THIRD READING  

Bill No: AB 1869

Author: Committee on Budget

Amended: 8/27/20 in Senate

Vote: 21

SENATE BUDGET & FISCAL REVIEW COMMITTEE: 14-4, 8/29/20

AYES: Mitchell, Beall, Caballero, Durazo, Hertzberg, Hurtado, Leyva, McGuire, Monning, Moorlach, Pan, Roth, Skinner, Wieckowski

NOES: Nielsen, Dahle, Melendez, Morrell

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: Not relevant

SUBJECT: Criminal fees

SOURCE: Author

DIGEST:

This bill includes statutory changes to enact public safety-related provisions of the Budget Act of 2020.

ANALYSIS: At every point in the criminal legal process, California state law authorizes counties to charge administrative fees. These fees are levied on top of monetary sanctions that California imposes on people who have committed an infraction or offense: For example, fines, penalty assessments, and restitution. From booking and arrest to representation by a public defender and probation supervision, an individual can face a host of fees and a subsequent collection process. Although state law authorizes such fees, local jurisdictions have the discretion over the specific fees to impose and for what amounts to charge for each fee imposed.

Currently, 54 of 58 California counties charge one or more such administrative fees. But research on criminal administrative fee collection across California shows that some counties spend equal to or more than fees than they actually collect. Additional research shows that these fees are most commonly levied on low-income people who encounter the criminal justice system. Overall, the fees lead to inefficient use of resources, are unstable sources of revenue for governments, and drive low-income people into greater debt.

This bill, effective July 1, 2021, makes the following changes to 23 criminal administrative fees:

1. Repeals statutes associated with Public Defense Fees, Cost of Counsel, Public Defense Registration Fee, and Public Defense Fees for Minors.
2. Repeals statutes associated with various Criminal Justice Administration Fees. Specifically, repeals provisions allowing for the recovery of costs associated with arrest.
3. Repeals statutes associated with the $25 Administrative Processing Fee and $10 Citation Processing Fee.
4. Repeals the Interstate Compact Supervision Fee. Specially repeals statutes that provides that a probationer cannot be released to another state until the probationer has paid the reasonable costs of processing their request to move states.
5. Repeals statutes associated with alternative custody. For example, it eliminates the ability to charge an administrative or application fees for work furlough or home detention and eliminates other fees relating to home detention. Moreover, it repeals provisions that allows fees for pretrial electronic monitoring, provides the ability of probation to charge a person for electronic monitoring, and gives a county the ability to seek reimbursement for the reasonable costs of county parole supervision. Finally, it repeals the Probation Department Investigation/Progress Report Fee.

This bill makes the unpaid balances related to the aforementioned eliminated fees uncollectible.

FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: Yes Fiscal Com.: Yes Local: Yes

According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, this bill appropriates $50,000 from the General Fund in the 2020-21 fiscal year to the Department of Finance to begin implementation of the provisions of this act and appropriates $65,000,000 annually from the General Fund to the Controller beginning in the 2021-22 fiscal year to the 2025-26 fiscal year, inclusive, to backfill revenues lost from the repeal of those fees specified in this act, unless future legislation extends the provisions of this act. The funds are appropriated to the Controller for allocation to counties according to a schedule provided by the Department of Finance. Finally, the bill expresses the intent of the Legislature to pursue legislation with the Budget Act of 2021 to finalize the funding allocation methodology for distribution to counties.

SUPPORT: (Verified 8/29/20)

None received

OPPOSITION: (Verified 8/29/20)

None received

Prepared by: Christopher Francis / B. & F.R. / 916-651-4103

8/31/20 0:32:10

**** END ****

(Without Reference to File)

CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS

CSA1 Bill Id:AB 1869

Author:(Committee on Budget)

As Amended Ver:August 27, 2020

Majority vote. Budget Bill Appropration Take Effect Immediately

SUMMARY:

This budget trailer bill contains provisions required to implement the 2020 Budget Act and repeals various criminal administrative fees.

The Senate Amendments:

The administrative fees that will be repealed are:

1. Government Codes 27712 (public defense fee), 27753 (cost of counsel), 29550(c) (criminal justice administration fee), 29550(f) (administrative screening fee and citation processing fee), 29550.1 (criminal justice administration fee), 29550.2 (county booking fee), 29550.3 (city booking fee), and
2. Penal Codes 1203 (interstate compact supervision), 1203.016(g) (adult home detention administrative fee), 1203.018(j)(electronic monitoring administrative fee), 1203.1b (probation department investigation/progress report fee), 1203.1e (parole supervision fee), 1208.2(b) (program administrative fee), 1210.15 (continuous electronic monitoring fee), 3010.8 (parole continuous electronic monitoring fee), 4024.2(e)(work furlough administrative fee), 6266 (work furlough program fee), 987.4 (minor public defense fee), 987.5 (public defense registration fee), and 987.8 (public defense fee).

The bill appropriates $50,000 from the General Fund in the 2020-21 fiscal year to the Department of Finance to begin implementation of the provisions of this act and appropriates $65 million annually from the General Fund to the Controller beginning in the 2021-22 fiscal year to the 2025-26 fiscal year, inclusive, to backfill revenues lost from the repeal of those fees specified in this act, unless future legislation extends the provisions of this act. The funds are appropriated to the Controller for allocation to counties according to a schedule provided by the Department of Finance. Finally, the bill expresses the intent of the Legislature to pursue legislation with the Budget Act of 2021 to finalize the funding allocation methodology for distribution to counties.

