BILL NUMBER: AB 1089 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 25, 2011
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Alejo
FEBRUARY 18, 2011
An act to amend Section 77003 of the Government Code,
185 of the Code of Civil Procedure, relating
to courts.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1089, as amended, Alejo. Trial court funding.
Translation of court proceedings.
Existing law requires an interpreter to be sworn to interpret for
a witness who is incapable of understanding the English language or
is incapable of expressing himself or herself in the English language
so as to be understood directly by counsel, court, and jury.
Existing law also requires an interpreter to be present at specified
family court proceedings in which a party does not proficiently speak
or understand the English language to interpret and assist
communications between the party and his or her attorney. Existing
law requires judicial proceedings to be conducted, preserved, and
published in English, but nothing in this provision prohibits a court
from providing an unofficial translation of specified court orders
in a language other than English.
This bill would authorize a bilingual judge, notwithstanding any
other law, to provide an unofficial translation of preliminary court
procedures that do not bear on any substantive right of a party when
a court interpreter is not immediately available.
Existing law establishes the Trial Court Trust Fund, the proceeds
of which are required to be apportioned for authorized purposes,
including apportionment to the trial courts to fund trial court
operations. Existing law, for the purpose of funding trial court
operations, authorizes the Judicial Council to establish bank
accounts for the superior courts, into which shall be deposited all
moneys appropriated in the Budget Act and allocated or reallocated to
each court by the Judicial Council, moneys held in trust, and other
moneys as deemed necessary or appropriate. "Court operations" is
defined for these purposes.
This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to the
provisions defining court operations.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 185 of the Code of
Civil Procedure is amended to read:
185. (a) Every written proceeding in a court of justice in this
state shall be in the English language, and judicial proceedings
shall be conducted, preserved, and published in no other. Nothing in
this section shall prohibit a court from providing an unofficial
translation of a court order issued pursuant to Section 527.6 or
527.8 of the Code of Civil Procedure, or Part 1 (commencing with
Section 6200) of Division 10 of the Family Code, or Section 136.2 of
the Penal Code, in a language other than English.
(b) Notwithstanding any other law, a bilingual judge may provide
an unofficial translation of preliminary court procedures that do not
bear on any substantive right of a party when a court interpreter is
not immediately available.
(b)
(c) The Judicial Council shall, by July 1, 2001, make
available to all courts, translations of domestic violence protective
order forms in languages other than English, as the Judicial Council
deems appropriate, for protective orders issued pursuant to Section
527.6 or 527.8 of the Code of Civil Procedure, or Part 1 (commencing
with Section 6200) of Division 10 of the Family Code, or Section
136.2 of the Penal Code.
SECTION 1. Section 77003 of the Government Code
is amended to read:
77003. (a) As used in this chapter, "court operations" means all
of the following:
(1) Salaries, benefits, and public agency retirement contributions
for superior court judges and for subordinate judicial officers. For
purposes of this paragraph, "subordinate judicial officers":
(A) Includes all commissioner or referee positions created prior
to July 1, 1997, including positions created in the municipal court
prior to July 1, 1997, which thereafter became positions in the
superior court as a result of unification of the municipal and
superior courts in a county, and including those commissioner
positions created pursuant to former Sections 69904, 70141, 70141.9,
70142.11, 72607, 73794, 74841.5, and 74908.
(B) Includes any staff who provide direct support to
commissioners.
(C) Does not include commissioners or staff who provide direct
support to the commissioners whose positions were created after July
1, 1997, unless approved by the Judicial Council, subject to
availability of funding.
(2) The salary, benefits, and public agency retirement
contributions for other court staff.
(3) Those marshals and sheriffs as the court deems necessary for
court operations.
(4) Court-appointed counsel in juvenile court dependency
proceedings and counsel appointed by the court to represent a minor
pursuant to Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 3150) of Part 2 of
Division 8 of the Family Code.
(5) Services and supplies relating to court operations.
(6) Collective bargaining under Sections 71630 and 71639.3 with
respect to court employees.
(7) Subject to paragraph (1) of subdivision (d) of Section 77212,
actual indirect costs for county and city and county general services
attributable to court operations, but specifically excluding, but
not limited to, law library operations conducted by a trust pursuant
to statute, courthouse construction, district attorney services,
probation services, indigent criminal defense, grand jury expenses
and operations, and pretrial release services.
(8) Except as provided in subdivision (b), other matters listed as
court operations in Rule 10.810 of the California Rules of Court, as
it read on January 1, 2007.
(b) However, "court operations" does not include collection
enhancements as defined in Rule 10.810 of the California Rules of
Court, as it read on January 1, 2007.