Legislature passes bills on criminal justice, debt collection, workplace harassment

The Legislature passed bills Tuesday relating to criminal justice, debt collection and workplace harassment as it worked toward the end of its 2019 session this week.

The Assembly approved a bill that requires validation of pretrial assessment tools. SB 36 was authored by Sen. Robert Hertzberg, D-Van Nuys. Hertzberg also wrote SB 10, last year’s law that would phase out cash bail pending a 2020 referendum. The new bill is in part an attempt to understand which pretrial assessment tools work and to maintain momentum on changing pretrial release practices if SB 10 goes down.

“In California, counties have already implemented significant changes,” said Assemblywoman Shirley Weber, D-San Diego. “Currently 49 of the 58 have adopted a pretrial risk assessment tool aimed at improving decision making and pretrial supervision practices.”

SB 36 passed the Assembly by a 56-0 vote after amendments were added last week that require the Judicial Council to produce an annual report on the “outcomes and potential biases in pretrial release” programs around the state.

Another Senate bill to win unanimous approval in the Assembly was SB 22. It attempts to address the state’s backlog of rape kits by requiring local law enforcement to submit them to a crime lab within 120 days and send the results to the Combined DNA Index System. It passed 63-0. But it was amended in May to remove $2 million in funding to help local law enforcement meet these requirements.

AB 1076, a bill to automate relief for arrestees who were not convicted or who successfully completed diversion or deferred entry programs, barely got out on a 41-17 vote after amendments that significantly reduced law enforcement opposition. These changes allow for prosecutors to petition to bar relief in some circumstances and place other limits on which arrestees can benefit.

The Assembly also approved Senate amendments on three bills relating to gun violence restraining orders, sending them to Gov. Gavin Newsom. AB 12 allows an order to be extended up to five years and amends the process a person can use to petition to regain their guns. AB 339 would require law enforcement agencies to have a policy for enforcing removal orders. AB 340 requires counties receiving state funds for pilot projects related to improving the Armed Prohibited Persons System to submit an annual report; it passed 67-0. During the debate, Assemblyman James Gallagher, R-Yuba City, criticized the bill and said Attorney General Xavier Becerra must do a better job addressing a backlog of people whose guns have been ordered removed.

“Maybe one day this body will push him to do his job instead of suing the president every time he wakes up in the morning,” Gallagher said.

Debtors could receive new protections under SB 616. This bill would place a debtor’s last $1,724 off limits to debt collectors in order to prevent families from becoming homeless or destitute. This amount equals the state’s calculation of the minimum basic standard of adequate care. It barely escaped the Assembly on a 43-19 vote. It now heads back to the Senate to approve amendments made last week.

“Under current law, every dollar of a person’s bank account, including their last paycheck, [earned income tax credit, or] disaster payment, can be wiped out with a single debt collector levy,” said Assemblywoman Luz Rivas, D-Arleta, the bill’s co-author.

The Senate approved a bill inspired by the #MeToo movement. AB 1478 allows workers who believe they have been discriminated against or illegally fired after suffering from sexual harassment or domestic violence to file a civil complaint without first filing a complaint with the Labor and Workforce Development Agency. It passed 24-11 and now heads back the Assembly to approve technical amendments.

Sen. Andreas Borgeas, R-Fresno, said the bill created a new “private right of action” and urged changes.

“We’re disallowing the protections that might be afforded to employers in the event of frivolous or shakedown style charges,” said Borgeas, an attorney. “I think there is an imbalance there.”

In a late vote on Monday, the Assembly put the state on a potential collision course with the National Collegiate Athletic Association. It passed SB 206 by a 73-0 vote; the bill would allow college athletes to make money using their “name, image, or likeness for a commercial purpose.” The bill now heads back to the Senate.

In a June letter to legislators, NCAA President Mark Emmert warned it might bar California teams from competing for championships if SB 206 becomes law. The bill was inspired in part by former UCLA basketball star Ed O’Bannon’s unsuccessful antitrust suit against the NCAA for licensing his likeness for a video game without his permission. O’Bannon v. NCAA et al., 2015 DJDAR 11017 (9th Cir, 2015).