AIA Surety would like to extend a big \u201cThank You\u201d to all the members of the California Coalition that helped defeat SB562 this session.<\/p>\n
As you may know, this past legislative session the California legislature attempted to pass Senate Bill 562.\u00a0 This bill would have resulted in both fewer bails and more pre-trial incarceration.\u00a0 Known as the \u201cRefund\u201d bill, SB 562 would have required agents to refund all premium paid if within 21 days of the posting of bail or the arraignment or if the prosecutor failed to file charges or files to dismiss the case.<\/p>\n
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Agents would have been forced to make a \u201cSophie\u2019s Choice\u201d of sorts.\u00a0 Write the bail for only those charged with crimes that the agent believed the prosecutor would NOT dismiss. Those charged, whose case might be dismissed, would stay in custody longer than needed because no bail would be written.\u00a0 The irony is that the Bill would have hurt the group of people it presumably intended to protect.<\/p>\n
The Bill had many other problems, including taxing prosecutors, judges, and law enforcement to restart the prosecution process all over if charges had to be dropped or not filed within the 21-day period.<\/p>\n
AIA Surety worked with other stakeholders to form a coalition of like-minded groups opposing SB 562.\u00a0 The coalition was comprised of sureties, agents, agent associations, critical criminal justice stakeholders, victims\u2019 rights groups, law enforcement, and prosecutors. Additionally, the coalition also brought in non-bail and non-criminal justice related groups and organizations to oppose SB 562.\u00a0 Each coalition member not only funded the effort financially but brought in lobbying resources and years of criminal justice expertise.<\/p>\n
The coalition worked tirelessly to educate legislators on the issues and challenges that made SB 562 such a bad bill. Ultimately, the coalition was successful in shutting the bill down in the public safety committee. The bill sponsor was forced to pull the bill from consideration this year and instead turn it into a two-year bill for consideration in the 2026 legislative session.<\/p>\n
We are proud to have been a part of this important coalition and look forward to continuing to work together in defending the criminal justice system and fighting for the Constitutional right to bail and pre-trial release.<\/p>\n
We know that agents have many choices when selecting a surety.\u00a0 In our humble opinion, bail agents should only work with bail sureties that spend the time, effort, and money to fight for bail.\u00a0 As shocking as it sounds, not all sureties fight for bail and public safety.\u00a0 Some leave the fight for others while they sit on the sidelines and watch.\u00a0 Some believe that bail agents alone should fund the fight.\u00a0 We don\u2019t believe either of those excuses for a second.<\/p>\n
At AIA Surety, we know that we must lead.\u00a0 We know that our place is in the fight, and we know that we have a responsibility to protect and defend our agents and the industry.\u00a0 If you are not an AIA agent and want a surety that fights for you, give us a call.<\/p>\n
If you have any questions at all, including those surrounding about SB 562 or our California coalition, please contact our team at 800.935.2245<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" AIA Surety would like to extend a big \u201cThank You\u201d to all the members of the California Coalition that helped defeat SB562 this session. As you may know, this past legislative session the California legislature attempted to pass Senate Bill 562.\u00a0 This bill would have… <\/p>\n