BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 2746
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ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 2746 (Judiciary Committee)
As Amended May 12, 2014
Majority vote
JUDICIARY 10-0
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|Ayes:|Wieckowski, Wagner, | | |
| |Alejo, Chau, Dickinson, | | |
| |Garcia, Gorell, | | |
| |Maienschein, Muratsuchi, | | |
| |Stone | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Reauthorizes attorney license fees at the same level
as the current year. Specifically, this bill :
1)Reauthorizes the State Bar of California (State Bar) to
collect active membership dues of up to $390 for the year
2015.
2)Increases by a modest $8 the amount members of the State Bar
may choose to contribute voluntarily to the Emergency Legal
Aid Voluntary Assistance Option.
FISCAL EFFECT : None
COMMENTS : This non-controversial bill would reauthorize the
State Bar's authority to assess and collect dues from licensed
attorneys in California in order to support the State Bar's
regulatory functions, including discipline. It holds these dues
at current levels, which will continue to be $390 for the year
2015 - unchanged from last year.
Attorneys who wish to practice law in California generally must
be admitted and licensed in this state and must be a member of
the State Bar. (California Constitution Article VI Section 9.)
The State Bar of California is the largest state bar in the
country. As of May 2014, the State Bar had 181,169 active
members and 53,768 inactive members, which represents a slight
annual increase in both active members and inactive members.
Total State Bar membership is listed at 248,271, which includes
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2,147 judge members and 11,186 members who are "Not Eligible to
Practice Law." The State Bar's programs are financed almost
exclusively by annual membership dues paid by attorneys as well
as other fees paid by applicants seeking to practice law.
This bill would authorize the State Bar to collect active
membership dues of up to $390 for the year 2015, in addition to
a $38 optional fee for members who voluntarily choose to
contribute to the support of nonprofit legal aid organizations
that make free legal services available to poor Californians.
The mandatory fee of $390 holds mandatory fees constant at the
same rate as last year, when the fee was reduced by $20. The
optional legal aid fee continues the existing mechanism by which
members who choose to do so can help defray the cost of ensuring
that legal services are available without regard to ability to
pay market rates, consistently with each lawyer's professional
responsibility. The amount allowed for those lawyers who wish
to contribute voluntarily would increase $8 from $30 to $38.
Funding for legal aid organizations that provide essential legal
help for extremely impoverished individuals has been decimated
in recent years. State funding for legal aid has diminished
even further this year, despite significantly greater needs for
legal services by those who cannot afford them, and dramatically
lower funding from other sources. Last year's measure resulted
in a funding decrease of approximately $1 million annually
because the State Bar's contribution to the support of legal aid
from non-mandatory dues sources was allowed to sunset. This
bill seeks to recover just some of that lost ground by allowing
members of the State Bar to voluntarily contribute an additional
$8 for the support of legal aid groups if they wish to do so.
Although the allowance for increased voluntary contributions by
members is not expected to fully replace the end of the State
Bar's prior contributions through non-mandatory sources
available to it, it is expected that this step will make up for
at least some of those lost non-mandatory contributions. The
State Bar's leadership has stated its commitment to the Assembly
Judiciary Committee to find other non-mandatory sources of funds
as soon as possible to not just bridge this continuing crisis
but to try finally to overcome it.
By many measures, California suffers from an overwhelming
"justice gap" between the legal needs of low-income people and
the legal help they receive. It has been estimated that the
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cost of closing the gap would amount to $400 million. Even in
the best of times, legal aid providers have been able to address
only a fraction of the demand for help. Because of insufficient
resources, legal services programs can offer assistance in only
a few types of cases; many poor and moderate-income Californians
do not qualify for services; and most of those who meet the
strict eligibility limits and seek assistance regarding problems
for which a legal services office provides service are
nevertheless turned away, simply for lack of staff. Even those
who receive services are frequently under-served with brief
advice and consultation, rather than full and fair
representation.
Legal aid programs are also particularly hurt by court budget
reductions. As the Assembly Judiciary Committee heard at its
February hearing on court budget struggles, service reductions
have been especially dangerous for poor people because the
neediest are the most vulnerable to loss of their legal rights
and most require the courts' protection, and because the burden
of court budget cuts in some counties may fall most heavily on
services that are disproportionately used by low-income parties.
Thus this plethora of evidence underscores the need for
multi-faceted efforts by the State Bar and the Legislature to
address the crisis in legal aid support, a crisis the State
Bar's leadership and Members of the Assembly Judiciary Committee
have committed to addressing as quickly and forcefully as
possible. This year's annual dues reauthorization measure
therefore currently takes a very modest additional step in that
collaborative effort by the State Bar and the Legislature by
simply increasing by $8 the amount members of the State Bar may
choose to voluntarily contribute to the Emergency Legal Aid
Voluntary Assistance Option.
Analysis Prepared by : Kevin G. Baker / JUD. / (916) 319-2334
FN: 0003411
AB 2746
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