Governor Adds 50 Judges to Budget: Lawmakers Want Diversity or They Say They Will Block Proposal
Thursday, January 11, 2007
- Organization: Daily Journal
SACRAMENTO - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger found room in his proposed 2007 budget Wednesday to hire 50 new trial-court judges on top of the 50 approved last year.
But lawmakers likely will insist on attaching strings to the new judgeships, just as they did last year. They want assurance that the governor is looking for more women and minorities to serve on the bench.
Legislative leaders repeatedly have warned they will block the proposal if they do not see more diversity.
"Our expectation is we'll receive greater diversity in the appointments," said Assemblyman Dave Jones, chairman of the Assembly Judiciary Committee.
"I believe the governor has indicated a strong desire to do so," Jones said. "We'll have that opportunity with the first 50 we authorized last year."
In releasing his $143 billion budget, the governor proposed holding increased spending to less than 1 percent. He said his spending plan, if approved by the Legislature, would pay off economic recovery bonds in 2009, 14 years ahead of schedule.
The governor's $3.3 billion trial courts budget proposal includes full funding for the Conservation and Guardianship Reform Act of 2006, aimed at better protecting the elderly and disabled.
It also includes funding to begin building four new trial courts that were approved conceptually by the Judicial Council in August. They would be built in Madera, San Bernardino, Stockton and Riverside counties.
The budget includes money to finish three courthouses begun in Contra Costa, Plumas and Mono counties.
It also sets aside $5 million for a pilot project in a small number of courts to allow judges to appoint counsel in civil cases for indigent litigants who are in critical need of legal advice.
"This is something Chief Justice Ron George and I have been working on," Jones said. "I'm very pleased to see the governor include $5 million to improve access to justice."
Jones said he is disappointed, however, that Schwarzenegger did not include funding to provide court interpreters for civil litigants who otherwise can't afford to hire lawyers. He had a bill last year to introduce that, but it was vetoed.
"This continues to be a major problem," Jones said. "We have judges who are forced to use children to interpret for their parents' sensitive family law matters."
Jones said he would like to launch a pilot project to provide interpreters for high-priority matters "like family law, housing and other essential matters."
The trial-courts budget also proposes a $130.1 million increase to cover operating costs during continuing population growth, said Bill Vickrey, director of the Administrative Office of the Courts.
Other odds and ends include small allocations to complete appellate-court facilities in Fresno and Santa Ana and $300,000 for the state's habeas support center to improve record-keeping and case-tracking.
Schwarzenegger's proposal did not provide any funding to boost judge retirement benefits, which the courts have been seeking for several years.
"The decision was to handle this as a policy issue, and it needs a bill to pass," Vickrey said. "It has never had a committee hearing. So after consulting with the governor's office and legislative leadership, we decided the best thing is to introduce a bill in this legislative session."
Solano County Superior Court Judge Scott Kays, who is president of the California Judges Association, said timing was off last year because the Legislature was focused on other infrastructure needs and the governor was proposing pension reforms for state employees.
"This year, it looks like we have more people in Sacramento talking about it on both sides of the house, Senate and Assembly, and there seems to be momentum building for it," Kays said. "Last year, we had a huge focus on new judges, an 8.5 percent salary increase for judges that came through, so we're very happy about that."
Kays said more legislators understand the need to improve judge retirement benefits to attract excellent candidates for the judiciary.
Judges must have 20 years on the bench and be at least 65 or must be 70 with fewer years on the bench to get a defined retirement benefit. The judges are proposing the state change that to allow judges to retire at 63 with 10 years on the bench to get 37.5 percent of their full salaries in retirement.
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© 2007 Daily Journal Corporation. All rights reserved.
But lawmakers likely will insist on attaching strings to the new judgeships, just as they did last year. They want assurance that the governor is looking for more women and minorities to serve on the bench.
Legislative leaders repeatedly have warned they will block the proposal if they do not see more diversity.
"Our expectation is we'll receive greater diversity in the appointments," said Assemblyman Dave Jones, chairman of the Assembly Judiciary Committee.
"I believe the governor has indicated a strong desire to do so," Jones said. "We'll have that opportunity with the first 50 we authorized last year."
In releasing his $143 billion budget, the governor proposed holding increased spending to less than 1 percent. He said his spending plan, if approved by the Legislature, would pay off economic recovery bonds in 2009, 14 years ahead of schedule.
The governor's $3.3 billion trial courts budget proposal includes full funding for the Conservation and Guardianship Reform Act of 2006, aimed at better protecting the elderly and disabled.
It also includes funding to begin building four new trial courts that were approved conceptually by the Judicial Council in August. They would be built in Madera, San Bernardino, Stockton and Riverside counties.
The budget includes money to finish three courthouses begun in Contra Costa, Plumas and Mono counties.
It also sets aside $5 million for a pilot project in a small number of courts to allow judges to appoint counsel in civil cases for indigent litigants who are in critical need of legal advice.
"This is something Chief Justice Ron George and I have been working on," Jones said. "I'm very pleased to see the governor include $5 million to improve access to justice."
Jones said he is disappointed, however, that Schwarzenegger did not include funding to provide court interpreters for civil litigants who otherwise can't afford to hire lawyers. He had a bill last year to introduce that, but it was vetoed.
"This continues to be a major problem," Jones said. "We have judges who are forced to use children to interpret for their parents' sensitive family law matters."
Jones said he would like to launch a pilot project to provide interpreters for high-priority matters "like family law, housing and other essential matters."
The trial-courts budget also proposes a $130.1 million increase to cover operating costs during continuing population growth, said Bill Vickrey, director of the Administrative Office of the Courts.
Other odds and ends include small allocations to complete appellate-court facilities in Fresno and Santa Ana and $300,000 for the state's habeas support center to improve record-keeping and case-tracking.
Schwarzenegger's proposal did not provide any funding to boost judge retirement benefits, which the courts have been seeking for several years.
"The decision was to handle this as a policy issue, and it needs a bill to pass," Vickrey said. "It has never had a committee hearing. So after consulting with the governor's office and legislative leadership, we decided the best thing is to introduce a bill in this legislative session."
Solano County Superior Court Judge Scott Kays, who is president of the California Judges Association, said timing was off last year because the Legislature was focused on other infrastructure needs and the governor was proposing pension reforms for state employees.
"This year, it looks like we have more people in Sacramento talking about it on both sides of the house, Senate and Assembly, and there seems to be momentum building for it," Kays said. "Last year, we had a huge focus on new judges, an 8.5 percent salary increase for judges that came through, so we're very happy about that."
Kays said more legislators understand the need to improve judge retirement benefits to attract excellent candidates for the judiciary.
Judges must have 20 years on the bench and be at least 65 or must be 70 with fewer years on the bench to get a defined retirement benefit. The judges are proposing the state change that to allow judges to retire at 63 with 10 years on the bench to get 37.5 percent of their full salaries in retirement.
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© 2007 Daily Journal Corporation. All rights reserved.
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