SACRAMENTO — Judicial advocates are circulating draft legislation that would restore Los Angeles County’s authority to pay local judges an extra $46,000 a year in benefits, a practice that an appellate court ruled unconstitutional in October.
The bill, expected to be tucked into a budget deal between the governor and lawmakers, also calls on the Administrative Office of the Courts to provide “supplemental” benefits to trial court judges in other counties, as well as appellate justices. The as-yet unidentified perks would be phased in over the next 10 years and eventually total 20 percent of their salaries, a package worth $35,758 for each superior court judge based on the current yearly pay rate of $178,789.
