PMWJ C.S.H.B. 2309 75(R) BILL ANALYSIS JUDICIAL AFFAIRS H.B. 2309 By: Thompson C.S.H.B. 2309 By: Hartnett 4-16-97 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND The justices of the peace handle high volumes of paperwork, civil, administrative, criminal, and magisterial. Copies of documents, including certified copies, are requested by, and furnished to not only citizens, but large numbers of public and private agencies, for example credit reporting agencies, schools offering driving safety, alcohol and drug awareness, and money management courses, private investigators, attorneys, community supervision and corrections departments, and armed services departments. Under Section 118.121, Local Government Code, a justice of the peace is authorized only to collect the "copy charge" which may not exceed the cost for copies designated by the State Purchasing and General Services Commission. PURPOSE The purpose of this bill is to allow the justices of the peace to collect a fee for copies, including certified copies, that would cover the costs of labor and equipment, and bring the fees charged in line with similar fees charged by district and county clerks for the same or similar services. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1 amends Section 118.121, Local Government Code, to change the fee for issuing other document (no return required) from "copy charge" to $1 for the first page and 25 cents for each page thereafter. A new certified copy of court papers charge is added ($2 for the first page and 25 cents for each additional page). SECTION 2 amends Section 118.123(e), Local Government Code, to delete "certified copy" from the list of documents under "the fee for 'issuing other document (no return required)'" and adds a provision excepting certified copies. Language specifying that the fee for copying a page may not exceed the fee designated by the State Purchasing and General Services Commission is deleted. SECTION 3 amends Chapter 118, Subchapter E, Local Government Code, by adding new Sec. 118.1235 to provide that the fee for a "certified copy of court papers" is for issuing a certified copy of a paper filed in a justice or small claims court. The fee must be paid at the time the order is placed. SECTION 4. Effective date. SECTION 5. Emergency clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE In Section 118.121, Local Government Code, in Section 1 of the substitute, the fee for issuing other document (no return required) is changed from "copy charge" to $1 for the first page and 25 cents for each page thereafter and a new certified copy of court papers charge is added ($2 for the first page and 25 cents for each additional page); in the original bill, this section only deleted the provision for a fee for issuing other document (no return required). In Section 118.123, Local Government Code, in Section 2 of the substitute, "certified copy" was deleted from the list of documents under "the fee for 'issuing other document (no return required)'" and a provision excepting certified copies was added. Language specifying that the fee for copying a page may not exceed the fee designated by the State Purchasing and General Services Commission is also deleted. In the original bill, Sec. 118.123 specified that a justice of the peace could collect $1.00 for the first page, and $0.25 for each additional page for a copy of a document. In new Local Government Code Sec. 118.1235, in Section 3 of the substitute, the fee for a "certified copy of court papers" is for issuing a certified copy of a paper filed in a justice or small claims court and must be paid at the time the order is placed. Section 3 of the original bill moved current Section 118.124 to new Sec. 118.125 and added a new Sec. 118.124 to allow the justice of the peace to charge $2.00 for the first page, and $.25 for each additional page for a certified copy of a document that is included among the papers in a case filed in the justice or small claims court and required the fee to be paid at the time the order is placed. Section 4 of the substitute was not in the original bill. Section 4 of the original bill is Section 5 in the substitute.