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Agenda Item
ASR
Control 20-000573 |
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MEETING DATE: |
07/14/20 |
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legal entity taking action: |
Board of Supervisors |
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board of supervisors
district(s): |
All Districts |
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SUBMITTING
Agency/Department: |
Probation
(Approved) |
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Department contact
person(s): |
Bryan Prieto (714) 645-7002 |
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Dana Schultz (714) 645-7005 |
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Subject: Discharge of Outstanding
Juvenile Fees Obligations
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ceo CONCUR |
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Clerk of the Board |
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Concur |
No Legal Objection |
Discussion |
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3 Votes Board Majority |
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Budgeted: Yes |
Current Year Cost:
N/A |
Annual Cost:
N/A |
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Staffing Impact: |
No |
# of Positions:
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Sole Source:
N/A |
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Current Fiscal Year Revenue: See Financial Impact Section
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Prior Board Action: 12/12/2017
#S42F, 11/23/2004 #38 |
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RECOMMENDED ACTION(S):
Approve the Probation Department to cease collection of juvenile fines and fees eliminated pursuant to Senate Bill 190 and authorize discharge of all outstanding associated obligations effective the day after Board of Supervisors approval.
SUMMARY:
Approval to cease collection of juvenile fines and fees previously incurred but no longer chargeable for services incurred after January 1, 2018 pursuant to Senate Bill 190 and authorization to discharge outstanding debt for fines and fees previously incurred, though not required by law, will align Orange County with statewide practices and will provide financial relief to youth and their families.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Pursuant to Resolution 04-311, adopted by the Board of Supervisors (Board) on November 23, 2004, Orange County Probation (Probation) was authorized to collect various fees, including fees associated with the cost of providing support and care of youth detained in Probation facilities and provision of drug testing. Additionally, Probation collected, on behalf of the Public Defender, fees associated with the provision of legal representation to youth and their parents/guardians.
On October 11, 2017, Senate Bill (SB) 190, authored by Senators Holly J. Mitchell and Ricardo Lara, was signed into law and became effective January 1, 2018. The bill amended numerous sections of the Government Code, Penal Codes and Welfare and Institution Codes by repealing the authority to charge most fees to parents, guardians and/or youth for costs associated with a youth’s involvement in the juvenile delinquency system and, in some instances, comparable costs for convicted young adults under the age of 21 that are under the jurisdiction of the criminal court (adult system).
Of the various fines and fees eliminated by SB 190, Probation was only charging and collecting on fees associated with support and care, legal representation and drug testing. Legal representation fees collected are on behalf of the Office of the Public Defender and for Court-appointed Alternate Defense. Effective January 1, 2018, in accordance with the law, Probation ceased assessment of these fees for costs incurred from that date forward. Also eliminated was the ability to charge fees associated with Home Detention/Electronic Monitoring Programs. While Probation did not charge or collect on those fees, Probation had a contract for the provision of those services with American Justice Solutions, Inc. dba Corrective Solutions, wherein the provider was authorized to charge said fees. On December 12, 2017, the Board approved an amendment to the contract with Corrective Solutions to only allow assessment and collection of those fees to participants of the program that are 21 years of age or older.
While SB 190 eliminated the ability to charge new fees, it did not eliminate any outstanding debt, or the ability to collect on that debt, for costs incurred December 31, 2017, and prior. Probation notified the Board via memo (Attachment A) of the intent to continue collection efforts on those fees, which at the time of implementation was approximately $1.7 million in annual revenue to the County.
To ensure Probation implemented SB 190 appropriately, the Department requested Internal Audit to conduct a review of the financial records and policies and procedures put into place in response to the bill. The audit was conducted as of December 31, 2018, and the final report was issued on March 12, 2020. A revised report was issued April 16, 2020, to correctly reflect background information about Probation and the fees that were being collected related to SB 190; there were no material changes to the report or additional analysis conducted. The report found that Probation had accurately and appropriately implemented SB 190 and there were no findings, recommendations or follow-up reports required.
Since implementation of SB 190, many Counties have voluntarily authorized elimination of outstanding debt incurred under the laws that pre-existed SB 190. As of May 2020, 40 out of 58 counties had voted to eliminate past juvenile fines and fee debt. Additionally, state efforts surrounding juvenile fines and fees continues, as demonstrated through the introduction of SB 1290, authored by Senator Maria Elena Durazo; SB 1290 is an expansion to SB 190 and proposes to vacate outstanding debt and make the obligations unenforceable and uncollectable.
As of June 17, 2020, the outstanding balance of these fees was $18.5 million for Orange County. In the aforementioned Board memo, the original outstanding balance reported was overstated due to an error in the data pulled from Probation’s Integrated Case Management System/Integrated Probation Financial System (ICMS/IPFS) that included duplicate information on outstanding balances related to cases that had co-obligors. The revised estimated amount of outstanding debt at that time is $27.5 million. The decrease from the previous balance to the current balance is due primarily to the closure of accounts (approximately $5.7 million) due to the 10-year statute of limitations expiration and collections of debt ($3.3 million). The projected annual revenue to be collected for Fiscal Year 2019-20 was $996,000 for Probation, $24,000 for Public Defender and $127,000 for Alternate Defense.
Probation requests authorization to discharge and close out any outstanding obligations associated with the fees eliminated by SB 190 in addition to any administrative fees incurred associated with the debt (e.g., Process Service Fees, Writ Fees, Returned Check Fees, etc.). Probation is prepared to implement the process to eliminate debt effective the day after Board implementation. This process involves account analysis, update of information to ICMS/IPFS, filing of legal documents, notification to debtors, etc. Any payment received after the Board approval date will be returned to the payor.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The revenues included in the FY 2020-21 Budget for the impacted Departments are as follows:
Probation, Budget Control 057, $800,000.
Public Defender, Budget Control 058, $17,000.
Alternate Defender, Budget Control 073, $48,000.
The projected revenue impact for FY 2020-21 to the Civil Filing Fees, Fund 263, is approximately $60,000.
Due to current economic impacts on the Departments, including significant reductions to revenue and increased costs, it is not anticipated that the loss of this revenue can be absorbed within the respective budgets. Both Probation and Public Defender will work closely with the County Budget Office during the fiscal year and may return to the Board if needed.
STAFFING IMPACT:
N/A
REVIEWING AGENCIES:
Public Defender
ATTACHMENT(S):
Attachment A – Board Memo Dated February 7, 2018
Attachment B – Internal Audit Report No. 1841 – Senate Bill 190 Juvenile Fee
Review