BILL NUMBER: SBX2 12	ENROLLED
	BILL TEXT

	PASSED THE SENATE  FEBRUARY 14, 2009
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY  FEBRUARY 19, 2009
	AMENDED IN SENATE  FEBRUARY 14, 2009

INTRODUCED BY   Senators Steinberg, Cox, and Runner
   (Coauthor: Senator Corbett)
   (Coauthor: Assembly Member Jones)

                        FEBRUARY 11, 2009

   An act to amend Sections 68085.45, 70371.5, and 70372 of, and to
add Sections 70371.7 and 70371.8 to, the Government Code, relating to
court facilities, and making an appropriation therefor.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 12, Steinberg. Court facilities financing.
   Existing law establishes the Immediate and Critical Needs Account
of the State Court Facilities Construction Fund, the proceeds of
which may be used for the planning, design, construction,
rehabilitation, renovation, replacement, or acquisition of court
facilities, for the repayment of moneys appropriated for lease of
court facilities pursuant to the issuance of lease-revenue bonds, and
for the payment for lease or rental of court facilities. Existing
law also requires any moneys remaining in, or that would otherwise be
payable into, the Immediate and Critical Needs Account of the State
Court Facilities Construction Fund, to be transferred to the
Controller for deposit into the State Trial Court Operations Trust
Fund, upon the retirement of any bonded indebtedness that may be
incurred in connection with immediate and critical trial court
projects.
   This bill also would authorize the proceeds of the Immediate and
Critical Needs Account to be used for payment of service contracts.
The bill would require any moneys remaining, upon the retirement of
all bonded indebtedness incurred in connection with the immediate and
critical trial court projects, to be transferred to the Controller
for deposit into the State Trial Court Operations Trust Fund.
   Existing law requires the Judicial Council to collect and make
available information regarding moneys in the Immediate and Critical
Needs Account, as specified, and to make recommendations to the
Governor and the Legislature for projects based on its determination
that the need for a project is most immediate and critical, as
specified.
   This bill would instead require the Judicial Council to make
recommendations to the State Public Works Board before it undertakes
projects based on its determination that the need for a project is
most immediate and critical, subject to the availability of funds in
the Immediate and Critical Needs Account, as specified. This bill
would authorize the Judicial Council, upon certification of the
availability of funds and establishment of the project scope and cost
by the State Public Works Board, to acquire real property and
complete preliminary plans, as provided. This bill would require the
Judicial Council to report to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee
and the chairs of the Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review
and the Assembly Committee on Budget both prior to seeking the board'
s establishment of project scope and cost, and by March 1 of each
year on the status of each project, as provided. This bill would
continuously appropriate the Immediate and Critical Needs Account,
until July 1, 2012, for the purpose of acquiring real property and
completing preliminary plans.
   Existing law specifies various uniform fees for filing specified
documents in connection with certain civil proceedings, including a
fee schedule for filing a first petition or first account in
connection with a trust or estate. Existing law also provides for a
specified portion of all of those fees to be deposited into the
Immediate and Critical Needs Account.
   This bill would specify the date that will be used for the
calculation of the portion to be transferred.
   Appropriation: yes.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 68085.45 of the Government Code is amended to
read:
   68085.45.  (a) There is hereby established the State Trial Court
Operations Trust Fund. Upon the retirement of all bonded indebtedness
that may be incurred in connection with immediate and critical trial
court projects, any moneys remaining in, or that would otherwise be
payable into, the Immediate and Critical Needs Account of the State
Court Facilities Construction Fund, shall be transferred to the
Controller for deposit into the State Trial Court Operations Trust
Fund.
   (b) The proceeds of the State Trial Court Operations Trust Fund
shall be available, upon appropriation by the Legislature in the
annual Budget Act, only for trial court operations as defined in
Section 77003.
  SEC. 2.  Section 70371.5 of the Government Code is amended to read:

