California Assembly Bill AB1404 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: AB 1404AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 15, 2012 INTRODUCED BY Committee on Judiciary (Feuer (Chair), Atkins, Dickinson, Huber, Huffman, Monning, and Wieckowski) MARCH 7, 2011 An act to amend Section  6213 of the Business and Professions Code, relating to attorneys.   9250.14 of the Vehicle Code, relating to vehicles, and making an appropriation therefor.  LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 1404, as amended, Committee on Judiciary.  Attorneys.   Vehicles: additional registration fee: vehicle-theft crimes.   Existing law, in addition to the other fees imposed for the registration of a vehicle, authorizes a county to impose, upon adoption of a resolution of its board of supervisors, an additional fee of $1 on all motor vehicles, and continuously appropriates the money to fund local programs relating to vehicle theft crimes. These provisions are repealed as of January 1, 2018. Existing law requires each participating county to issue a fiscal yearend report to the Controller, summarizing certain matters.   This bill would authorize a county of the first class to increase the fee from $1 to $2, upon adoption of a resolution of its board of supervisors, and would require the resolution to be submitted to the Department of Motor Vehicles at least 6 months prior to the operative date of the fee increase. This bill would add a new source of revenue to be deposited into a continuously appropriated fund, thereby making an appropriation.   Existing law also requires the Department of the California Highway Patrol, in consultation with all participating county-designated regional coordinators, to review the effectiveness of reducing vehicle theft crimes that were funded by the fees imposed by the above provisions. Existing law requires the department to provide a report based on that review and to submit that report, on or before January 1, 2009, to the Legislature.   This bill would repeal the above obsolete requirements imposed on the Department of the California Highway Patrol and would make other technical, nonsubstantive changes to these provisions.   Existing law, the State Bar Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of attorneys by the State Bar of California, a public corporation. Existing law requires an attorney or law firm receiving or disbursing trust funds to establish and maintain an IOLTA account, as defined, in which the attorney or law firm is required to deposit or invest all specified client deposits or funds. Existing law requires an attorney or law firm establishing an IOLTA account to report IOLTA account compliance and all other IOLTA account information required by the State Bar in the manner specified by the State Bar.   This bill would make a technical correction to a definition related to IOLTA accounts.  Vote: majority. Appropriation:  no   yes  . Fiscal committee:  no   yes  . State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:  SECTION   1.   Section 9250.14 of the   Vehicle Code   is amended to read:  9250.14. (a) (1) In addition to any other fees specified in this code and the Revenue and Taxation Code, upon the adoption of a resolution by any county board of supervisors, a fee of one dollar ($1) shall be paid at the time of registration or renewal of registration of every vehicle, except vehicles described in subdivision (a) of Section 5014.1, registered to an address within that county except those expressly exempted from payment of registration fees. The fees, after deduction of the administrative costs incurred by the department in carrying out this section, shall be paid quarterly to the Controller.  (2) (A) If a county of the first class has adopted a resolution to impose a one-dollar ($1) fee pursuant to paragraph (1), the county may increase the fee specified in paragraph (1) to two dollars ($2) in the same manner as the imposition of the initial fee pursuant to paragraph (1). The two dollars ($2) shall be paid at the time of registration or renewal of registration of a vehicle, and quarterly to the controller, as provided in paragraph (1).   (B) A resolution to increase the fee from one dollar ($1) to two dollars ($2) pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall be submitted to the department at least six months prior to the operative date of the fee increase.   (2)   (3)  In addition to the  one dollar ($1)  service fee  imposed pursuant to paragraph (1)  , and upon the implementation of the permanent trailer identification plate program, and as part of the Commercial Vehicle Registration Act of 2001  (Chapter 861 of the Statutes of 2000)  , all commercial motor vehicles subject to Section 9400.1 registered to an owner with an address in the county that established a service authority under this section, shall pay an additional service fee of two dollars ($2). (b) Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, the  money   moneys  paid to the Controller  is   are  continuously appropriated, without regard to fiscal years, for the administrative costs of the Controller, and for disbursement by the Controller to each county that has adopted a resolution pursuant to subdivision (a), based upon the number of vehicles registered, or whose registration is renewed, to an address within that county. (c) Except as otherwise provided in this subdivision,  money   moneys  allocated to a county pursuant to subdivision (b) shall be expended exclusively to fund programs that enhance the capacity of local police and prosecutors to deter, investigate, and prosecute vehicle theft crimes. In any county with a population of 250,000 or less, the  money   moneys  shall be expended exclusively for those vehicle theft crime programs and for the prosecution of crimes involving driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or both, in violation of Section 23152 or 23153, or vehicular manslaughter in violation of Section 