Title
Title
Trial Court Budget | Allocations for Trial Court Operations for Fiscal Year 2026-27 (Action Required)
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Summary
Summary
Government Code section 68502.5(c)(2)(A) requires the Judicial Council to issue preliminary allocations for trial court operations in July and finalize those allocations in January of each fiscal year. In accordance with this requirement, the Trial Court Budget Advisory Committee recommends allocating $3.2 billion to the trial courts for fiscal year 2026-27. This total includes $3.1 billion from the Trial Court Trust Fund and $117.8 million from the General Fund. The committee also recommends approval of the Workload Formula policy calculation of $2.7 billion, which is based on methodologies previously approved by the Judicial Council. Based on current revenue projections and estimated savings from fiscal year 2025-26 appropriations, the Trial Court Trust Fund is projected to end fiscal year 2026-27 with a fund balance of $335.5 million. Approximately $248 million of this amount will be unrestricted and available to support future funding needs.
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Recommendation
Recommendation
The Trial Court Budget Advisory Committee recommends that the Judicial Council, effective July 17, 2026:
1. Approve total allocations of $3.2 billion from the Trial Court Trust Fund and General Fund, including base, discretionary, and nondiscretionary program funding (Attachment B, column W). These allocations are subject to technical adjustments and funding included in the final enacted budget for fiscal year 2026-27.
2. Approve the Workload Formula policy calculation of $2.7 billion for fiscal year 2026-27, consistent with existing Judicial Council-approved methodologies (Attachment C, column V).
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Speakers
Speakers
Hon. Jonathan B. Conklin (Ret.), Chair, Trial Court Budget Advisory Committee
Mr. Zlatko Theodorovic, Budget Services