COCRA’s Accomplishments & Legislative Involvement 2009

Posted in: Uncategorized

Okay COCRA members and supporters. If people ask you what COCRA has done in the past year, kindly refer them to this list that we like to call COCRA’s Accomplishments & Legislative Involvement 2009. This has been an incredibly busy year so far and needless to say your COCRA Team has been working its tail off to promote and protect the court reporting profession. We want you all to know that we couldn’t have accomplished it without your support. Thank you!

• COCRA RESERCHES AND DEVELOPS THE PAJ-TF REPORT
  
• COCRA BEGINS THE PROCESS OF EDUCATING THE LEGISLATURE
• THE “FIGHT E.R.!” CAMPAIGN OFFICIALLY BEGINS ALONG WITH OTHER LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENTS
• COCRA DEFENDS THE CRB
  
• CROSS-DISCIPLINARY LEGISLATIVE EFFORTS– COCRA REPS WEAR UNION HATS TOO
• POSITIVE RESULTS
  

COCRA RESEARCHES AND DEVELOPS THE PAJ-TF REPORT

COCRA’s Preserving Access To Justice Task Force (PAJ-TF) continued to monitor E.R. activity throughout 2008 and presented its initial PAJ-TF report at COCRA fall conference in San Francisco:

September 2008 – COCRA PAJ-TF report released

PAJ-TF report is a fact-based report containing an impartial analysis of court reporting vs. E.R., a cost analysis, experience of other states using E.R., and a one-page summary of E.R. failures in U.S. courts and the devastating outcomes.

November 2008 – COCRA President Tami Brown presents initial PAJ-TF report to NCRA leadership in Washington, D.C.

January 2009 – COCRA updates PAJ-TF report, supplement and E.R. failures document and prepares for presentation to the Legislature.

COCRA BEGINS THE PROCESS OF EDUCATING THE LEGISLATURE

February 2009 – COCRA’s PAJ-TF sponsors the first-ever California Legislative Boot Camp and Lobby Day, free to COCRA volunteer members.

COCRA board members and volunteer legislative committee members attended a one-day legislative boot camp aimed specifically at educating members and strategizing plans for California legislation and the California state budget process. COCRA’s lobbyist Libby Sanchez, of Broad & Gusman, LLP, provided an information-packed boot camp day.

COCRA board of directors and member volunteers descended upon the California capitol to begin lobbying efforts to raise awareness of court reporter issues.

Key meeting included Senator Mike Ferer, Chairman of Senate Judiciary.

Realtime demonstration was provided for legislative staff and legislators along with an informational meeting regarding the benefits of a live professional reporter and limitations of E.R.

PAJ-TF presented the updated PAJ-TF report and E.R. mishaps report to California legislators and answered questions during lobbying sessions throughout 2009.

COCRA was armed and presented actual real-life examples of poor-quality E.R.

transcripts, which included information re cost comparisons and outsourcing.

COCRA President Janice Scott designs a template for educating court administration on reporter value and organizes a meeting with court administration in San Mateo.

THE “FIGHT E.R.!” CAMPAIGN OFFICIALLY BEGINS ALONG WITH OTHER LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENTS

COCRA provided up-to-the-minute reporting and informational postings on COCRA website re E.R. battle and state budget from beginning to end to keep members informed.

May 2009 – COCRA lobbyists Broad & Gusman, along with union lobbyists and COCRA legislative committee members, organize and attend meetings with key legislative contacts:

Assembly Speaker Karen Bass and her key staff members, as well as Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg’s leadership staff, Senator Denise Ducheny and Assembly Member Noreen Evans, as well as specific staff and counsel.

Proactive meetings arranged with additional conference committee consultants and staff members in anticipation of upcoming hearings.

May 2009 – Budget Subcommittee Number 4 convenes regarding judiciary budget and E.R. issues; assigned to Joint Conference Committee for hearing.

COCRA immediately organizes informational letter-writing campaign against E.R. to Conference Committee.

