BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 2085
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 21, 2014
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION
Bonnie Lowenthal, Chair
AB 2085 (Fox) - As Amended: March 19, 2014
SUBJECT : Vehicles: misdemeanor violations: amnesty
SUMMARY : Reestablishes previous authority that allows each
county to implement an amnesty program whereby a person can pay
50% of a fine or bail due before January 1, 2012, if certain
conditions are met. Specifically, this bill :
1)Allows a court and county, upon a joint agreement, to extend
an amnesty program under existing law and to extend that
amnesty program to fines and bail imposed for a misdemeanor
violation of the Vehicle Code or for willfully violating a
promise to appear in court if certain conditions are met,
except for parking violations and violations involving
reckless driving and driving-under-the-influence.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires each county to establish a one-time infraction
amnesty program for fines and bail providing relief to
individuals who are financially unable to pay traffic bail or
fines with due dates prior to January 1, 2009. Payment of a
fine or bail under these amnesty programs must be accepted
beginning January 1, 2012, and ending June 30, 2012.
2)Allows a person owing a fine or bail that is eligible for
amnesty under this program to pay to the superior or juvenile
court 50% of the total fine or bail, which must be accepted by
the court in full satisfaction of the delinquent fine or bail.
3)Requires the Judicial Council to adopt guidelines for the
amnesty program no later than November 1, 2011, and each
program to be conducted in accordance with Judicial Council
guidelines.
4)Allows the court and the county, at the same time as the
infraction amnesty program described above, to extend the
program to specified misdemeanor violations if certain
conditions are met.
AB 2085
Page 2
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : AB 1358 (Fuentes), Chapter 662, Statutes of 2011,
established this amnesty program which allowed each county to
collect certain unpaid traffic violations issued prior to 2009
from January to June 2012. AB 1358 was in response to a number
of reports that found that its common practice for certain
California counties to allow defendants to convert fines owed on
criminal cases to time in custody. This practice is costly and
further impacts over-crowded jails. In support of the original
amnesty program, the author of AB 1358 cited a 2009 study
performed by Pew Center for the States that reported that
California spends $134.83 per inmate per day, meaning that local
jurisdictions are paying for the debt that is owed to them by
paying more money to house inmates who are unable to pay.
AB 1358 also required the Judicial Council to submit a report to
the Legislature summarizing the information provided by each
court or county on the operation of the initial amnesty program.
The Judicial Council reported that a total of 42,245 cases
resolved through the amnesty program, which resulted in courts
and counties ultimately collecting $12,270,950 in revenue. The
Judicial Council further reported while some programs reported
minimal operating expenses and were able to absorb those costs,
other programs reported that program costs exceeded the revenue
collected. Overall, 22 counties supported a future amnesty
program, while 23 counties did not find the program beneficial
to their collection efforts and would not support a future
program.
AB 2085 will allow each county - upon agreement between the
county and court - to implement this same amnesty program from
January 1, 2016 through December 31, 2016 for certain traffic
citations that were issued prior to January 1, 2012.
According to the author, this bill "will help courts and
counties in California continue towards economic recovery. This
amnesty program would allow any person, who has a long
outstanding traffic fine that was eligible for amnesty, to pay
50% of the fine for full relief. This bill will bring relief to
individuals who are in violation of court-ordered obligations
because they are financially unable to pay minor traffic fines
and also contribute to decreasing outstanding court and county
debt while allowing courts and counties to eliminate the backlog
AB 2085
Page 3
of older debt cases."
Supporters of this bill write that this proposal will enable
counties to save collection and incarceration costs for indigent
defendants who would otherwise be unable to pay the total amount
of their fines. Additionally, supporters state this bill will
reduce the backlog of unresolved cases and uncollected fines in
turn bringing a much needed infusion of cash into courts.
It is important to note that not all counties found the original
amnesty program to be beneficial. Consequently, the amnesty
program authorized by this bill is permissive - counties that do
not want to reestablish an amnesty program will not be subject
to the provisions of this bill.
Previous legislation:
AB 1358 (Fuentes), Chapter 662, Statutes of 2011, authorized any
county to extend to misdemeanor Vehicle Code violations the
one-time infraction amnesty program allowing a person who owes
an outstanding fine to pay 50% of the fine.
Double referral: This bill was double referred to the Assembly
Public Safety Committee. The bill was heard by that committee
on March 25, 2014 and was approved on a 5-0 vote.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
AFSCME, District Council 36 and 57
California Attorneys for Criminal Justice
California Public Defenders Association
Glendale City Employees Association
LIUNA Locals 777 and 792
Organization of SMUD Employees
San Bernardino Public Employees Association
San Diego County Court Employees Association
San Luis Obispo County Employees Association
Santa Rosa City Employees Association
Opposition
None on file
AB 2085
Page 4
Analysis Prepared by : Manny Leon / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093