BILL ANALYSIS H.B. 2573 By: G. Lewis 4-19-95 Committee Report (Amended) BACKGROUND Chapter 27 of the Government Code was amended in the 72nd Legislative Session of Texas Legislature, during which the jurisdictional limit of the Justice of the Peace Courts was raised from $2,500 to $5,000. The amendment increased the number of cases which may be heard in the Justice of the Peace Court. The change in jurisdictional limits effectively took cases out of the county and district courts, where the fees were previously collected, and put them in Justice of the Peace Courts, where no fees are collected. This change caused a revenue shortfall to County Law Libraries statewide who receive their funding from filing fees in the amount of $20.00 for each civil case filed in a county or district court (Government Code, Volume 3, Section 323.023). County Law libraries serve many of the cases that are filed by individuals in the Justice of the Peace Court. PURPOSE To authorize the commissioners court to set a fee not to exceed $10.00 on civil cases in a Justice of the Peace Court, and not to exceed $20.00 on civil cases filed in a County or District Court. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1: Amends section 323.023(a), Local Government Code, to require that a sum set by the commissioners court not to exceed $20.00 shall be taxed, collected, and paid as other costs in each civil case filed in a county or district court, except suits for delinquent taxes. Requires that a sum set by the commissioners court not to exceed $10.00 shall be taxed, collected, and paid as other costs in each civil case filed in a justice court. SECTION 2: Emergency Clause. EXPLANATION OF AMENDMENTS Committee amendment #1, on lines 8 and 11 strikes the word "taxed" and on page 1, lines 7 and 10, strikes the word "sum" and substitutes "fee". SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION HB 2573 was considered by the County Affairs Committee in a public hearing on 4/19/95. The following people testified for HB 2573: Jill Finley Henderson, representing herself; and Jimothy Dyson, representing herself; and Jim Allison, representing the County Judges and Commissioner's Association of Texas; and Sharon Wayland, representing herself; and Mark Mendez, representing the Tarrant County Commissioner's Court; and Heather Cox, representing the Travis County Commissioner's Court. The following person testified against HB 2573: Sandy Prindle, representing himself and the Justices of the Peace and Constables Association of Texas. HB 2573 was left pending. HB 2573 was laid out as pending business. The County Affairs Committee considered one amendment to HB 2573. The amendment was adopted without objection. HB 2573 was reported favorably as amended with the recommendation that it do pass and be printed, by the record vote of 6 ayes, 0 nays, 0 pnv, 3 absent.