June 2009 – COCRA board members presented public testimony at the Joint Conference Committee hearings against E.R. and court funding issues and presented additional information to all members and consultants:

• Presentation of PAJ-TF report and E.R. failures to conference committee members.
• Presentation of detailed written testimony regarding court reporter value, E.R. limitations and support documentation
• Presentation of E.R. failures, poor-quality E.R. transcript, cost comparisons and outsourcing/privatizing information.

June & July 2009 – COCRA continues letter-writing campaign against E.R. directed at legislative leaders and The Big 5.

June 2009 – COCRA presented to the California Legislative Womens Caucus written report regarding effects of E.R. on official court reporters, demographic study and occupational comparison analysis.

July 2009 – COCRA issues response to Governor’s defamatory comments regarding court reporters.

July 2009 – COCRA asks members to thank legislative supporters & advocates and urge a fair budget be enacted which does not include E.R.

July 2009 – COCRA continues to monitor and report on Judicial Council/AOC meetings and court budget meeting reports and provide furlough tracker information on COCRA website.

E.R. USAGE LIMITATIONS

March 2009 – COCRA board members, lobbyists, labor union and reporter leaders meet with Assembly General Counsel and AOC to draft language limiting E.R. usage.

May 2009 – COCRA board members, lobbyists, labor union and reporter leaders meet again with Assembly General Counsel and AOC counsel to finalize E.R. limiting language.

July 2009 – Limiting language later chaptered in SB 13.

COCRA DEFENDS THE CRB

May 2009 – Governor calls for the elimination of the California Court Reporters Board.

May & June 2009 – COCRA defended the California Court Reporters Board.

• COCRA lobbyists Broad & Gusman visited legislators to explain the vital function of the CRB.
• COCRA encouraged and presented letters of support in favor of maintaining the CRB.
• COCRA board members testified in favor of the CRB at The Business & Professions Committee hearings and presented written testimony detailing the functions and benefits of the CRB.
• COCRA website reported in real-time the details of the CRB hearings.

CROSS-DISCIPLINARY LEGISLATIVE EFFORTS

COCRA REPS WEAR UNION HATS TOO

Your COCRA leaders are also leaders in court employee labor union activities which have cross-over functions, offering a seat at the table in AOC negotiations.

AOC TRIAL COURT EMPLOYEES COLLABORATIVE WORKING GROUP

March 2009 – AOC Trial Court Employees Collaborative Working Group annual meeting begins the process to lessen the fiscal impact to the courts (includes COCRA cross-over delegates from AFSCME & IFPTE participating in select working group), which undertakes:

March 2009 – Select Working Group drafts talking points and legislative campaign to restore budget cuts to the Judiciary in conjunction with AOC.

May 2009 – Meets with AOC to demand fund balance/reserve information and consistency of financial data.

June 2009 – Alternate Court Funding Package – joint coalition of court employees and stakeholders, including COCRA leaders and legislative leadership, develop alternate court funding plan consisting of increasing fees (including court reporter user fee), limiting I.T. programs, and redirecting fund balances.

COURT CLOSURE NEGOTIATIONS

May 2009 – trial court closure language introduced to COCRA and labor leaders:

• Negotiations begin to establish financial data provided in support.
• Focus to guarantee employee retirement and benefit packages, limit furloughs to one day per month, and expand to include voluntary furlough program for judicial officers and security staff.

June 2009 – Trial court closure accepted and drafted, later chaptered in SB 13.

July 2009 — COCRA continues to monitor and track court furlough/MOU contract changes county by county and report current MOU changes and info on COCRA website. www.COCRA.org

AOC TRANSPARENCY LANGUAGE

JUNE 2009 – COCRA and labor leaders introduce trial court financial transparency language to provide financial transparency and information release. Meetings continue with the AOC facilitated by legislative leadership staff. Heated negotiations ensue.

July 2009 – Transparency language drafted to make it easier to get AOC/JC reports and fund balances and require legislative oversight, later chaptered as SB 13.

POSITIVE RESULTS

• NO E.R. expansion within California courts.
• NO loss of court reporter positions.
• MORE RESTRICTION on existing E.R. usage.
• Court Reporters Board is retained.
• Alternate Funding Package helps bridge the budget gap and prevents additional detriment to employees.
• Statutes enacted to assure FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY of AOC accounts to aid in trial court employee contract negotiations.

Comments are closed.