Court closures threaten public safety, families, businesses and other crucial public services. SEIU members are working together with other court employees to keep courthouses open during the economic crisis.
LA Superior Court is back to full time status as the court announced an end to furloughs starting in August. July 21 is the last furlough day.
The monthly furloughs caused delays in document processing for child support and divorces and created long lines for the public.
"I'm extremely happy the furloughs are over and we're back assisting the public full-time. But we still have to restore the courts to full capacity," said Charlotte Ramos, CSA III at Stanley Mosk in downtown LA.
California court administrators have fired the whistleblower who last year exposed their poor oversight of multimillion dollar contracts with private vendors.
Michael Paul, a senior technical analyst in the Administrative Office of the Courts' information services department, said he was told Friday, July 9, that he was being fired for reporting a possible bidding irregularity in a courthouse construction project to the wrong colleague.
"Whistleblower protections allow employees to come forward to report mismanagement of funds, misuse of authority, and most of all lack of accountability," said Linda Mascorro, an LA Superior Court employee and member of the SEIU 721 executive board. "The AOC has gotten away with not being accountable or transparent. They need to be reminded that they do not have an open checkbook."
California court employees have also raised serious questions about misspending by the AOC, and they support AB 1749, which extends whistleblower protections to court employees. Click here to read more.
"Our hard work to publicize the damage of court closures and layoffs changed the conversation in Sacramento. We still have a long fight ahead, but the emerging agreement is a positive start."LA County court employees came up with ideas to make LA Courts greener and leaner. SEIU 721 researchers found that several of these added up to real savings of $20 million - 20% of the projected shortfall for 2010-11.
But LA County court administrators are dragging their feet - putting potential savings for 2010-11 at risk. In an April 2 letter, Deputy Executive Officer William Mitchell rejected members' proposals.
Click here to read the court's response (pdf).
"I don't understand why the court isn't doing more to save every penny. $20 million would keep a lot of courtrooms and public windows open. The courts can do this on their own, without waiting for the AOC."
>> Jessica Lee, CSA II at Stanley Mosk.
It's time to change how the court works. Watch for our response to the Courts that will include aggressive steps the court can take to maximize security savings and lobby for green technology and an implementation plan to secure savings for next year when they are needed most.
Potential annual savings: $20 million
Review deployment of security staff to find savings: $10 million
Implement green technology to save energy costs and employ federal funding to defray the cost of retrofits: $7 million
Consolidate law books into central locations at each courthouse: $2.5 million
Cut automatic subscriptions to legal newspapers. Judicial officers may use professional development allowances: $647,762
End transcription for jury instructions in felony trials unless requested by the Court of Appeal: $87,801
Use email to distribute appeal notices, memos, timesheets, status update form and other documents to court reporters: $13,852
Charge duplication fees to outside agencies, and attorneys: $10,000
*Sources: LA Superior Court financial reports
School districts have to open their budgets to the public. So do cities and counties. Now annual, independent audits may soon be the norm for California's multi-billion-dollar court system too.
Today a key legislative committee voted 9-0 for AB 2521, which will require independent audits of the Administrative Office of the Courts and local trial courts. The audits could flag mistakes before they are made, prevent abuse of funds and allow public debate about court spending priorities before court employees are laid off and courthouses closed to the public.
The committee also approved AB 1749, which creates whistleblower protections for AOC and court employees.
"Court employees and the public need to have confidence in the court system," said LA County Court Reporter Arnella Sims, who spoke before the committee vote. "There is a need for accountability and transparency regarding the precious finances of the judicial branch."
Why does accountability matter?
With open books and budgets, Los Angeles courts might not have laid off 329 people and closed courtrooms due to budget cuts. An independent audit of the Administrative Office of the Courts could have revealed reserve funds available to prevent these layoffs and court closures. And audits could help prevent more layoffs in the future.
San Mateo court administrators overlooked a $4 million deficit leading to dozens of layoffs and increasing backlogs that delay justice for crime victims and others who count on our courts. An independent audit could have found this mistake in time to prevent the layoffs.
"Without sensible, outside audits of the courts, mistakes can have serious consequences for families like mine," said San Mateo court worker Annette Ruiz Vides.
