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SB-2 Budget Act of 2024.(2025-2026)



Current Version: 01/10/25 - Amended Senate

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SB2 :v98 #DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Senate  January 10 ,  2025

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025 – 2026 1st Ext.

Senate Bill No. 2

Introduced by Senator Wiener and Assembly Member Gabriel

January 08 ,  2025

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


SB2, as amended, Wiener . 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
 Legal Services Grant Funding
 6.00
 Project Alterations Limits
 8.00
 Antiterrorism Federal Reimbursements
 8.50
 Federal Funds Receipts
 8.51
 Federal Funds Accounts
 8.52
 Federal Reimbursements
 8.53
 Notice of Federal Audits
 8.54
 Enforce Recovery of Federal Funds for Statewide Indirect  Costs
 8.75
 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
 9.30
 Federal Levy of State Funds
 9.50
 Minor Capital Outlay Projects
 11.00
 Information Technology Reporting Requirements
 11.10
 Reporting of Statewide Software License Agreements
 11.11
 Privacy of Information in Pay Stubs
 11.93
 Disaster Response-Emergency Operations Account  Reconciliation Adjustments
 11.95
 Federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 Home and  Community-Based Services Funding
 11.96
 Coronavirus Fiscal Relief
 11.97
 State Appropriation Limit Excludable Federal Fund  Appropriations for Capital Outlay
 12.00
 State Appropriations Limit (SAL)
 12.30
 Special Fund for Economic Uncertainties
 12.32
 Proposition 98-Funding Guarantee
 12.35
 Financial Aid Policy Change Requirements
 12.45
 June to July Payroll Deferral
 13.00
 Legislative Counsel Bureau
 13.40
 Budgetary Loan Borrowing from Special Funds
 14.00
 Special Fund Loans Between Boards of the Department of  Consumer Affairs
 15.14
 Allocation of Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund
 15.25
 Data Center Rate Adjustment
 15.45
 Trial Court Funding Offsets
 15.80
 Reparations Legislation Funding
 20.00
 Reappropriations and Reversions
 24.00
 State School Fund Allocations
 24.03
 Reading Control
 24.30
 Transfer School Building Rental Income to the General  Fund
 24.60
 Report of Lottery Funds Received
 24.70
 Local Educational Agency Fiscal Accountability
 25.40
 Contracted Fiscal Services Costs
 25.50
 SCO Apportionment Payment System Assessments
 26.00
 Intraschedule Transfers
 28.00
 Program Change Notification
 28.50
 Agency Reimbursement Payments
 29.00
 Position Estimates of Governor’s Budget, May Revision,  and Final Change Book
 30.00
 Continuous Appropriations
 31.00
 Budget Act Administrative Procedures for Salaries and  Wages
 32.00
 Prohibits Excess Expenditures
 33.00
 Item Veto Severability
 34.00
 Constitutional Severability
 35.21
 Application of Net Final Payment Accrual Methodology
 35.35
 FI$Cal—​Short-Term Cash Loans
 35.50
 Estimated General Fund Revenues and Various Estimates  Related to the Budget Stabilization Account
 38.00
 Provides That This Bill Is a Budget Bill
 39.00
 Identification of Bills Related to the Budget Bill
 99.00
 Alphabetical Organization Index
 99.50
 Numerical Control Section Index

SEC. 3.

 This act is a Budget Bill within the meaning of subdivision (e) of Section 12 of Article IV of the California Constitution and shall take effect immediately.
SECTION 1.

The Legislature finds and declares as follows:

(a)On November 6, 2024, it became clear that Donald J. Trump had won election as President of the United States, setting the stage for President-elect Trump to assume office for a second term on January 20, 2025.

(b)The track record of the first Trump Administration, combined with the statements made by President-elect Trump on the campaign trail, as well as statements and policy papers issued by individuals close to his campaign and by Republican congressional leadership, indicate the consequences of his presidency for California residents and taxpayers may be significant and immediate, including: continuing the assault on reproductive freedom by limiting access to medication abortion, expanding conscience objections for employers and providers, and pursuing a national abortion ban; undoing clean vehicle policies that are critical to combating climate change and dismantling other longstanding environmental protections for clean air and clean water; repealing Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and reinstituting immigration policies that lead to family separations; withholding disaster response funding and individual assistance for victims of disasters as political retribution; and politicizing grant programs to commandeer state and local governmental resources for federal purposes.

(c)During President-elect Trump’s first term, California developed a successful roadmap for fighting back and standing up for our state’s values and our people’s constitutional rights, including filing more than 120 lawsuits challenging actions taken by the Trump Administration.

(d)Lawyers from the Attorney General’s office and the Governor’s office have been preparing for a potential second Trump term for more than a year, and they are ready to challenge in court any unconstitutional and unlawful federal policies and to mount robust and vigorous defenses of California’s laws, policies, and programs on issues critical to Californians.

(e)Preparing to litigate regressive potential actions on these major policy issues with the urgency and comprehensiveness called for in this moment necessitates ensuring the state’s legal apparatus is sufficiently resourced.

(f)The Governor, in accordance with Section 3(b) of Article IV of the California Constitution, convened the Legislature of the State of California to assemble in extraordinary session in Sacramento, California, on the second day of December 2024, to consider and act upon legislation necessary to provide additional funding to the Department of Justice and other agencies, departments, boards, and offices within the executive branch to support the ability to immediately file affirmative litigation challenging actions taken by the incoming Trump Administration, defend against litigation or enforcement actions brought by the incoming Trump Administration, and take administrative action authorized under state law to mitigate the impacts of actions by the incoming Trump Administration, and to make conforming changes to existing law consistent therewith.

(g)The Legislature therefore intends to adopt changes to the Budget Act of 2024 to provide the necessary resources to state departments and agencies to defend California’s programs, policies, institutions, and taxpayers from unlawful federal action.

SEC. 2.Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 15210) is added to Part 6 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, to read:
4.Federal Litigation Expenses
15210.

(a)The sum of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) is hereby appropriated to the Department of Justice for the purpose of paying the Department of Justice for federal litigation expenses.

(b)(1)The Department of Justice shall report to the Department of Finance and the Joint Legislative Budget Committee the use of funds provided by either of the following:

(A)This section.

(B)Control Section 5.25 of the Budget Act of 2024.

(2)The Department of Justice shall update the report required by paragraph (1) each time a court filing is made using the resources described in paragraph (1).

(c)(1)The Department of Justice shall create and maintain an internet website that details all federal litigation expenses paid for pursuant to this section or the Budget Act of 2024.

(2)The internet website required by paragraph (1) shall include, but not be limited to, descriptive narratives and supporting documents as needed.

(d)This chapter shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2029, and as of that date is repealed.

SEC. 3.

This act is a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill within the meaning of subdivision (e) of Section 12 of Article IV of the California Constitution, has been identified as related to the budget in the Budget Bill, and shall take effect immediately.