Bill Text: CA AB2520 | 2021-2022 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Department of Justice: Office of Access to Justice.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Vetoed) 2022-09-29 - Vetoed by Governor. [AB2520 Detail]

Download: California-2021-AB2520-Amended.html

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Amended  IN  Assembly  April 07, 2022

Amended  IN  Assembly  March 24, 2022

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 2520

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Introduced by Assembly Member Gabriel

February 17, 2022

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An act to add Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 15210) to Part 6 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, relating to state government.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 2520, as amended, Gabriel. Department of Justice: Office of Access to Justice.

Existing law establishes the Department of Justice, which is responsible, in part, for overseeing statewide criminal justice programs, including the California Criminalistics Institute.

This bill would require the department to establish an Office of Access to Justice by January 1, 2024, for the purpose of increasing the availability of meaningful access to justice for all Californians, as specified. The bill would prescribe the office’s duties, which include promoting access to justice for low-income and other underrepresented people in the California criminal and civil justice systems, establishing a Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable, and evaluating and triaging statewide legal aid capacity and civil legal needs, as specified. The bill would authorize the office to perform various tasks, including informing the Legislature of the office’s position on legislative proposals pending before the Legislature. provide analysis and input as necessary on issues related to civil legal aid and access justice for legislative proposals pending before the Legislature. The bill would require the office to prepare and submit a report to the Legislature by January 1, 2025, and annually thereafter, describing the office’s activities.

Digest Key

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

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Bill Text

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

 The Legislature finds and declares as follows:

(a) According to a 2017 “Justice Gap Report” by the Legal Services Corporation, low-income Americans receive inadequate or no legal assistance for approximately 85 percent of the civil legal problems that they face.

(b) According to the study The California Justice Gap: Measuring the Unmet Civil Legal Needs of Californians, in California, while 60 percent of low-income people experience at least one civil legal problem in their household each year, 23 percent have six or more civil legal problems per year. The study also found, consistent with national findings, that low-income people received inadequate or no legal help for 85 percent of these problems.

(c) On average, there is only one civil legal aid attorney available per 5,500 low-income Californians. In rural areas, that disparity is much larger.

(d) Equal access to justice advances the missions of many state programs, especially those designed to lift people out of poverty.

(e) The Office for Access to Justice at the United States Department of Justice grew from a 2010 initiative of then-United States Attorney General Eric Holder. In 2016, it was established as a stand-alone office within the United States Department of Justice with responsibility to “plan, develop, and coordinate the implementation of access to justice policy initiatives of high priority to the department and the executive branch, including in the areas of criminal indigent defense and civil legal aid.” It was reestablished in October 2021 by United States Attorney General Merrick B. Garland following a memorandum issued by President Biden reaffirming the department’s role in securing meaningful access to justice. The office has achieved many successes since its inception, including serving as the central authority on access to justice for the United States government and, through its Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable, clarifying the scope of dozens of federal programs to include the provision of legal aid, thereby furthering program goals.

SEC. 2.

 Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 15210) is added to Part 6 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, to read:

CHAPTER  4. Office of Access to Justice

15210.

 For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply:

(a) “Department” means the Department of Justice.

(b) “Office” means the Office of Access to Justice.

15210.1.

 (a) The department shall establish an Office of Access to Justice by January 1, 2024, for the purpose of increasing the availability of meaningful access to justice for all Californians, thereby improving the outcomes of state programs.

(b) The department shall provide sufficient personnel and funds to establish and operate the office.

(c) Notwithstanding this section, the department may use an existing branch or division within the department to serve as the office for purposes of implementing this chapter.

15210.2.

 (a) The office shall do all of the following:

(1) Promote access to justice for low-income and other underrepresented people in the California criminal and civil justice systems by doing all of the following:

(A) Developing policy recommendations and advising the Attorney General on access to justice issues.

(B) Coordinating with other divisions and bureaus within the department to ensure each is considering access to justice in policy, enforcement, and funding decisions.

(C) Submitting statements of interest in legal cases that implicate access to justice concerns.

(2) Establish a Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable, which shall do all of the following:

(A) Aid the office in promoting access to justice by working with state agencies and departments.

(B) Raise awareness of state agencies and departments of the ways in which civil legal aid and indigent defense can help advance a wide range of state objectives, including, but not limited to, employment, family stability, housing, consumer protection, disaster response, and public safety.

(C) Convene representatives of state agencies and departments to improve coordination of programs that help the vulnerable and underserved so that those programs are more efficient and produce better outcomes by including, when appropriate, legal services among the range of supportive services provided.

(D) Facilitate strategic partnerships with state agencies, legal aid nonprofits, and other relevant groups to promote access to civil legal aid and indigent defense and further civil rights objectives.

(E) Advance evidence-based research, data collection, and analysis on civil legal aid and indigent defense.

(3) Evaluate and triage statewide legal aid capacity and civil legal needs, including, but not limited to, all of the following:

(A) Communicating regularly with local legal aid organizations and community groups.

(B) Reviewing and evaluating existing data regarding civil legal needs and services.

(C) Identifying emerging legal issues among low-income Californians.

(D) Communicating findings to state agencies, nonprofits, and the Legislature via consolidated reports and updates.

(b) The office may do any of the following: provide analysis and input as necessary on issues related to civil legal aid and access justice for legislative proposals pending before the Legislature.

(1)Inform the Legislature of the office’s position on legislative proposals pending before the Legislature and to urge the introduction of legislative proposals.

(2)State its position and viewpoint on issues developed in the performance of its duties, as specified in this chapter.

(c) (1) The office shall prepare and submit a report to the Legislature by January 1, 2025, and annually thereafter, describing the office’s activities.

(2) A report submitted pursuant to this subdivision shall comply with Section 9795.