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JUDICIAL BRANCH

JUDICIAL BRANCH

T
he Judicial Branch consists of the Supreme Court, courts of appeal, trial courts, and
the Judicial Council. The trial courts are funded with a combination of General
Fund, county maintenance-of-effort requirements, fines, fees, and other charges. Other
levels of the Judicial Branch receive most of their funding from the General Fund. The
May Revision includes total funding of $4.6 billion ($2.7 billion General Fund and $1.9
billion other funds) in 2021-22 for the Judicial Branch, of which $1.2 billion General Fund
is provided to support trial court operations. The Judicial Council is responsible for
managing the resources of the Judicial Branch.

TRIAL COURT OPERATIONS

The Judicial Branch has had to significantly change its operations to protect the public
from the spread of COVID-19 while also maintaining access to justice. Actions taken by
the Judicial Council and all levels of court administration include extending court
deadlines, suspending jury trials, using technology to conduct proceedings remotely,
and suspending evictions and foreclosures. These actions have resulted in more limited
operations while the courts modified processes and procedures to adapt to the
COVID-19 Pandemic, and in some instances, resulted in periods of courtroom or
courthouse closures.

These changes have delayed normal court operations and resulted in a backlog of
criminal and civil cases. The Administration is committed to providing the Judicial
Branch the necessary resources to address this backlog and provide timely access to

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justice. Earlier this year the Governor and the Legislature agreed to restore $176.9 million
for the trial courts and $23.1 million for the state-level judiciary. These restorations will
allow courts to re-open temporarily closed courtrooms and process case backlogs
which have accumulated during the pandemic. In addition, the Governor’s Budget
included significant adjustments to address other cost pressures, freeing up resources
for trial courts to focus on addressing the case backlog. Specifically, the Governor’s
Budget included $72.2 million ongoing General Fund for trial courts to address
inflationary cost increases and $53.5 million ongoing General Fund for maintenance,
utility, and lease costs for trial court and Courts of Appeal facilities.

The May Revision provides two additional proposals to further address the case
backlog. First, it includes $30 million one-time General Fund to support the Early
Disposition Readiness Conference Program. In the fall, the Chief Justice initiated this
program to expedite adjudications by making temporary assigned judges available to
complete readiness conferences to resolve low-level misdemeanors or felony cases
before going to trial, providing victims and offenders a more timely resolution. While the
Chief Justice provides temporary judges to courts that opt-in to this voluntary program,
not all courts have resources available to provide staff to support these judges. As such,
many courts have been reluctant to opt-in to the program. The proposed funding
would remove this financial impediment and thereby support the early resolution of
certain criminal cases. Second, the May Revision proposes language in the budget that
would allow the Judicial Council to request additional funding, up to $60 million, in the
event that the above augmentations are insufficient to address the case backlog. This
funding, which would be subject to approval by the Department of Finance upon
review of data demonstrating a persistent case backlog, could be used to procure
resources such as additional staff or space to process cases.

FINE AND FEE DEBT FORGIVENESS

During the Great Recession, the state increased the fines, fees, assessments, and
surcharges levied on individuals convicted of criminal offenses including traffic
infractions, to generate funding for specific state and local programs and services. The
Judicial Council estimates these fines and fees generated approximately $1.2 billion in
revenue in 2019-20.

In recognition of the financial hardship this has placed on low-income individuals, the
Legislature and the Administration have worked to implement various changes to
existing law and the budget. The 2018 Budget Act included $3.4 million General Fund
for the Judicial Council to implement an eight-court pilot program allowing indigent

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and low-income individuals to apply online to have their fines and fees from traffic
infractions reduced in accordance with their ability to pay. Chapter 92, Statutes of 2020
(AB 1869), eliminated the ability of state and local agencies to impose certain
administrative fees for criminal offenses beginning July 2021. Furthermore, the
Governor’s Budget also included $12.3 million General Fund in 2021-22, increasing to
$58.4 million beginning in 2024-25 and ongoing to expand the online ability to pay pilot
program statewide for both traffic and non-traffic infractions. This approach will provide
targeted relief for low-income individuals for whom such penalties present a major
financial hardship.

While these measures provide prospective relief, many low-income Californians

currently owe hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars in debt for previously imposed
fines and fees. Low-income Californians have been disproportionately impacted by the
COVID-19 Pandemic and they should not have to choose between paying these debts
and providing basic necessities such as housing and health care for themselves and
their families. As such, the May Revision includes $300 million one-time federal American
Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) funds to support additional relief for low-income
Californians in the form of a debt forgiveness program to eliminate debt owed on
existing fines and fees for traffic and non-traffic infraction tickets issued between
January 1, 2015 and June 30, 2021. Specifically, under this program an individual could
apply to have 100 percent of their debt forgiven upon submission of an application
verifying their low-income status. The one-time funding covers implementation costs for
the trial courts and the backfill of lost revenues that would have otherwise been
allocated for court operations and to local governments.

STATEWIDE INITIATIVE TO REDUCE PRETRIAL DETENTION

Detaining individuals prior to trial, such as those who do not have an ability to pay for a
release bond, can carry unintended consequences for those not yet convicted of a
crime. Individuals can lose jobs, housing, or custody of their children, and are more likely
to plead guilty. These negative consequences are disproportionately borne by minority
communities and women. For example, one 2017 study found that women held in
pretrial detention on misdemeanor charges are more likely to plead guilty than men.

Both the immediate impacts of detention and the much longer lasting record of
conviction can be significant. To address these issues, the Administration is committed
to efficiently minimizing pretrial detention while maintaining public safety. These
essential measures will reduce racial and socio-economic disparities in the criminal
justice system and reduce unnecessary incarceration.

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The May Revision includes $140 million General Fund in 2021-22 and $70 million ongoing
to expand a pretrial pilot program funded with one-time resources in the 2019 Budget
Act. Specifically, this funding will provide all 58 courts and county supervision agencies
with the resources necessary to support judicial officers in making pretrial release
decisions that impose the least restrictive conditions while maintaining public safety and
assisting individuals in returning to court, and implementing appropriate monitoring
practices and the provision of services for released individuals.

The Judicial Council will distribute the funds and provide judicial education and
technical assistance to the courts on practices and programs related to pretrial
decision-making. The Judicial Council will also evaluate the pretrial programs and
practices and provide regular reports to the Legislature.

By establishing a statewide structure, this proposal will promote equity across counties
and prevent disparate “justice by geography.”

OTHER SIGNIFICANT JUDICIAL BRANCH INVESTMENTS

The May Revision also makes the following significant adjustments:

• May Revision Infrastructure Package: One-time Deferred Maintenance—$158 million

one-time General Fund in 2021-22 to support deferred maintenance projects in trial
courts and Courts of Appeal. This brings the total one-time funding for deferred
maintenance to $188 million in 2021-22.

• Legal Aid for Renters in Landlord-Tenant Disputes and Homeowners to Avoid

Foreclosure—$20 million federal ARPA funds annually for three years ($60 million
total) to provide legal aid services for renters and homeowners to avoid eviction
and foreclosure. Specifically, these additional funds will provide free legal services
for landlord-tenant issues, including legal assistance for counseling, renter education
programs, and preventing evictions and foreclosures as discussed in the Housing
and Homelessness Chapter.

• Shasta County Superior Court Security—$330,000 General Fund in 2021-22 and

$660,000 ongoing thereafter to support trial court security costs for a new
courthouse scheduled to open in January 2022. Court security is provided by the
Shasta County Marshal’s Office.

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