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.