Six of eight CCBA-Backed Bills Emerge from Busy Weeks of Committee Hearings

The two weeks leading up to the annual deadline for all bills to clear their second-house policy committee are among the busiest in the legislative calendar.  That was particularly true for this year's CCBA Legislative Program, which saw hearings on eight of its sponsored/supported measures - with six moving forward and two running aground.

Much of the action took place in the Public Safety committees of the two houses where, in three separate hearings, two significant CCBA-backed bills were approved, while another significant CCBA-co-sponsored bill fell temporary (we hope) victim to that state's lack of prison beds:

• The last bill, AB 545 by Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez, would add persons in a dating or engagement relationship to the list of person's protected by the felony domestic violence battery statute (Penal Code §273.5).  The bill, co-sponsored by the Los Angeles District Attorney's office and the CCBA (Resolution 06-05-2009, sponsored by 10 individual delegates), was held in Senate Public Safety Committee at its June 28 hearing (starts at 22:00 mark). See related blog post. 
• One week later, at its July 5 hearing, the Senate Public Safety Committee approved CCBA-co-sponsored AB 308 (Resolution 1-13-2010 by the LACBA) by Assemblymember Tom Ammiano. The bill would require the Department of Justice, in consultation with the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training, local law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, defense attorneys, and other legal experts, to develop guidelines relating to the collection and handling of eyewitness evidence in criminal investigations. The objective is to ensure reliable and accurate identifications of criminal suspects, and to minimize the chance of suspect misidentification, which costs society both through wrongful incarceration of the innocent and the failure to pursue and convict the guilty. (See earlier post)
• Finally, on July 7, the Assembly Public Safety Committee approved SB 490, Senator Loni Hancock's newly-created bill to put the question of eliminating the death penalty to the voters. (see related blog post).

Three bills sponsored or co-sponsored by the CCBA found their way to the Senate Judiciary Committee, with three different results:

• The committee waived hearing of AB 1147 by Assemblymember Mariko Yamada, which had won unanimous approval of the Senate Human Services Committee the week before.  The bill, developed by the Women Lawyers of Sacramento (Resolution 03-04-2010), had been double-referred to the Judiciary Committee, but now moves directly to the Appropriations Committee. (See earlier post.)
• On another double-referral, the committee approved AB 1396 by the Assembly Labor & Employment Committee, which had earlier won approval of the Senate Labor & Industrial Relations Committee.  That measure, from the BHBA (Resolution 04-01-2009), goes directly to the Senate Floor.  
• The committee rejected AB 699 by Assemblymember Don Wagner, which would have added California to the growing list of states which authorize the use of Revocable Transfer on Death Deeds for estate planning purposes (Resolution 12-06-2009 by BASF).  The bill earlier had passed the Assembly on a vote of 78-1.  Because the author declined to seek and obtain reconsideration, the bill is dead. (See clip, beginning at 1:21:00 mark).

Rounding out the busy two weeks, two bills supported by the CCBA were approved by their respective policy committees. 

• AB 52 by Assembly Member Mike Feuer, which would require pre-approval of health insurance rate increases (see earlier post), was approved by the Senate Health Committee on a vote of 5-3.  The bill is supported by the CCBA, as consistent with provisions of Resolution 02-02-2010 developed by the Beverly Hills Bar Association. (See earlier post).
• SB 161 by Senator Bob Huff was approved by the Assembly Education Committee.  The bill, which is consistent with Resolution 04-03-2010 sponsored by the Alameda County Bar Association, would authorize school districts to train non-medical school employees who volunteer, to administer emergency antiseizure medication to students with epilepsy.

CCBA-Sponsored AB 545 Becomes R/OCA Victim

Question: How can a bill which is authored by the Speaker of the Assembly; which enjoys the strong support of law enforcement, women's groups, and anti-domestic violence organizations statewide; and which passed the first house of the Legislature without a 'No' vote, still be held in the Senate Public Safety Committee?

Answer: When the bill comes up against the committee's absolute R/OCA policy.

