Amended  IN  Assembly  January 10 ,  2025

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025 – 2026 1st Ext.

Assembly Bill No. 2

Introduced by Assembly Member Gabriel and Senator Wiener

December 02 ,  2024

An act to add and repeal Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 15210) of Part 6 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, relating to state government, and making an appropriation therefor, to take effect immediately, bill related to the budget. An act to amend the Budget Act of 2024 (Chs. 22, 35, and 994, Stats. 2024), by amending Section 99.50 of, and by adding Section 5.26 to, that act, relating to the state budget, and making an appropriation therefor, to take effect immediately, budget bill.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB2, as amended, Gabriel . Department of Justice: federal litigation expenses. Budget Act of 2024.
The Budget Act of 2024 made appropriations for the support of state government for the 2024–25 fiscal year.
This bill would amend the Budget Act of 2024 by making changes to existing appropriations, as provided.
This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a Budget Bill.

Existing law establishes the Department of Justice, under the direction and control of the Attorney General, and makes the department responsible for investigation and enforcement of various laws.

This bill would appropriate $500,000 to the department to pay the department for federal litigation expenses. The bill would require the department to report certain information regarding funds used pursuant to this bill and other law and to maintain an internet website, as specified. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2029.

This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.

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

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


SECTION 1.

 Section 5.26 is added to the Budget Act of 2024, to read:

SEC. 5.26.

 (a) Notwithstanding any other law, the Department of Finance shall augment the following items of appropriation in Section 2.00 as specified:
(1) (A) $10,000,000 to Item 0250-101-0001 to be distributed by the Judicial Council, through the Legal Services Trust Fund Commission of the State Bar, as grants to qualified legal services projects and support centers, as defined in Sections 6213 to 6215, inclusive, of the Business and Professions Code, to provide civil legal services for indigent persons. The Legal Services Trust Fund Commission shall make the grant award determinations pursuant to the formula described in Section 6216 of the Business and Professions Code, after the organizations affirm they are providing qualifying services and will use the funds to provide legal services to vulnerable persons at risk of detention, deportation, eviction, wage theft, intimate partner violence, and other actions that put their safety at risk, as a result of potential or actual federal actions. The minimum grant award amount shall be $25,000, and grant funds shall not be distributed pursuant to subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 6216 of the Business and Professions Code. Up to 2.5 percent of the amount described in this paragraph shall be available for administrative costs.
(B) Following the award of all funding made available pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Judicial Council shall provide a report to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee that includes, at a minimum, the grant awardees, grant amounts, and grant period.
(2) (A) $10,000,000 to Item 5180-151-0001 to be available for grants or contracts, and state operations, under the authority of Chapter 5.6 (commencing with Section 13300) of Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code with organizations qualified pursuant to that chapter, to provide immigration-related services, including removal defense.
(B) Upon approval of the Department of Finance, funds made available pursuant to subparagraph (A) may be transferred to Item 5180-001-0001 to implement and administer immigration-related services.
(C) Following the award of funding made available pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Department of Social Services shall provide written notification to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee on the distribution of funds made available pursuant to subparagraph (A). The notification shall include, at a minimum, the grant awardees, grant amounts, and grant period, and the amount and intended purpose of any funds transferred pursuant to subparagraph (B).
(3) (A) $5,000,000 to Item 0250-101-0001 to be available to be distributed through the Judicial Council as a supplement to its existing contract with the California Access to Justice Commission as a one-time expansion of the commission’s grants to nonprofit providers of legal services. Of this amount, not more than 2.5 percent shall be available for administrative costs.
(B) Following the award of all funding made available pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Judicial Council shall provide a report to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee that includes, at a minimum, the grant awardees, grant amounts, and grant period. Any required reports to the Judicial Council shall be provided 90 days after the end of the supplemental funding grant period.
(b) Funds allocated pursuant to this section shall be available for encumbrance until June 30, 2026, and for expenditure until June 30, 2028.

SEC. 2.

 Section 99.50 of the Budget Act of 2024 is amended to read:

INDEX FOR CONTROL SECTIONS

SEC. 99.50.

 The following is an index to the general sections of this act. These sections serve to define terms and identify restrictions concerning the appropriations contained in this act.
 1.00
 Budget Act Citation
 1.50
 Intent and Format
 1.51
 Citations to Prior Budget Acts
 1.80
 Availability of Appropriations
 2.00
 Items of Appropriation
 3.00
 Defines Purposes of Appropriations
 3.10
 Subschedule Transfers for Capital Projects
 3.50
 Benefit Charges Against Salaries and Wages
 3.60
 Contribution to Public Employees’ Retirement Benefits
 3.61
 Contribution to Prefund Other Postemployment Benefits
 4.05
 Budget Adjustment Authority
 4.11
 Position Vacancy Report
 4.12
 Vacant Position Savings
 4.13
 AB 85 Repayments to Counties
 4.20
 Contribution to Public Employees’ Contingency Reserve  Fund
 4.30
 Lease-Revenue Payment Adjustments
 4.72
 Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure
 4.75
 Statewide Surcharge
 4.80
 State Public Works Board Interim Financing
 4.90
 Architectural Revolving Fund Transfer
 4.95
 Inmate and Ward Construction Revolving Account Transfer
 5.25
 Attorney’s Fees
 5.26