The budget battle continues with a partial victory
Since the Great Recession, the public services we provide in California’s courts have been devastated, but our court workers have fought every step of the way to minimize the cuts, to fund public services first, and to begin reinvesting in justice.
We didn’t manage to get all of the funding we fought for in this year’s budget – we received $160 million for trial courts instead of $266 million, so the fight continues.
Here’s a look at what we accomplished this budget season:
- We won $160 million in increased funding for trial courts. Overall, we obtained $160 million in increased courts funding in the 2014-2015 State Budget, a 5% increase!
- We won another battle on accountability. As a result of work earlier in the year, the Judicial branch will be audited to ensure that funds dedicated to trial courts have been spent on trial courts.
- We secured funding to defend against attacks on court workers’ benefits. $42.8 million of this year’s increased courts funding is expressly dedicated to healthcare, retirement and other benefits for court workers statewide.
- We moved the Governor. The Governor’s initial budget proposal called for only $60 million in additional courts funding, but our advocacy won a much greater increase because legislators, led by the champions we have cultivated, have made court funding a priority.
Our work continues. We need to:
- Develop more legislative champions by sharing our stories
- Keep improving the branch’s accountability so it’s worth investing in
- Keep the pressure on for more investment next year
- Protect public services from being privatized with no standards or accountability – and pass AB 2332 this year
Get involved in our fight to reinvest in courts & restore justice!
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