The bill in question is AB 545 by Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez, which would add persons in a dating or engagement relationship to the list of person's protected by the felony domestic violence battery statute (Penal Code §273.5), thereby conforming the list of protected persons to all other DV-related statutes in the Penal, Family, Civil and Evidence Codes - and providing needed protection to, among others, pregnant teenagers who do not live with the father of their child-to-be. The bill is co-sponsored by the Los Angeles District Attorney's office and the CCBA (Resolution 06-05-2009, sponsored by 10 individual delegates under Conference rules), and is supported by the California Partnership to End Domestic Violence, the Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles, the California State Sheriffs’ Association, the California Commission on the Status of Women, and many others.

R/OCA stands for "Receivership/Overcrowding Crisis Aggravation" and, at its simplest, is a policy adopted by the Senate Public Safety Committee in 2007 in response to the prison overcrowding issue (in which the U.S. Supreme Court last May affirmed an order by a three-judge federal panel requiring California to reduce its inmate population to 137.5 percent of design capacity -- a reduction at that time of roughly 40,000 inmates -- within two years) by holding in committee all legislative proposals which "could further exacerbate prison overcrowding through new or expanded felony prosecutions."

Because it would expand the list of persons who could be prosecuted for felony domestic violence (to include persons in a dating or engagement relationship), AB 545 fell into the R/OCA policy - even though in real life the bill probably would serve to reduce the number of individuals actually serving time in prison by making alternative - and more appropriate - sentencing available (e.g., felony probation). Thus, after receiving extensive testimony in support of the bill (and no testimony against) during the AB 545's June 28 hearing, committee Chair Loni Hancock announced with reluctance, and with apparent support for the bill's intent, that AB 545 would be held in committee until next year (see video of the hearing, starting at the 0:22:00 mark).

The good news is that the Budget package of bills recently signed into law by Governor Brown provides the framework for the state to comply with the federal court's order to slice California's prison population through the Governor's prison realignment program, and Hancock did express an intent to reconsider the R/OCA policy next year. The question is whether the state is far enough along towards meeting the goal by next June for AB 545 (or any other R/OCA victims) to be considered on their merits alone.

CCBA Bills Overcome Suspense

The Assembly Appropriations Committee was good to CCBA-sponsored and supported legislation last Friday (5/27), approving all four measures that had been held on the committee's Suspense file.

Two of the CCBA-sponsored bills were approved by unanimous 17-0 votes of the committee:

AB 545 by Assembly Speaker John Pérez, which would amend Penal Code §273.5 to extend the protections the law provides to victims of felony domestic violence to persons in a dating or engagement relationship. The bill is based on CCBA Resolution 06-05-2009.

AB 1147 by Assembly Member Mariko Yamada, which would require social workers to include in the reports they are already required to prepare on teen parents in foster care information on what age and developmental-appropriate services the minor received, consistent with the Teen Parents in Foster Care Act (SB 1178 by Senator and former CCBA delegate Sheila James Kuehl, of 2004). The bill is based on CCBA Resolution 03-04-2010.

A third bill co-sponsored by the CCBA, AB 308 by Assembly Member Tom Ammiano,was approved with amendments on a vote of 11-6. As amended, the bill would require the Department of Justice, in consultation with the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training, local law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, defense attorneys, and other legal experts, to develop guidelines for policies and procedures to ensure the reliability of eyewitness identifications by January 1, 2013, and to make a report on those guidelines - along with any needed implementing legislation - to the Legislature by July 1, 2013. AB 308 reflects the recommendations of the California Commission of the Fair Administration of Justice to address well-documented deficiencies in current eyewitness identification procedures which have too often led to innocent people being convicted and the guilty left free to commit other crimes. AB 308 - which also would allow expert testimony regarding the reliability of an eyewitness identification to be admitted at trial in a criminal action or specified juvenile court proceedings if the proponent of the evidence establishes relevancy and proper qualifications of the witness - is co-sponsored by the CCBA, based on CCBA Resolution 01-13-2010.

Finally, the Appropriations Committee approved, on a tight 9-7 vote, AB 52 by Assembly Member Mike Feuer, which would require health care service plans licensed by the Department of Managed Health Care and health insurers certificated by the California Department of Insurance, effective January 1, 2012, to apply for prior approval of proposed rate increases, under specified conditions, and imposes on regulators specific rate review criteria, timelines, and hearing requirements. The bill is supported by the CCBA, as consistent with provisions of CCBA Resolution 02-02-2010.

All bills referenced must be approved by the full Assembly by Friday (June 3), in order to stay on track for enactment this year.