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June 16, 2009

LAWMAKERS REACH DEAL ON COURT BUDGET
Most of the Cut Will Come by Monthly Court Closures

By Matthew Pordum
Daily Journal Staff Writer

SACRAMENTO - The state's courthouses will close one day a month under a deal reached Monday that resolves most of the details of how the state's trial courts will absorb $393 million in budget cuts, according to sources close to the negotiations.

The deal, brokered in large part by Assemblyman Mike Feuer, D-Los Angeles, and the Administrative Office of the Courts, sews together pieces of various proposals that were the subject weeks of intense lobbying and debate, according the source, who wished to remain anonymous because of the sensitivity of the negotiations.

Lawmakers agreed in principle to the courthouse closures, the mainstay of the AOC's proposal, which is projected to save $102 million.

The deal also calls for tapping into technology funds and court construction and maintenance, perhaps the most contentious areas of recent debate, the source said.

Under the deal, $25 million will come from the construction fund. Up to $106 million will come from funds earmarked for a new statewide computer system - but the AOC can trim other areas to reduce that amount. According to the source, construction on projects already underway will not be affected by taking monies from the fund.

Feuer helped broker the negotiation in part by altering the mechanics for his proposed legislation to make California the first state in the nation to establish a right to counsel for low-income people in critical human-needs civil cases.

The chairman of the Assembly Judiciary Committee agreed to use the projected $11 million generated through a $10 increase on certain fees for court services that had originally been designated to fund the program to go to solving the trial courts' budget woes.

In two years the revenue from the increase will return to funding the pilot program that seeks to provide counsel to low-income people in cases where basic human needs, such as shelter, sustenance, safety, health or child custody are at stake.

The proposed plan would see an additional $6 million to 7 million saved from raising civil filing fees $5, and another $40 million will be saved from raising criminal fines and fees by $10.

Rounding out the specifics of the proposed negotiation is saving $32 million via a one-time only cut in the statutory appropriation limit and $70 million will be saved from dipping into trial court reserves.

Many of the proposed elements of the deal will require specific legislative action and are expected to be addressed in the weeks to come.

matthew_pordum@dailyjournal.com