   70371.5.  (a) There is hereby established the Immediate and
Critical Needs Account of the State Court Facilities Construction
Fund, the proceeds of which shall only be used for any of the
following:
   (1) The planning, design, construction, rehabilitation,
renovation, replacement, or acquisition of court facilities.
   (2) Repayment for moneys appropriated for lease of court
facilities pursuant to the issuance of lease-revenue bonds.
   (3) Payment for lease or rental of court facilities or payment of
service contracts, including those made for facilities in which one
or more private sector participants undertake some of the risks
associated with the financing, design, construction, or operation of
the facility.
   (b) Any funds expended from the Immediate and Critical Needs
Account are not subject to Section 77202.
   (c) Notwithstanding Section 13340, until July 1, 2012, the
Immediate and Critical Needs Account is hereby continuously
appropriated, without regard to fiscal year, only for the purposes of
acquiring real property and completing preliminary plans.
   (d) It is the intent of the Legislature that the money in the
Immediate and Critical Needs Account shall be used in part to pay the
debt service of lease revenue bonds, notes, bond anticipation notes,
or other appropriate financial instruments used to pay for the costs
referred to in subdivision (a) in the amount of up to five billion
dollars ($5,000,000,000). The total bonded indebtedness shall not
exceed that amount for which fine and fee revenues may fully satisfy
the debt service.
   (e) The Judicial Council shall collect and make available upon
request information regarding the moneys deposited in the Immediate
and Critical Needs Account resulting from new and increased fees,
assessments, and penalties authorized by the act that added this
section.
   (f) (1) The Judicial Council shall make recommendations to the
State Public Works Board before it undertakes projects based on its
determination that the need for a project is most immediate and
critical using the then most recent version of the Prioritization
Methodology for Trial Court Capital-Outlay Projects originally
adopted on August 26, 2006, subject to the availability of funds in
the Immediate and Critical Needs Account. Any such recommendation
shall be accompanied by a certification that there are sufficient
funds in the Immediate and Critical Needs Account. The State Public
Works Board shall establish the scope and cost for each individual
project.
   (2) The Legislature finds that there may not be enough resources
to pay for the cost of the projects identified as immediate and
critical needs by the Judicial Council pursuant to its Prioritization
Methodology for Trial Court Capital-Outlay Projects originally
adopted on August 26, 2006, even after considering any bonded
indebtedness that may be issued relying at least in part on those
resources. Therefore, in choosing which projects shall be recommended
to the State Public Works Board to be funded from the Immediate and
Critical Needs Account, the Judicial Council shall consider and
apply, as appropriate, the following factors, among others:
   (A) Any economic opportunity that exists for a project.
   (B) The effect on available resources of using alternative methods
of project delivery as provided by Section 70391.5.
   (3) Nothing in paragraph (2) shall authorize the Judicial Council
to exceed the resources provided by the Immediate and Critical Needs
Account, together with other available resources, in undertaking
projects identified as immediate and critical needs.
   (4) As used in paragraph (2), "economic opportunity" includes, but
is not limited to, free or reduced costs of land for new
construction, viable financing partnerships with, or fund
contributions by, other government entities or private parties that
result in lower project delivery costs, cost savings resulting from
adaptive reuse of existing facilities, operational efficiencies from
consolidation of court calendars and operations, operational savings
from sharing of facilities by more than one court, and building
operational cost savings from consolidation of facilities.
   (5) The Judicial Council shall not consider and apply an economic
opportunity unless it is reasonably assured that the economic
opportunity is viable and will be realized. If a project is selected
for funding based on an economic opportunity that is withdrawn after
the project is approved, the Judicial Council may cancel the project.

  SEC. 3.  Section 70371.7 is added to the Government Code, to read:
   70371.7.  (a) Prior to seeking the State Public Works Board
establishment of the scope and cost, the Judicial Council shall
submit a report to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee describing
the scope, budget, schedule, number of courtrooms, number of secure
holding cells, and square footage of administrative support space to
be constructed or renovated. If the Joint Legislative Budget
Committee fails to take any action with respect to each report within
30 days after submittal, this inaction shall be deemed to be
approval for the purposes of this section, and the Judicial Council
is authorized to proceed to acquire real property and complete
preliminary plans.
   (b) (1) Upon certification of the availability of funds within the
Immediate and Critical Needs Account, and the establishment of the
project scope and cost by the State Public Works Board,
notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Judicial Council is
authorized to acquire real property and to complete preliminary plans
for the superior court capital outlay projects adopted by the
Judicial Council on October 24, 2008, identified in the Update to
Trial Court Capital-Outlay Plan and Prioritization Methodology, or
most recent version thereof.
   (2) It is the intent of the Legislature that funding for working
drawings and construction be appropriated in the next annual Budget
Act following approval by the State Public Works Board of preliminary
plans completed pursuant to paragraph (1).
   (3) The scope and cost of the projects, including augmentations,
authorized by this section shall be subject to approval and
administrative oversight by the State Public Works Board pursuant to
Section 13332.11 or 13332.19. For purposes of this section, the
availability of an augmentation for each individual project shall be
calculated based on the total capital outlay cost as established by
the board.
  SEC. 4.  Section 70371.8 is added to the Government Code, to read:
   70371.8.  The Judicial Council shall report to the Joint
Legislative Budget Committee and chairs of the Senate Committee on
Budget and Fiscal Review and the Assembly Committee on Budget by
March 1 of each year on the status of each project established by the
State Public Works Board under Section 70371.7. The report shall
also include an accounting of the revenues generated and expenditures
made in the Immediate and Critical Needs Account.
  SEC. 5.  Section 70372 of the Government Code is amended to read:
   70372.  (a) (1) Except as otherwise provided in subdivision (b) of
Section 70375 and in this article, there shall be levied a state
court construction penalty, in the amount of five dollars ($5) for
every ten dollars ($10), or part of ten dollars ($10), upon every
fine, penalty, or forfeiture imposed and collected by the courts for
all criminal offenses, including, but not limited to, all offenses
involving a violation of a section of the Fish and Game Code, the
Health and Safety Code, or the Vehicle Code or any local ordinance
adopted pursuant to the Vehicle Code. This penalty is in addition to
any other state or local penalty, including, but not limited to, the
penalty provided by Section 1464 of the Penal Code and Section 76000.

