(a) Notwithstanding any other law, the Judicial Council may regulate the budget and fiscal management of the trial courts. The Judicial Council, in consultation with the Controller, shall maintain appropriate regulations for recordkeeping and accounting by the courts. The Judicial Council shall seek to ensure, by these provisions, both of the following: (1) That the fiscal affairs of the trial courts are managed efficiently, effectively, and responsibly. (2) That all moneys collected by the courts, including filing fees, fines, forfeitures, and penalties, and all revenues and expenditures relating to court operations are known. The Judicial Council may delegate its authority under this section, when appropriate, to the Administrative Director of the Courts. (b) Regulations, rules, and reporting requirements adopted pursuant to this chapter shall be exempt from review and approval or other processing by the Office of Administrative Law as provided for in Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2. (c) The Controller, at the request of the Legislature, may perform and publish financial and fiscal compliance audits of the reports of court revenues and expenditures. The Controller shall report the results of these audits to the Legislature and the Judicial Council. (d) The Judicial Council shall provide for the transmission of summary information concerning court revenues and expenditures to the Controller. (e) The Judicial Council shall adopt rules to provide for reasonable public access to budget allocation and expenditure information at the state and local levels. (f) The Judicial Council shall adopt rules ensuring that, upon written request, the trial courts provide, in a timely manner, information relating to the administration of the courts, including financial information and other information that affects the wages, hours, and working conditions of trial court employees. (g) (1) The Judicial Council or its representatives may do any of the following: (A) Inspect, review, and perform comprehensive oversight and analysis of court financial records wherever they may be located. (B) Investigate allegations of financial impropriety or mismanagement. (2) The authority granted pursuant to this subdivision shall not substitute for, or conflict with, the audits conducted pursuant to subdivisions (h) and (i). (h) (1) Commencing not earlier than July 1, 2011, and not later than December 15, 2012, the entity contracted with pursuant to subdivision (j) shall establish a pilot program to audit six trial courts. That entity shall select the trial courts using the following criteria: (A) Two trial courts selected from counties with a population of 200,000 or less. (B) Two trial courts selected from counties with a population greater than 200,000 and less than 750,000. (C) Two trial courts selected from counties with a population of 750,000 or greater. The audits shall be performed in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards and shall determine the trial courtâs compliance with governing statutes, rules, and regulations relating to the revenues, expenditures, and fund balances of all material and significant funds, including state General Fund funds, funds generated from fees or fines, federal funds, grants, and any other funds within the trial courtâs administration or control. The audits required by this section shall be in addition to any audit regularly conducted pursuant to any other provision of law. (2) Based on the results of the pilot program audits described in paragraph (1), the entity contracted with pursuant to subdivision (j) shall, on or before December 15, 2013, commence an audit of the trial courts, provided that every trial court is audited in the manner prescribed by this section at least once every four years. The audits shall be performed in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards and shall determine the trial courtâs compliance
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