191.5  of the Penal Code  or subdivision (c) of Section 192 of the Penal Code, or any combination of those crimes. (d)  Money   The   moneys  collected pursuant to this section shall not be expended to offset a reduction in any other source of funds, nor for any purpose not authorized under this section. (e) Any funds received by a county prior to January 1, 2000, pursuant to this section, that are not expended to deter, investigate, or prosecute crimes pursuant to subdivision (c) shall be returned to the Controller, for deposit in the Motor Vehicle Account in the State Transportation Fund. Those funds received by a county shall be expended in accordance with this section. (f) Each county that adopts a resolution under subdivision (a) shall submit, on or before the 13th day following the end of each quarter, a quarterly expenditure and activity report to the designated statewide Vehicle Theft Investigation and Apprehension Coordinator in the Department of the California Highway Patrol. (g) A county that imposes a fee under subdivision (a) shall issue a fiscal  year-end   yearend  report to the Controller on or before August 31 of each year. The report shall include a detailed accounting of the funds received and expended in the immediately preceding fiscal year, including, at a minimum, all of the following: (1) The  total revenues   amount of funds  received  and expended by the county under subdivision (b) for the immediately preceding fiscal year. (2) The total expenditures by the county under subdivision (c) for the immediately preceding fiscal year. (3) Details of expenditures made by the county under subdivision (c), including salaries and expenses, purchase of equipment and supplies, and any other expenditures made listed by type with an explanatory comment. (4) A summary of vehicle theft abatement activities and other vehicle theft programs funded by the fees collected under this section. (5) The total number of stolen vehicles recovered and the value of those vehicles during the immediately preceding fiscal year. (6) The total number of vehicles stolen during the immediately preceding fiscal year as compared to the fiscal year prior to the immediately preceding fiscal year. (7) Any additional, unexpended fee revenues received under subdivision (b) for the county for the immediately preceding fiscal year. (h) Each county that fails to submit the report required pursuant to subdivision (g) by November 30 of each year shall have the fee suspended by the Controller for one year, commencing on July 1 following the Controller's determination that a county has failed to submit the report. (i) (1) On or before January 1,  2006   2013  , and on or before January 1  annually thereafter   of each year  , the Controller shall provide to the Department of the California Highway Patrol copies of the yearend reports submitted by the counties under subdivision (g), and, in consultation with the Department of the California Highway Patrol, shall review the fiscal yearend reports submitted by each county pursuant to subdivision (g) to determine if fee revenues are being utilized in a manner consistent with this section. If the Controller determines that the use of the fee revenues is not consistent with this section, the Controller shall consult with the participating counties' designated regional coordinators. If the Controller determines that the fee revenues are still not consistent with this section, the authority to collect the fee by that county shall be suspended for one year. (2) If the Controller determines that a county has not submitted a fiscal yearend report as required in subdivision (g), the authorization to collect the service fee shall be suspended for one year pursuant to subdivision (h). (3) When the Controller determines that a fee shall be suspended for a county, the Controller shall inform the Department of Motor Vehicles on or before  January 1, 2006, and on or before  January 1  annually thereafter,   of each year  that the authority to collect a fee for that county is suspended. (j) On or before January 1  , 2006, and on or before January 1 annually thereafter   of each year  , the Controller shall prepare and submit to the Legislature a revenue and expenditure summary for each participating county that includes all of the following: (1) The total revenues received by each county. (2) The total expenditures by each county. (3) The unexpended revenues for each county.  (k) The Department of the California Highway Patrol, in consultation with all participating county designated regional coordinators, shall review the effectiveness of reducing vehicle theft crimes that were funded by the fees imposed by this section. The Department of the California Highway Patrol shall provide a report based on that review and, on or before January 1, 2009, shall submit that report to the Legislature.   (l)   (k)  For the purposes of this section, a county designated regional coordinator is that agency designated by the participating county's board of supervisors as the agency in control of its countywide vehicle theft apprehension program.  (m)   (l) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2018, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute that is enacted on or before January 1, 2018, deletes or extends that date.  SECTION 1.   