Inflation and budget cuts will reduce San Bernardino Superior Court’s funding by 8% for the next fiscal year, according to the allocation of funds decided by the Judicial Council of California July 12. Riverside Superior Court will suffer a 4% loss in funding.
Funding to California’s Judicial Branch was cut by a nominal $97 million, which comes to -5% compared to the last budget, and inflation has held at 3%.
“We are aware of the severity and potential impacts that a budget deficit can create for our court, but we remain resolute in our efforts to continue to provide access to justice to the community we serve,” said San Bernardino Presiding Judge Lisa Rogan and Court Executive Officer Anabel Romero jointly in an emailed statement.
San Bernardino Superior Court achieved equity in funding for the first time last year, according to the emailed statement.
Any funding cut is impactful, and this reduction will hinder the court, the statement says. San Bernardino Superior Court will prioritize access to justice and mitigate the impacts of funding reductions through consistent monitoring and evaluation, the statement said.
Superior courts are funded through the state budget, but funds are allocated to each superior court by the Judicial Council. The Judicial Council is the government department that oversees California’s superior, appellate and supreme courts.
“What we are doing is making a decision in how to spread the reduction among all of the trial courts in the most fair manner possible,” said Fresno Superior Judge Jonathan Conklin, chair of the Judicial Council’s Trial Court Budget Advisory Committee, in a press release.
Allocation was guided by the workload formula outlined in the Judicial Council’s Judicial Workload Assessment, which says, “To estimate judicial need, filings are multiplied by caseweights and divided by the judge year value. The Assessed Judicial Need (AJN) is the sum of full time equivalents
(FTE) needed across all casetypes.”
San Bernardino Superior Court had total funding of $157 million in the 2023-24 year, and will have $149 million in total funding for the 2024-25 year.
Due to inflation, this year it would cost $162 million to buy what that $157 million bought in the last fiscal year. But San Bernardino Superior is not getting $157 this year. Factoring in both inflation and reduction in funds, San Bernardino is getting $13 million less, or an approximate 8% decrease in its funding.
The court will be the second hardest hit by the reduction, following only Los Angeles Superior Court. That court will lose $44 million in its budget due to cuts and inflation.
Amador, Lassen and Trinity Superior Courts will each also lose about 8% of their funding after adjusting for inflation, but their losses will only be between $412,000 and $225,000.
Riverside Superior Court will not be hit as hard. That court had total funding of $148 million in the 2023-24 year, and will have $146 million in total funding for the 2024-25 year. Due to inflation, what $135 million worth of expenses was in 2023-24 would cost $152 million this fiscal year. In real money, the court will lose $6 million, or approximately 4%. That will be exactly average for the superior courts.
The budget includes funding for a translator pilot program that both Riverside and San Bernardino signed up for. The courts will be able to hire 10 new Spanish-language translators through funding from the program.
The Judicial Council also approved $11 million to San Bernardino Superior Court in 2028, to fund the construction of a new Victorville courthouse.
Riverside Superior Court will receive $78,000 to fund its Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children (CASA) program, while San Bernardino Superior Court will receive $57,500. Among other support, CASA allows for trained volunteers to advocate for children in juvenile court.
Read the 2023-24 budget here.
Read the 2024-25 budget here.
