BILL ANALYSIS H.B. 2673 By: Thompson (Henderson) Jurisprudence 5-17-95 Senate Committee Report (Unamended) BACKGROUND The statutory county courts have been used to lessen the backlog of cases in district courts created by the state's unwillingness and inability in some areas to create additional district courts. Many counties have created statutory county courts or increased the jurisdiction of existing courts in response. The 72nd Legislature passed H.B. 66 to establish a system to help fund statutory county courts throughout the state through the collection of fees and costs to help fund the state work being done by these county courts. Under the system created, counties opt into the funding system by meeting certain conditions regarding court fees, costs, and salary levels. In return the county receives at least $25,000 per court. In the original projections, it was estimated that the collection of these fees would generate at least $25,000 per court. The appropriations bills from the last two legislative sessions have contained provisions that limited outlays to the amount of fees actually collected. The fees collected have not reached expected levels, so the counties have receive prorated portions of the state's $25,000 contribution. Many counties have increased the judges' salaries to levels higher than the amount of funds they have received from the state. Due to these problems in the current funding system, many counties are considering opting out of this system. PURPOSE As proposed, H.B. 2673 increases the credit counties receive in the judicial fund for cases heard in statutory county courts; increases the filing fees for civil cases and court costs for criminal cases heard in statutory county courts. 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 25.0016(c), Government Code, to require the comptroller, in determining the amount deposited in the judicial fund for a county that collects fees and costs, to credit $30 of each fee, rather than one-half of the fees, deposited in the judicial fund by that county for cases assigned to a statutory county court as fees. SECTION 2. Amends Sections 51.702(a) and (b), Government Code, to require the clerk of a statutory county court to collect a $30, rather than $20, filing fee in each civil case files to be used for court-related purposes. Requires a person to pay $15, rather than $10, as a court cost on conviction of any criminal offense in a statutory county court. SECTION 3. Makes application of this Act prospective. SECTION 4. Emergency clause. Effective date: 90 days after adjournment.