BILL ANALYSIS
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
1181 (Cedillo)
Hearing Date: 05/27/2010 Amended: 04/28/2010
Consultant: Jacqueline Wong-HernandezPolicy Vote: Judiciary 4-0
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BILL SUMMARY: SB 1181 would extend the sunset on the Transcript
Reimbursement Fund (TRF) administered by the Court Reporters
Board of California (CRB) to January 1, 2013. This bill would
expand the applicants authorized to obtain reimbursement from
the fund to include indigent pro se litigants, as specified, up
to a maximum of $30,000 annually and $2,500 per case, and
require the CRB to report to the Legislature no later than
January 1, 2012, on expenditures and claims by such litigants.
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Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13
Fund
Sunset Extension $0
$300 $300 Special*
Include pro se litigants Possibly significant cost
pressure Special*
*Court Reporters' Fund
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STAFF COMMENTS: SUSPENSE FILE.
Existing law establishes the TRF to provide shorthand reporting
services to low-income litigants in civil cases who are unable
to otherwise afford those services. The TRF is intended to
provide court transcripts or depositions at little or no cost to
non-profit legal service centers and pro bono attorneys on
behalf of indigent litigants in civil cases.
Under current law, CRB transfers $300,000 into the TRF from the
Court Reporters' Fund at the beginning of each fiscal year, from
excess funds needed to support the board's operating budget for
each fiscal year. The CRB may transfer additional funds above
the initial $300,000, provided that the additional transfer does
not result in a reduction of the balance of the Court Reporters'
Fund to an amount less than six months' operating budget. The
CRB is required to maintain sufficient funding to pay all
qualified claims and is authorized to utilize all refunds,
unexpended funds, fees, and any other moneys received for this
purpose. (Bus. and Prof. Code Sec. 8030.2)
In the absence of this bill, the TRF will sunset on January 1,
2011. At that time, money previously transferred to the TRF
would stay with CRB for its operation (unless CRB chose to lower
fees for its members, if it decided it could operate with less
revenue). This bill would extend the sunset on the TRF and the
accompanying provisions to January 1, 2013.
Existing law also provides that an "applicant," or certified
shorthand reporter in a case handled by an applicant, may apply,
with supporting documentation, for reimbursement from the TRF
for the allowable charges for preparing an original transcript,
a copy of the
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SB 1181 (Cedillo)
transcript (or both if appropriate) of court or deposition
proceedings for litigation conducted in California, subject to
specific requirements and exemptions. These
existing provisions also specifically exclude persons appearing
pro se to represent themselves at any stage of the case. (Bus.
and Prof. Code Secs. 8030.4(e), 8030.8.)
This bill would permit a person appearing pro se at any stage of
the case to apply to receive funds from the TRF. Pro se
litigants applying for reimbursement would be required to
provide a fee waiver from the court to establish indigent
status. In addition, the amount reimbursed to persons appearing
pro se would be limited to $2,500 per case, and not to exceed
$30,000 annually for all cases.
According to CRB, approximately a quarter of all TRF claims are
denied because they are submitted by a litigant who represents
himself or herself in a lawsuit (known as in pro per litigants)
rather than have an attorney. Typical cases involving requests
for TRF assistance, in addition to those who represent
themselves, include: dissolution of marriage/custody issues,
evictions, unlawful terminations, and probate disputes. These
litigants could be helped by allowing the excess TRF funds to be
expanded to include individuals representing themselves.
Allowing these claims to be reimbursed by the TRF would create
cost pressure on the fund, but would not likely exceed the
$300,000 transferred to the fund at the beginning of every
fiscal year.
Based on data provided by CRB, in the nearly 30 years since the
inception of the TRF in 1981, the amounts expended on an annual
basis has ranged from a high in 1993/94 of $417,778 to a low in
2002/03 of $146,649. In the past five fiscal years, the TRF has
paid no more than $225,000 in any year, leaving extra funds that
could be used for the expanded pool of eligible litigants. While
typically fewer than 10 people are denied each year because they
are pro se litigants, the low number represents individuals who
still apply despite a formal prohibition. It is unclear how many
new applications would come as the result of a rule change that
allows the specified pro se litigants to obtain reimbursement.