkeley
City Council to direct the local registrar, county
recorder, and county clerk to deposit the fees into a
special fund. The county or City may retain up to 4% of
the funds for administrative costs.
In the counties in which AB 1883 authorizes a $4 maximum
fee increase:
Half of the proceeds must be used for governmental
oversight and coordination of domestic violence
prevention, intervention, and prosecution efforts.
Half of the proceeds must be awarded, through a
competitive request for proposal process, to
non-profit, community-based organizations that serve
domestic violence victims and their families,
including organizations that serve underserved
communities, including the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and
transgender community, ethnic and racial communities,
the disabled community, teens, and the elderly.
In the counties in which AB 1883 authorizes $2 maximum fee
increase, and in the City of Berkeley, all of the proceeds
must be awarded, through a competitive request for proposal
process, to non-profit, community-based organizations that
serve domestic violence victims and their families,
including organizations that serve underserved communities,
including the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender
community, ethnic and racial communities, the disabled
community, teens, and the elderly.
Before spending the funds collected from a fee increase, a
board of supervisors or the Berkeley City Council must:
Provide for public hearings and comment on the
specific manner in which funds are to be used.
Confer with its local domestic violence shelter or
shelters before determining the specific manner in
AB 1883 -- 5/25/10 -- Page 4
which funds are to be used.
AB 1883 requires a county board of supervisors or the
Berkeley City Council to report to the Legislature the
annual amounts of funds received and expended from fee
increases and the outcomes achieved. The report must be
submitted no later than February 1, 2015.
The fee authority in AB 1883 automatically terminates on
January 1, 2016.
Comments
1. Expanding a successful program . Domestic violence has
widespread and costly effects in California. The response
to domestic violence involves a complex web of
stakeholders, including law enforcement agencies, the
courts, social services agencies, and various non-profit
community organizations. By giving all counties the same
vital records fee authority that has already been
successfully implemented in four counties and Berkeley, AB
1883 generates more money for the oversight and
coordination of domestic violence prevention, intervention,
and prosecution efforts throughout California.
Additionally, the bill recognizes the importance of
supporting community-based organizations that provide
critical services for preventing and stopping domestic
violence. AB 1883 will help communities fund vital
education and outreach programs, counseling, and other
forms of assistance.
2. Fee or tax ? Despite the Legislature's past
authorization of additional fees on vital records for the
purpose of funding domestic violence programs, the question
persists whether these charges constitute "taxes," which
require voter approval, rather than "fees." County
officials say that charges imposed on vital records fall
within the category of "regulatory fees" that have been
validated by the courts. To qualify as a regulatory fee, a
charge cannot exceed the reasonable cost of providing the
services for which the fee is charged and must not be
levied for unrelated revenue purposes. It remains unclear
whether there is a sufficient relationship between charges
imposed on certified copies of vital records and the
coordination of domestic violence programs. Do these
AB 1883 -- 5/25/10 -- Page 5
charges meet the standards for regulatory fees? AB 1883
differs from earlier bills by requiring public officials to
use fee revenues to fund competitive grants for non-profit
community organizations. While this requirement mirrors
the use of marriage license fees to fund shelter-based
programs, it is unclear whether this spending serves a
regulatory purpose, or is merely a way to raise more money.
If the merits of domestic violence programs are
sufficiently clear, counties should simply seek voter
approval of taxes, rather than imposing ambiguous charges
that may attract legal challenges.
3. Territorial issues . While not disputing the need to
reduce domestic violence, some opponents of AB 1883 argue
that the fees proposed by the bill are misplaced. Child
abuse prevention advocates want to preserve fees on birth
certificates as a dedicated source for child abuse
prevention. Currently, $4 from every fee paid for a birth
certificate goes to trust funds for child abuse prevention.
Some advocates oppose adding birth certificate fees for
other purposes, reasoning that any new fees may keep them
from raising revenues for child abuse prevention in the
future. County recorders argue that fees for vital records
should relate exclusively to the cost of recording or
obtaining certified copies" of vital records and should not
force a county recorder into the unwanted role of being a
revenue generator. Even though there are precedents, the
Committee may wish to consider whether vital records fees
are the most appropriate revenue source for coordinating
domestic violence prevention.
4. Not identical . While the programs in Contra Costa,
Alameda, Solano, and Sonoma counties and the City of
Berkeley are all similar, they are not identical. AB 1883
seeks to standardize a $4 maximum fee increase and the
documents to which it is applied. The following chart
shows each jurisdiction's fees for domestic violence
prevention programs:
Marriage Marriage
Birth
Death
County/City License Certificate Record Record
Alameda $2 $2 $2 $2
City of Berkeley n/a n/a $2 $2
AB 1883 -- 5/25/10 -- Page 6
Contra Costa n/a $4 $4 $4
Solano $2 $2 $2 $2
Sonoma $2 $2 n/a $2
Other counties (AB 1883) n/a $4 $4 $4
5. Related legislation . At its June 16 hearing, the
Committee will hear AB 1770 (Galgiani, 2010), which
authorizes the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors to
increase vital records fees by up to $2 to fund oversight
and coordination of domestic violence prevention,
intervention and prosecution. AB 2348 (Yamada, 2010),
which authorizes a similar domestic violence prevention
program in Yolo County, is in the Assembly Judiciary
Committee. SB 1222 (Wolk, 2010), which extends the Solano
County program's sunset date until 2014, is awaiting a vote
on the Senate Floor. In 2008, legislators passed AB 2231
(Hayashi, 2008) which would have extended the sunset dates
for the Alameda County and Solano County programs until
2015. Governor Schwarzenegger vetoed that bill, arguing
that the additional vital records fees are actually taxes.
AB 1275 (DeSaulnier, 2007), which authorized any county to
impose additional vital records fees to fund domestic
violence, child abuse, and family violence programs, died
in the Senate Local Government Committee. SB 605 (Alquist,
2007), which authorized additional vital records fees to
fund domestic violence programs in Santa Clara County, died
in the Senate Local Government Committee.
6. Double referral . The Senate Rules Committee has
ordered a double-referral of AB 1883 to the Senate
Judiciary Committee.
Assembly Actions
Assembly Judiciary Committee: 7-3
Assembly Floor: 45-30
Support and Opposition (6/10/10)
Support : California Partnership to End Domestic Violence,
Santa Clara County, California Commission on the Status of
Women, National Association of Social Workers - California
Chapter, Peace Officers Research Association of California,
Sexual Assault & Domestic Violence Center of Yolo County,
AB 1883 -- 5/25/10 -- Page 7
Yolo County District Attorney's Office, Yolo County
Supervisor Jim Provenza.
Opposition : California Association of Clerks and Elections
Officials, California Parenting Institute, Child Abuse
Prevention Center, Child Abuse Prevention Council of Contra
Costa County, Child Abuse Prevention Council of El Dorado
County, County Recorders Association of California, Fresno
Council on Child Abuse Prevention, Kern County
Superintendent of Schools.