Section 6213 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read: 6213. As used in this article: (a) "Qualified legal services project" means either of the following: (1) A nonprofit project incorporated and operated exclusively in California that provides as its primary purpose and function legal services without charge to indigent persons and that has quality control procedures approved by the State Bar of California. (2) A program operated exclusively in California by a nonprofit law school accredited by the State Bar of California that meets the requirements of subparagraphs (A) and (B). (A) The program shall have operated for at least two years at a cost of at least twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) per year as an identifiable law school unit with a primary purpose and function of providing legal services without charge to indigent persons. (B) The program shall have quality control procedures approved by the State Bar of California. (b) "Qualified support center" means an incorporated nonprofit legal services center that has as its primary purpose and function the provision of legal training, legal technical assistance, or advocacy support without charge and which actually provides through an office in California a significant level of legal training, legal technical assistance, or advocacy support without charge to qualified legal services projects on a statewide basis in California. (c) "Recipient" means a qualified legal services project or support center receiving financial assistance under this article. (d) "Indigent person" means a person whose income is (1) 125 percent or less of the current poverty threshold established by the United States Office of Management and Budget, or (2) who is eligible for Supplemental Security Income or free services under the Older Americans Act or Developmentally Disabled Assistance Act. With regard to a project that provides free services of attorneys in private practice without compensation, "indigent person" also means a person whose income is 75 percent or less of the maximum levels of income for lower income households as defined in Section 50079.5 of the Health and Safety Code. For the purpose of this subdivision, the income of a person who is disabled shall be determined after deducting the costs of medical and other disability-related special expenses. (e) "Fee generating case" means a case or matter that, if undertaken on behalf of an indigent person by an attorney in private practice, reasonably may be expected to result in payment of a fee for legal services from an award to a client, from public funds, or from the opposing party. A case shall not be considered fee generating if adequate representation is unavailable and any of the following circumstances exist: (1) The recipient has determined that free referral is not possible because of any of the following reasons: (A) The case has been rejected by the local lawyer referral service, or if there is no such service, by two attorneys in private practice who have experience in the subject matter of the case. (B) Neither the referral service nor any attorney will consider the case without payment of a consultation fee. (C) The case is of the type that attorneys in private practice in the area ordinarily do not accept, or do not accept without prepayment of a fee. (D) Emergency circumstances compel immediate action before referral can be made, but the client is advised that, if appropriate and consistent with professional responsibility, referral will be attempted at a later time. (2) Recovery of damages is not the principal object of the case and a request for damages is merely ancillary to an action for equitable or other nonpecuniary relief, or inclusion of a counterclaim requesting damages is necessary for effective defense or because of applicable rules governing joinder of counterclaims. (3) A court has appointed a recipient or an employee of a recipient pursuant to a statute or a court rule or practice of equal applicability to all attorneys in the jurisdiction. (4) The case involves the rights of a claimant under a publicly supported benefit program for which entitlement to benefit is based on need. (f) "Legal Services Corporation" means the Legal Services Corporation established under the Legal Services Corporation Act of 1974 (P.L. 93-355; 42 U.S.C. Sec. 2996 et seq.). (g) "Older Americans Act" means the Older Americans Act of 1965, as amended (P.L. 89-73; 42 U.S.C. Sec. 3001 et seq.). (h) "Developmentally Disabled Assistance Act" means the Developmentally Disabled Assistance and Bill of Rights Act, as amended (P.L. 94-103; 42 U.S.C. Sec. 6001 et seq.). (i) "Supplemental security income recipient" means an individual receiving or eligible to receive payments under Title XVI of the federal Social Security Act, or payments under Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 12000) of Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code. (j) "IOLTA account" means an account or investment product established and maintained pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 6211 that is any of the following: (1) An interest-bearing checking account. (2) An investment sweep product that is a daily (overnight) financial institution repurchase agreement or an open-end money market fund. (3) An investment product authorized by California Supreme Court rule or order. A daily financial institution repurchase agreement shall be fully collateralized by United States Government Securities or other comparably conservative debt securities, and may be established only with any eligible institution that is "well-capitalized" or "adequately capitalized" as those terms are defined by applicable federal statutes and regulations. An open-end money market fund shall be invested solely in United States Government Securities or repurchase agreements fully collateralized by United States Government Securities or other comparably conservative debt securities, shall hold itself out as a "money market fund" as that term is defined by federal statutes and regulations under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. Sec. 80a-1 et seq.), and, at the time of the investment, shall have total assets of at least two hundred fifty million dollars ($250,000,000). (k) "Eligible institution" means either of the following: (1) A bank, savings and loan, or other financial institution regulated by a federal or state agency that pays interest or dividends on the IOLTA account and carries deposit insurance from an agency of the federal government. (2) Any other type of financial institution authorized by the California Supreme Court.