   (2) The amount of the court construction penalty may be reduced by
a county as provided in subdivision (b) of Section 70375.
   (3) This construction penalty does not apply to the following:
   (A) Any restitution fine.
   (B) Any penalty authorized by Section 1464 of the Penal Code or
Chapter 12 (commencing with Section 76000) of Title 8.
   (C) Any parking offense subject to Article 3 (commencing with
Section 40200) of Chapter 1 of Division 17 of the Vehicle Code.
   (D) The state surcharge authorized by Section 1465.7 of the Penal
Code.
   (4) Any bail schedule adopted pursuant to Section 1269b of the
Penal Code or adopted by the Judicial Council pursuant to Section
40310 of the Vehicle Code may include the necessary amount to pay the
penalty established by this section, the penalties authorized by
Section 1464 of the Penal Code and Chapter 12 (commencing with
Section 76000) of Title 8, and the surcharge authorized by Section
1465.7 of the Penal Code for all matters where a personal appearance
is not mandatory and the bail is posted primarily to guarantee
payment of the fine. After a determination by the court of the amount
due, the clerk of the court shall collect the penalty and transmit
it immediately to the county treasury and the county treasurer shall
transmit these sums as provided in subdivision (f).
   (b) In addition to the penalty provided by subdivision (a), for
every parking offense where a parking penalty, fine, or forfeiture is
imposed, an added state court construction penalty of four dollars
and fifty cents ($4.50) shall be included in the total penalty, fine,
or forfeiture. These moneys shall be taken from fines and
forfeitures deposited with the county treasurer prior to any division
pursuant to Section 1462.3 or 1463.009 of the Penal Code. In those
cities, districts, or other issuing agencies which elect to accept
parking penalties, and otherwise process parking violations pursuant
to Article 3 (commencing with Section 40200) of Chapter 1 of Division
17 of the Vehicle Code, that city, district, or issuing agency shall
observe the increased bail amounts as established by the court
reflecting the added penalty provided for by this subdivision. Each
agency that elects to process parking violations shall pay to the
county treasurer four dollars and fifty cents ($4.50) for the parking
penalty imposed by this subdivision for each violation that is not
filed in court. Those payments to the county treasurer shall be made
monthly, and the county treasurer shall transmit these sums as
provided in paragraph (2) of subdivision (f).
   (c) If multiple offenses are involved, the state court
construction penalty under subdivision (a) shall be based upon the
total fine or bail for each case. If a fine is suspended, in whole or
in part, the state court construction penalty under subdivision (a)
shall be reduced in proportion to the suspension.
   (d) If any deposited bail is made for an offense to which this
section applies, and for which a court appearance is not mandatory,
the person making the deposit shall also deposit a sufficient amount
to include the state court construction penalty prescribed by
subdivision (a) for forfeited bail. If bail is returned, the state
court construction penalty paid thereon pursuant to subdivision (a)
shall also be returned.
   (e) In any case where a person convicted of any offense, to which
this section applies, is in prison until the fine is satisfied, the
judge may waive all or any part of the state court construction
penalty, the payment of which would work a hardship on the person
convicted or his or her immediate family.
   (f) (1) Within 45 days after the end of the month that moneys are
deposited in the county treasury pursuant to subdivision (a), the
county treasurer shall transmit the moneys to the Controller, to be
deposited as follows:
   (A) The total to be deposited pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be
multiplied by a fraction as follows:
   (i) The numerator is the amount imposed as of January 1, 1998, as
an additional penalty on every ten dollars ($10), or part of ten
dollars ($10), upon every fine, penalty, or forfeiture, if any, for
deposit into the local courthouse construction fund in that county
established pursuant to Sections 76000 and 76100. The numerator shall
be expressed in whole dollars and fractions of a dollar.
   (ii) The denominator is five dollars ($5).
   (B) The resulting amount shall be deposited in the Immediate and
Critical Needs Account of the State Court Facilities Construction
Fund, established in Section 70371.5.
   (C) The remaining amount of the deposit shall be deposited in the
State Court Facilities Construction Fund.
   (2) Within 45 days after the end of the month that moneys are
deposited in the county treasury pursuant to subdivision (b), the
county treasurer shall transmit the moneys to the Controller to be
deposited as follows: one-third of the total amount shall be
deposited in the State Court Facilities Construction Fund and
two-thirds of the total amount shall be deposited in the Immediate
and Critical Needs Account of the State Court Facilities Construction
Fund, established in Section 70371.5.