The provisions of the bill will be effective as of July 1, 2021

COMMENTS:

According to the Author:

This trailer bill implements technical provisions of the 2020 Budget Act related to criminal administrative fees.

Arguments in Support:

Arguments in Opposition:

FISCAL COMMENTS:

This bill appropriates $50,000 from the General Fund in the 2020-21 fiscal year to the Department of Finance to begin implementation of the provisions of this act.

VOTES:

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 60-14-5

YES: Aguiar-Curry, Arambula, Bauer-Kahan, Berman, Bloom, Boerner Horvath, Bonta, Burke, Calderon, Carrillo, Cervantes, Chau, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Daly, Eggman, Frazier, Friedman, Gabriel, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gipson, Gloria, Gonzalez, Gray, Grayson, Holden, Irwin, Jones-Sawyer, Kalra, Kamlager, Levine, Limón, Low, Maienschein, McCarty, Medina, Mullin, Muratsuchi, Nazarian, O'Donnell, Petrie-Norris, Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Reyes, Luz Rivas, Robert Rivas, Rodriguez, Blanca Rubio, Salas, Santiago, Mark Stone, Ting, Weber, Wicks, Wood, Rendon

NO: Bigelow, Brough, Cunningham, Megan Dahle, Flora, Fong, Gallagher, Kiley, Lackey, Mayes, Obernolte, Patterson, Voepel, Waldron

ABS, ABST OR NV: Chen, Choi, Diep, Mathis, Smith

UPDATED:

VERSION: August 27, 2020

CONSULTANT: Jennifer Kim / BUDGET / (916) 319-2099 FN: 0003666

SENATE COMMITTEE ON

Senator Holly Mitchell, Chair

2019 - 2020 Regular

Bill No: Hearing Date: August 27, 2020

Subject: Criminal Administrative Fees

Summary:

Includes statutory changes to enact public safety-related provisions of the Budget Act of 2020.

Background:

At every point in the criminal legal process, California state law authorizes counties to charge administrative fees. These fees are levied on top of monetary sanctions that California imposes on people who have committed an infraction or offense: For example, fines, penalty assessments, and restitution. From booking and arrest to representation by a public defender and probation supervision, an individual can face a host of fees and a subsequent collection process. Although state law authorizes such fees, local jurisdictions have the discretion over the specific fees to impose and for what amounts to charge for each fee imposed.

Currently, 54 of 58 California counties charge one or more such administrative fees. But research on criminal administrative fee collection across California shows that some counties spend equal to or more than fees than they actually collect. Additional research shows that these fees are most commonly levied on low-income people who encounter the criminal justice system. Overall, the fees lead to inefficient use of resources, are unstable sources of revenue for governments, and drive low-income people into greater debt.

Proposed Law:

This bill will, effective July 1, 2021, make the following changes to 23 criminal administrative fees:

1. Repeals statutes associated with Public Defense Fees, Cost of Counsel, Public Defense Registration Fee, and Public Defense Fees for Minors.
2. Repeals statutes associated with various Criminal Justice Administration Fees. Specifically, repeals provisions allowing for the recovery of costs associated with arrest.
3. Repeals statutes associated with the $25 Administrative Processing Fee and $10 Citation Processing Fee.
4. Repeals the Interstate Compact Supervision Fee. Specially repeals statutes that provides that a probationer cannot be released to another state until the probationer has paid the reasonable costs of processing their request to move states.
5. Repeals statutes associated with alternative custody. For example, it eliminates the ability to charge an administrative or application fees for work furlough or home detention and eliminates other fees relating to home detention. Moreover, it repeals provisions that allows fees for pretrial electronic monitoring, provides the ability of probation to charge a person for electronic monitoring, and gives a county the ability to seek reimbursement for the reasonable costs of county parole supervision. Finally, it repeals the Probation Department Investigation/Progress Report Fee.

This bill makes the unpaid balances related to the aforementioned eliminated fees uncollectible.

Fiscal Effect:

The bill appropriates $50,000 from the General Fund in the 2020-21 fiscal year to the Department of Finance to begin implementation of the provisions of this act and appropriates $65,000,000 annually from the General Fund to the Controller beginning in the 2021-22 fiscal year to the 2025-26 fiscal year, inclusive, to backfill revenues lost from the repeal of those fees specified in this act, unless future legislation extends the provisions of this act. The funds are appropriated to the Controller for allocation to counties according to a schedule provided by the Department of Finance. Finally, the bill expresses the intent of the Legislature to pursue legislation with the Budget Act of 2021 to finalize the funding allocation methodology for distribution to counties.

Support:

None on file.

Opposed:

None on file.

-- END --

ASSEMBLY THIRD READING

ATR Bill Id:AB 1869

Author:(Committee on Budget)

As Amended Ver:February 25, 2020

Majority vote. Budget Bill Appropriation Takes Effect Immediately

SUMMARY:

This bill expresses the intent of the Legislature to enact statutory changes relating to the Budget Act of 2020.

Major Provisions

COMMENTS:

According to the Author:

Arguments in Support:

Arguments in Opposition:

FISCAL COMMENTS:

VOTES:

UPDATED:

VERSION: February 25, 2020

CONSULTANT: Christian Griffith / BUDGET / (916) 319-2099 FN: 0002700