Judicial branch not currently covered by Whistleblower Protection Act. Change will “protect workers and taxpayers alike.”

SACRAMENTO – Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on Wednesday signed a bill by Assemblymember Bonnie Lowenthal that gives 22,000 state employees protection from retaliation should they report waste or wrongdoing in the state’s judicial branch.

“We’ve seen some terrible stories about government waste lately,” said Lowenthal, D-Long Beach. “At the state level we have to encourage anyone who knows about wrongdoing to step forward.”

Most of the state’s employees already are covered by California’s landmark Whistleblower Protection Act. Employees of the judicial branch, however, did not enjoy those protections.

Assembly Bill 1749, by Lowenthal and Assemblymember Audra Strickland, R-Thousand Oaks, changes that. It grants full protection to judicial branch employees who report what is commonly referred to as waste, fraud or abuse.

The lack of protection for judicial branch employees came to light during a recent hearing of the Assembly Committee on Accountability. Several lawmakers were surprised to learn that employees did not already enjoy the same kind of protections that applies to other state workers.

“This will encourage people to sound the alarm if something is going wrong,” Lowenthal said.

“Every dollar we lose to waste, fraud and abuse further jeopardizes funding for education, seniors, foster children and public safety,” said Strickland.

California’s 58 trial courts – the largest being the one in Los Angeles County – handled more than 9.5 million filings in 2007-2008, the most recent year for which data is available. The court system operates on a budget of about $3.7 billion.

“By making sure that employees can report waste or abuse without fear or reprisal, we’re protecting workers and taxpayers alike,” said Lowenthal.

Contact: Will Shuck  (916) 319-2054