In California’s budget crisis, the nation’s largest state judiciary will be hit by severe budget shortages that may prompt shortened court hours, furloughed employees, loss of 50 new judgeships and less money for state-funded lawyers.
Even before the current budget crisis, Riverside County near Los Angeles, had too few judges to handle its criminal caseload and imposed a moratorium on civil trials.
That ended with the sending of a statewide judicial swat team to pick up the slack, but the problem could resurface there and in other counties, according to William Vickrey, Administrative Director of the Courts.
The state’s trial courts, with more than 1,600 judges, will face nearly $250 million in cuts from spending based on reduced allocations for lawyers appointed to represent dependent children, less money to cover increased pay and health expenses, higher rents and increased costs for security officers.
For the second year, the judiciary must delay a $17 million allocation to reform the probate courts after reports two years ago exposed corruption in handling of some estates.
The judiciary budget was set at $3.84 billion for fiscal year 2009-2010, which starts July 1, in the state’s $96 billion spending plan signed by the Governor Feb. 20.
‘Dire circumstances’
While the overall budget is roughly the same as last years that does not account for increases in pension contributions due to poor investment performances higher rents and existing wage increase requirements, according to Vickrey.
“I think it is what could be achieved in these economic times, which are dire,” said Judge Mary Wiss, president of the California Judges Association and a San Francisco trial judge.
California’s judicial branch fields nine million filings annually, spread among more than 2,000 judicial officers and 22,000 court employees in 500 buildings spread around the state, according to the state Administrative Office of the Courts.
This makes California the largest state court system in the nation.
The state faced a $41 billion budget hole when housing prices dropped, foreclosures soared and residents began losing jobs. The original 2008 budget expenses of $103 billion had to be pared back to $92 billion and the new budget for 2009 came in at $96 billion.
Although Judiciary branch employees, as an independent branch of government, were spared the furloughs imposed on other government offices, nearly 50 of the 850 employees of the judiciary’s administrative office agreed to voluntary furloughs, of one day a month, as a cost saving measure, according to the Administrative Office of the Courts.
“Courts may be open fewer hours. The irony is that in economic downturns the courts get more child support disputes, foster care filings, and landlord tenant problems,” Vickrey said.
As recently as December, state Supreme Court Chief Justice Ron George talked about a commitment from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to get 50 new judges on the state’s 1,600-judge trial courts in 2009. But it now appears the new judges are on hold.
The situation is increasingly dire in some parts of the state. Riverside’s civil trial moratorium ended only when visiting judges were brought in as a stopgap measure. They continue to hold civil trials in closed schools and other buildings to shorten the backlog that had grown to four years, Vickrey said.
The trial courts face enormous pressures due to population growth without a corresponding increase in judges. Central Valley counties, such as Fresno, Sacramento, and San Bernardino Counties are likely to be hit with the same problems that faced Riverside, he said.
“When you look at the number of judges per 100,000 in population in other major urban states such as Pennsylvania, Michigan, Florida and New York, then California is at the bottom,” he said.
“We sent the team into Riverside and some prisoners had been sitting in prison four years waiting for their cases to be tried,” he said.
“Criminal cases take priority and must be handled, but when civil litigants can’t be heard that is not fair to them,” Wiss said.
The state is also hoping for $10 billion in federal funds but if the bailout falls short an additional $900 million in cuts will be triggered. Vickrey said that will include a $100 million cut to the courts most of it would pay for the new judges.
The bright spot is in courthouse construction. Although the budget cut $40 billion out of court construction there will be 15 courthouses moving ahead based funding approved a year ago, he said.
He said the judiciary will start immediately to try to negotiate for land or get it donated by counties and begin design plans.