The Administrative Office of the Courts has spent nearly $2 billion on a computer system and costs have grown more than 35% without public oversight, according to the Daily Journal newspaper.
The Judicial Council called California courts' deficits "staggering" and said that available reserves should be used to keep courts functioning. But the report did not detail what funds were available.
Court closures, layoffs, lines, and backlogs.
California's trial courts are in sorry shape, and the public has suffered, but many believe this could have been prevented - if only the public and the legislature had known about all the available funds in our statewide court system.
Why didn't we know?
Because the administrative body that oversees courts, the Administrative Office of Courts (AOC) - unbelievably -- falls outside the jurisdiction of California's basic rules of good governance, including independent audit and financial oversight requirements.
It's time to change that and make sure that the AOC can't hide the ball anymore. Courts are for the public. Our tax dollars and fees fund them. It's time for the AOC and trial courts to receive rigorous, independent audits.
What you can do:
SEIU court employees are supporting AB 2521, which will require AOC and court audits. AB 2521 will be heard in committee on Tuesday, April 20.
To spread the word, share our video with your friends, along with a note about why you want more transparency and accountability in our court system.
By John Tanner
SEIU 721 Executive Director
Note: This blog post ran as an op-ed in the Daily Journal, one of California's leading legal newspapers, on Tuesday, April 6.
There's a bona-fide budget crisis hitting California's courts and Los Angeles' packed courthouses. Courtrooms are already closed one day a month, and that has backed up cases and limited access to justice for small businesses, families and the public at large.
Over the next three years, as much as 30 percent of the Los Angeles Superior Court system could shut down unless the state's funding priorities shift.
That's the picture court employees and officials, law enforcement, family advocates and many judges have been painting for more than a year.
Now even the Judicial Council finally is saying what the rest of us have known. A report released March 30 by the state courts' governing body said without immediate help the cuts to local courts will be "staggering."
"Courts will require additional funding to be able to avoid significant reductions in operations, including potentially substantial staff reductions and furloughs over the next three years," the report states.
Just last month, the cash-strapped Los Angeles Superior Court laid off 329 employees, cut document-processing services and shut down services for the public like the traffic-citation call center that assisted 2,000 people each month. Revenue generating services such as traffic and civil cases have been compromised. Justice is further delayed for families, crime victims and the 100,000 people who use Los Angeles courts every day.
Court employees and officials are asking the Judicial Council immediately to free up money, cancel this layoff and restore services to the public.
SEIU 721 President Bob Schoonover issued the following statement in response to a report from the Judicial Council that recognizes the need for action to protect Los Angeles courts from devastating cuts. "The level of reductions facing LA Superior Court, like all other courts in the state, is staggering," the report stated. The report called for "funding solutions" including transferring money from court construction projects.
"A short time ago California's court leaders accused the Los Angeles Superior Court of being Chicken Little when it warned of major cuts to the judicial system. Now the Judicial Council and its administrative arm, the Administrative Office of the Courts, have finally acknowledged that the Los Angeles Superior Court and very likely other courts around the state are in dire straits."
"If this acknowledgment had come two months ago, we might have been able to prevent 329 layoffs and court closures that are causing justice in Los Angeles to deteriorate. L.A. Superior Court Judge McCoy has been raising the alarm for months and requested bridge funding in February.
"Now, the AOC and the L.A. court both acknowledge that the situation is critical. If Los Angeles loses 23% of its staff over the next three years, it's going to affect 100,000 people who use the courts every day. The L.A. court projects those losses to be at 30%, based on real salary numbers rather than on the average numbers the AOC uses.
"But however you look at the numbers, the problem is indeed 'staggering' and it's not going away. The AOC now concedes that every possible step must be taken, including using construction funds, to keep courts open for the public across California. This is what SEIU, law enforcement officers, children's advocates, and local judges have spent the last 6 months fighting for.
"We hope California court leaders look not just at one-time fixes but ongoing and comprehensive solutions to our courts' financial crisis. "
"And we hope they move immediately to embrace the oversight and accountability that could have delivered independent analysis and action much more swiftly. That's why we are supporting a bill, AB 2521, that will require a truly independent look at both local courts' and the AOC's books."
Click here to view more photos from the March for Justice
200 LA County court employees filled the steps of the Stanley Mosk Courthouse in Downtown LA on Wednesday, March 17. They came to dramatize the impact of layoffs and court closures on the families, children and crime victims who use the court every day.
Courts were closed because of budget cuts, but employees held signs reading "Families and Children Can't Wait" that looked like take-a-number tickets.
Emily Martin (far right in photo), who scans documents for court records at the Mosk courthouse, was there with Bernadette Jaramillo and Jorge Becerra. They had been laid off the day before but were showing their support for other court employees.
"I don't see how they're going to be able to do their business," said Becerra.
Jaramillo, who has a 16-year-old daughter, said she had started looking for work. "I have a court order for child support but because her father is out of work I can't collect," she said.
Martin wasn't looking forward to going back to a courthouse where 10 of her co-workers lost their jobs. "It's empty," she said. "It's just us and a pile of work."
Legislature Needs to Act for Equal Justice
SEIU 721 members called on the Legislature to take action to prevent even deeper cuts to the courts planned for September.
"It doesn't make sense to close courtrooms, shut down courthouses, and lay off employees on the one hand, and continue to spend a million dollars a day on a computer system," said Court Reporter Arnella Sims. "We're going to win our fight as long as we stay together."
As the LA Court laid off 329 employees, KABC-7 reported that "a lot of those layoffs are in family court, specialists and mental health advisors who meet families before their court appearance.... Children will suffer the most."
LA County court employees march for justice Wednesday, March 17, starting at 11:30 AM at Stanley Mosk Courthouse on 1st and Hill. They will say that "families and children can't wait for justice." Click here to learn more.
As shrinking LA Courts lay off 329 employees, we're marching for justice.
Thousands of people depend on the LA County courts for fair justice. On Tuesday, March 16, the court laid off 329 employees - with hundreds more to follow unless the Legislature redirects funding to help California's busiest courts.
Assemblyman Hector De La Torre knows about why functioning courts matter for LA businesses and families. "Government accountability means making sure that the public's interest is prioritized above everything else: essential court functions must be preserved," he wrote in an op-ed in the Daily News.
He called on the Administrative Office of the Courts to "reshuffle their priorities to keep the courthouse doors open with needed staff to serve the public." Read the full article below.
Open letter to LA court employees from SEIU 721 bargaining team leaders, AFSCME and CWA-CFI (interpreters).
Dear Court Employees,
For months LA Superior Court has warned that layoffs in the worsening economy could come as early as April. On Friday, February 19, the court formally started the process of implementing layoffs.
Representatives from AFSCME, SEIU 721 and CWA-CFI met for a discussion with LA Superior Court management about layoff procedures, including cascading, assignment transfers as well as a review of the layoff policy for impacted employees.
Court employees can access the final classification ranking list through the LA Court intranet.
This was the first of several meetings that will occur before any layoffs take place.
We are working to ensure contractors and working retirees are laid off before any permanent employees.
Our efforts continue to obtain additional funding to avoid as many layoffs as possible -- now and for the next fiscal year. Court employees are making phone calls and asking legislators to redirect funding for the expensive case management system to court operations.
We urge your continued participation in efforts by union members to stop the layoffs and closure of courts.
SEIU 721
Linda Mascorro, Legal Processing Unit
Pearl Romero, Supervisory Unit
Gaye Limon, Court Reporters
AFSCME
Gwendolyn Jones, Local 575
Mary Olenick, Local 910
Sharis R. Peters, Local 276
Karen Norwood, Local 3302
CWA-CFI
Eliza Chavez-Fraga, vice president
by Arnella Sims
Los Angeles County court reporter and member of the SEIU Local 721 executive board
(This opinion piece appeared in the Los Angeles Times online edition.)
Economists, law enforcement officials and political and business leaders all agree: A healthy economy and our civil society depend on having timely, reliable access to our justice system. But you wouldn't know it reading The Times' Feb. 10 editorial, "Rebuilding California's courts."
